By Renee Martinez
New Mexico, the Land of Enchantment, is a great travel destination for parents and kids alike. With more activities available for kids that I ever imagined, it’s also a great place to bring boys. There’s so much to do and see – for every season, that it’s best to focus of a specific are of the state rather than assume you’ll get to see everything the state has to offer. For this review, I’ll focus on Albuquerque. Check back soon for a review on Taos and Santa Fe.
New Mexico is the fifth largest state, but ranked 36th in population. Cultural influences from Native American, Spanish and Mexican have shaped the face of this beautiful land.
If you’re traveling with kids, don’t skip over Albuquerque. There’s so much to do for boys (and girls) of any age.
Accommodations:
Radisson Hotel and Water Park Albuquerque – www.waterparknewmexico.com
2500 Carlisle Boulevard Northeast, Albuquerque, NM – (505) 888-3311 is a fun place to stay. The newly opened water park is clean and seemingly well run. Rooms are a bit on the smaller side and were not equipped with a small fridge that I find very useful when traveling with kids. Aside from that, the hotel is very centrally located so getting to and from places was a breeze. It had a restaurant with a nice breakfast selection.
To Do:
Explora!
1701 Mountain Rd NW, Albuquerque, NM 87104, Tel (505) 224-8300
This is a great hands-on science museum! It’s well organized with loads to do and see. At first I thought it was going a little young for my 9 year old – but I was wrong. There’s something for everyone. From music to construction to water play areas, and a bike on a “tightrope,” My 1 year-old had fun in a small toddler area.
We had fun snacking at the rooftop area and building with oversized Lincoln Logs.
Sandia Peak Tramway
Albuquerque, NM, Tel 505-856-7325
This is not for you if you have issues with heights…but it is really cool! The only bad thing is that aren’t any seats, so you will hold small babies while standing up. It’s a memorable view.
New Mexico Museum of Natural History and Science
1801 Mountain Road NW, Albuquerque, New Mexico, 87104, Tel (505) 841-2800
If your guys are into dinosaurs, this is a place for them! Located in Old Town, there’s lots to do and see. Don’t miss the planetarium and a simulated runaway comet.
Petroglyph National Monument
With more than 20,000 carved images in the rocks at Petroglyph National Monument, an easy hike with allow you to see the beautiful land and also identify some of the carvings of animals, people, and symbols.
Rattlesnake Museum
202 San Felipe NW, Suite A, Albuquerque, New Mexico, Tel (505) 242-6569
This is a great place for the boys in your life. This museum has a collection of rattlesnakes ad snakes in glass display cases. It’s a small place so a quick visit will give you something to do that the boys will love.
The Albuquerque Biological Park includes the Rio Grande Botanic Garden, the Rio Grande Zoo, the Albuquerque Aquarium.
903 10th Street Southwest, Albuquerque, NM 87102-4029, (505) 764-6200
We really enjoyed the Rio Grande Zoo. There’s more than 250 species of exotic and native animals to see in natural habitats with trees and well thought out landscaping. It was a lot of walking, bu they have a little train to can take if you need a break. We liked the sea lions and the gorillas and orangutans. We were unable to go to the Botanic Garden or the Albuquerque Aquarium, however I understand that the eel tunnel is a must-see.
Cliff’s Amusement Park
4800 Osuna Rd NE, Albuquerque, NM 87109-2314, (505) 881 9373
If you like amusement parks, Cliff’s is a small park that the kids will enjoy.
Acoma Pueblo – The “Sky City,” is said to be the oldest continuously inhabited city in the United States. Acoma is famous for white pottery with brown-and-black geometric decorations on it. It’s very scenic.
To Eat:
We enjoyed the wonderful New Mexican cuisine, though I grew tired of he very limited menu items for kids. Generally, kids menu are void of veggies, but I found this especially true here. Fried chicken and French fries were on every menu – with very few alternative options. The city needs to encourage a healthier menu for their youngest citizens.
Of all the places we dined in Albuquerque, our favorite was El Pinto.
About the Author: Renee Martinez consults and speaks professionally on social media marketing, integrated marketing communications, public relations and branding. She is the president of Ruby Marketing Communications (www.rubymarcom.com), a boutique marketing communications company that specializes in providing branding, social media strategy and integration, and creative services. Her blog (www.lisac95.sg-host.com), provides resources on everything marketing and social media for her active audience.
Renee has contributed as a featured monthly columnist in the monthly jewelry industry publication, JCK on matters related to internet marketing as well as in InStore Magazine as a featured blogger where she writes about developing effective marketing strategies for the jewelry industry using social media. She is the founder of: Social Media Biz Summit (www.socialmediabizsummit.com), the first large-scale SM conference to come to Buffalo, NY; #jewelrychat, a weekly twitter chat for the jewelry industry and www.RaisingBoysWorld.com. Renee teaches social marketing courses at Canisius College in Buffalo, NY for the business school as well as offers small group social media marketing training and educational seminars for businesses in Western New York and beyond.
Renee has dabbled in internet marketing arena since the early 90′s and is not ashamed to call herself a “marketing geek”. From chatting in AOL, “sharing” music on Napster, and teaching HTML classes before it was considered “cool” to developing comprehensive social media strategies, effective public relations campaigns and managing online communities (most recently Chevy Girls Buffalo).
She enjoys being able to help people find their voice online and to create buzz about their product or service that will give them the results they desire. Renee can be found on Twitter (@reneemmartinez) and Facebook (http:/www.facebook.com/RubyMarCom).
