It was hot in Albuquerque the day I arrived after driving from Moab, Utah. My hotel, Hotel Chaco, is in the city’s heart and easy to find. Upon entering the lobby, I am immediately swept away from the heat and commotion of the day.
Using pale stone masonry facade and wooden accents in the design offer a friendly atmosphere, mirror the Southwest, and are reminiscent of architectural elements found at Chaco Canyon and in New Mexico’s Pueblos. Contemporary Native American New Mexican artists create the artwork throughout the hotel, including in guestrooms.
According to hotel literature, I understand the award-winning interior designer Kris Lajeskie conceived Hotel Chaco’s interiors using subdued hues inspired by the natural wool variations employed by Navajo weavers. The hotel’s interiors combine ancestral references with contemporary materials, furnishings, and original artwork.
After checking into my lovely room, I head across the street to Sawmill Market for lunch. Originally the American Lumber Company site, the complex was re-imagined and redeveloped into a neighborhood of loft-style housing, artist studios, retail space, and the Sawmill Market: a 25,000 square-foot food market with an array of local cuisine and culinary traditions.
The market is vast, and the food offers overwhelming at first. I decide to enjoy Mexican cuisine at Flora before I start exploring the city.
My culinary enjoyment continues as I dine in the hotel at Level 5 rooftop restaurant and lounge. I enjoyed a delicious salad, Succotash Pie with Anasazi beans, carrots, peas, corn, green beans, and Yukon gold potatoes, and prickly pear mocktail.
My experiences in Albuquerque were excellent including this beautiful hotel.
Hotel Chaco is a AAA 4 diamond boutique hotel
