New Member Info Requested (re Santa Fe, NM)

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JustOnce said:
Despite its name the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway (which built the line and operated the predecessor Super Chief) did not run its main line through Santa Fe. Years later it did extend a branch line to its third namesake city. That's why it doesn't stop at Santa Fe.
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There must be a good backstory about why the ATSF didn't build their line through Santa Fe. Yes, there's a hill, but its not that big, especially in comparison to Glorietta and Raton Passes.
 
MARC Rider said:
There must be a good backstory about why the ATSF didn't build their line through Santa Fe. Yes, there's a hill, but its not that big, especially in comparison to Glorietta and Raton Passes.
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I was curious so a quick google turned up that they probably didn't plan to go there at all, but it was a well known city (Santa Fe Trail, state capital, etc.) so the name was included for marketing. The locals bought bonds to finance the branch line extension from Lamy.

Source:
https://books.google.com/books?id=c... atsf bypass santa fe for albuquerque&f=false
 
Lana J C said:
Lamy is a beautiful historic station in what looks like the middle of nowhere. But, right over the hill is Interstate 25 and the shuttle van will take you quickly to Santa Fe. We need to keep using the Lamy station or they will close it down. Albuquerque may have cheaper rental cars but is farther away from Taos and Santa Fe and will take longer. Pick Lamy!
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It's a nice station in a pretty area but the $160* shuttle fee is a little nuts. I did a quick web search and it looks like the OP could hire a ride with UberX or Lyft to the center of Santa Fe for around $30-40 each way.

*40x2x2
 
Devil's Advocate said:
It's a nice station in a pretty area but the $160* shuttle fee is a little nuts. I did a quick web search and it looks like the OP could hire a ride with UberX or Lyft to the center of Santa Fe for around $30-40 each way.

*40x2x2
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Yes I think the Lamy Shuttle is overpriced. If you are coming from Flagstaff to Lamy on No. 4, you are paying almost as much for the shuttle from Lamy to Santa Fe as you are paying for the train ticket from Flagstaff. If you are coming to Lamy in a roomette or bedroom from a long distance, paying an extra $40 to get to Santa Fe doesn't seem that significant to me but I realize that others may differ.
 
Hans627 said:
Thank you all for the great input. After reviewing all the options proposed we decided to detrain in ABQ, spend a night there, Wed. 8/30, and then get a rental car the next morning for a leisurely drive to Santa Fe. I think it will be a little less hassle doing it this way as opposed to detraining in Lamy. My DW has a bad back and the less getting on and off of vans, etc., is best for her.

I have yet to rent a car. Not sure if we can pick one up in ABQ (downtown) and drop off at the airport a week later (as we will be flying home due to time constraints). Any suggestions appreciated.

Also, any recommendations regarding a hotel near the train station for the night we arrive there? Within walking distance if possible.

Again thanks for your willingness to assist.
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If you do decide to stay the night in ABQ, may I suggest the excellent Hotel Andaluz as previously mentioned as you can walk to it from the station. If you are arriving on the weekend, there is a pizza place with outdoor seating on Central Ave near the Andaluz. while the pizza is pretty good, the fun of watching the "cruisers" drive up and down Central in their lowriders and decked-out pickups is a blast! Not to be missed.
As an alternative there i a nice hotel just a little more than walking distance east on Central. I forgot the name but it used to be a mental hospital. They will pick you up at the station for free (and probably take you to the airport also). They have a rooftop lounge that offers a great view of Albuquerque and its mountains (before nightfall) and sparkling lights (due to rising heat from the city). You are not obligated to buy a drink and they are cool about it. That hotel is a very nice one, not a dump.
 
Amtrak broke my heart when it shut down Lamy. I'm almost exactly halfway between FTW and LMY, and because LMY is a much easier drive I chose LMY as my home station. Though the trip to Chicago costs more on the SWC, I enjoyed it more. But I can no longer check my luggage at LMY and being somewhat disabled I can't handle it on my own. Normally when I take the train in either direction I'm going somewhere I'm going to stay for a few weeks - I need my luggage!

I have thought about sending most of what I need thru the USPS and just taking two carry-ons. Maybe I'll try it next time...
 
Chey said:
Amtrak broke my heart when it shut down Lamy. I'm almost exactly halfway between FTW and LMY, and because LMY is a much easier drive I chose LMY as my home station. Though the trip to Chicago costs more on the SWC, I enjoyed it more. But I can no longer check my luggage at LMY and being somewhat disabled I can't handle it on my own. Normally when I take the train in either direction I'm going somewhere I'm going to stay for a few weeks - I need my luggage!

I have thought about sending most of what I need thru the USPS and just taking two carry-ons. Maybe I'll try it next time...
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Interestingly, when I booked the trip to ABQ several days ago it directed me to a webpage that gave a luggage shipping option. I didn't choose to select thus option but apparently it is readily available. There are several companies that specialize in luggage shipping in addition to the USPS.
 
MARC Rider said:
There must be a good backstory about why the ATSF didn't build their line through Santa Fe. Yes, there's a hill, but its not that big, especially in comparison to Glorietta and Raton Passes.
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According to the books I've seen, it was not feasible to build a through route via Santa Fe with 19th century technology. The AT&SF could have built into Santa Fe and stopped, or they could bypass it and continue west to California. They chose California.
 
me_little_me said:
If you do decide to stay the night in ABQ, may I suggest the excellent Hotel Andaluz as previously mentioned as you can walk to it from the station. If you are arriving on the weekend, there is a pizza place with outdoor seating on Central Ave near the Andaluz. while the pizza is pretty good, the fun of watching the "cruisers" drive up and down Central in their lowriders and decked-out pickups is a blast! Not to be missed.
As an alternative there i a nice hotel just a little more than walking distance east on Central. I forgot the name but it used to be a mental hospital. They will pick you up at the station for free (and probably take you to the airport also). They have a rooftop lounge that offers a great view of Albuquerque and its mountains (before nightfall) and sparkling lights (due to rising heat from the city). You are not obligated to buy a drink and they are cool about it. That hotel is a very nice one, not a dump.
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I believe the name is Parque Hotel. And yes, it's nice.
 
If you (and anyone else reading this thread) are looking for an interesting dining experience, head to Tucano's. It's near the train station/downtown.

You pay one price, much like a buffet. The servers come around with all different kinds of meats, and if you want some, they put a bit on your plate. They also have grilled pineapple that makes the rounds every 3-4 servers or so.

There's a little wooden cylinder on your table that is green on one end and red on the other. When you want them to keep dropping by, you leave it with the green end up. When you want to slow down or stop for a bit, you turn it so the red side is up.

They also have a soup and salad bar that is included in the charge.

http://www.tucanos.com/albuquerque.html
 
Rasputin said:
Lamy is not a fresh air stop. It is fairly close to Albuquerque which is an extended stop as you probably know.

The Lamy station is a real gem which some very attractive decorative tiles on the interior. We have always had a pleasant time waiting there or walking around the settlement if the train is running late. There are also some historical plaques near the station explaining the history of El Ortiz Harvey House which was located there. As I understand it, El Ortiz was the smallest Harvey House in the system.
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Speaking of those, how many Harvey Houses were built along what is today's Southwest Chief route? I know there's that one, one in Barstow, CA, and probably more I'm forgetting. I want to say I remember seeing an online pic or 2 of one that was abandoned sadly, but forget what city/town that one was in.

Chey said:
Amtrak broke my heart when it shut down Lamy. I'm almost exactly halfway between FTW and LMY, and bor no more unaccompanied minor(13-15 y/o) travel in/out of that station either. :(
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That really sucked, that Amtrak unstaffed Lamy. They also mostly unstaffed La Junta too, except for the fact that for whatever reason still employ a ticket agent there ONLY on weekdays. All other services were cut, it appears from looking up that station(i.e. 13-15 y/o unaccompanied minor travel, checked baggage, etc).
 
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SarahZ said:
If you (and anyone else reading this thread) are looking for an interesting dining experience, head to Tucano's. It's near the train station/downtown.

You pay one price, much like a buffet. The servers come around with all different kinds of meats, and if you want some, they put a bit on your plate. They also have grilled pineapple that makes the rounds every 3-4 servers or so.

There's a little wooden cylinder on your table that is green on one end and red on the other. When you want them to keep dropping by, you leave it with the green end up. When you want to slow down or stop for a bit, you turn it so the red side is up.

They also have a soup and salad bar that is included in the charge.

http://www.tucanos.com/albuquerque.html
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Tucanos is a Brazilian food restaurant. I would take my friend there who is from Brazil to have her assess how Brazilian it really is, but we both try to be vegetarians, so there is no point as Tucanos is meat-centric.
 
It seems to me that there was an article in the Santa Fe New Mexican two or three years ago indicating that the last taxi company in Santa Fe had closed. I don't know if that is correct or not and maybe someone can update this as it might be of interest to people going to and from Lamy and Santa Fe.
 
I live near Santa Fe and Lamy. The railroad wasn't built right into Santa Fe due to a political feud at the time, it was "punishment" to the local Santa Fe politician.

Regarding the Harvey Houses, the three with which I'm most familiar are Winslow, Santa Fe, and Las Vegas. La Fonda in Santa Fe is a renowned hotel and there has been an inn of one sort or another on that site for about 400 years.

The Harvey House in Winslow was turned into offices for a long time but in the past decade was purchased and restored. The hotel was the lunch stop for TWA in the very early passenger airline days, the planes landed at Winslow airport (designed by Charles Lindbergh) and were driven to the hotel for lunch. Today the hotel is called La Posada, the platform for the Southwest Chief is right at the hotel. I've stayed at the hotel a number of times, it's truly magical. The restaurant is fabulous with locally sourced foods.

The same people who restored La Posada have restored the Harvey House La Castañeda in Las Vegas NM, again adjacent to the SWC stop. Several rooms are now open, the bar is open, and the restaurant is scheduled to open within the next month. I cannot wait to try the restaurant and may change my local station from Lamy to Las Vegas, depending on which direction I'm traveling on the SWC.

Final tidbit. Alan Affeldt (developer and proprietor of La Posada and La Casteñeda) is restoring the Legal Tender Saloon and restaurant within walking distance of the Lamy Station. For those interested in rail history these establishments are pure gold.

https://thelegaltendersaloon.com/a-little-history
 
Thanks FunNut! I used to live in eastern NM so I've taken all three stations- ABQ, Lamy, and Las Vegas. I would use ABQ if I'm taking Amtrak one way and fly other way. Both Lamy and Las Vegas and their own surrounding areas are very fascinating to explore. ABQ is meh.
 
FunNut said:
I live near Santa Fe and Lamy. The railroad wasn't built right into Santa Fe due to a political feud at the time, it was "punishment" to the local Santa Fe politician.
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This is the first that I've heard that story, but I can believe it; William Barstow Strong, who ran the AT&SF at the time, was known to be, uh, somewhat vindictive. Not uncommon among 19th century railroad men.
 
Thank you all for your responses, input and excellent ideas. You have all been most helpful!

All reservations have been made and we are looking forward to our trip.

Thanks again!
 
Recently revisited Lamy on a lark and saw that in addition to coffee the station now includes a small bar, snack kitchen, and music venue. Amtrak station service remains defunct but you can get a draft beer or a bite to eat if you're feeling hungry or your train/shuttle is delayed. I enjoyed seeing the interior station upgrades and looking out over the tracks while imagining what the station and yard were like back in their mainline heyday. The Legal Tender Saloon is supposedly opening up sometime later this year. Here is a link to the Trip Advisor listing for Lamy since it may be updated before the next AU thread.
 
Hans627 said:
Thank you all for your responses, input and excellent ideas. You have all been most helpful!

All reservations have been made and we are looking forward to our trip.

Thanks again!
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This morning we leave BAL for our trip to Santa Fe, via WAS and CHI.

Am I correct in assuming I can check our suitcases thru from WAS to ABQ?

If we want to leave Union Station in CHI for lunch is there a place to keep your overnight bags at the station? And what would be some good places for lunch?

Thank you!
 
Yes, you can check bags through from WAS to ABQ. Be sure not to check anything you'll need before ABQ--you won't have access to checked bags on the train.

If you're traveling in a sleeping car, you can leave your carry-on bags at the Metropolitan lounge at CHI during the day. If you're in coach, I'm not sure--someone else on this forum will chime in about that, I expect.

About lunch in Chicago, there have been many discussions on this forum about that. Here's a link to one of them: https://discuss.amtraktrains.com/threads/chicago-layover.71176/
 
Make sure the agent knows the difference between ABQ (Albuquerque) and ALB (Albany). The guy in Portland, Or. didn't. y bags almost went to NY. Good thing the train was delayed a few minutes in ABQ - long enough for the agent there to find it before it headed north.
 

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