The Four Corners area of the American Southwest is one of the most breathtaking landscapes in the world. It is an enchanting land of painted deserts, verdant forests, and towering red mesas visible for miles under the brilliant sunlight. This area tells tales of ancient Anasazi, colonial Spanish settlements, and Native American pueblos, all bearing testament to a heritage deeply connected with nature and rich traditions.
Embark on an unforgettable ten-day journey with Far Horizons across the mesmerizing Four Corners, where New Mexico, Colorado, Utah, and Arizona converge. Starting and concluding in Albuquerque, New Mexico, we’ll explore the Indian Pueblo Cultural Center and the impressive Maxwell Museum of Anthropology at the University of New Mexico.
Chaco Canyon, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, awaits us, followed by visits to Aztec Ruins National Monument, and Mesa Verde, another World Heritage Site. In Canyon de Chelly, local Navajo guides lead us on exclusive tours to secluded spots rarely witnessed by most visitors. Notable stops also include Acoma, the US’s oldest continuously inhabited town; Zuni Pueblo, known for its historic mission church; and Santa Fe, the country’s oldest capital city, brimming with cultural stories.
Join our intimate group to experience this magical corner of the United States.
(If you have any questions about this tour itinerary, get in touch.)
Arrive in Albuquerque by 10 am. Transfer to the Best Western Rio Grande Inn. After a welcome lunch, we will enter the University of New Mexico’s Maxwell Museum of Anthropology where the director will give a talk and bring out artifacts not normally seen by the public.
Gather this evening for a welcome dinner of traditional southwestern cuisine.
Overnight for two nights at Hotel Albuquerque in Old Town. (L/D)
This morning we drive to Coronado Historic Site, just north of Albuquerque. Here we will see the remnants of the ancient Kuaua Pueblo that prospered here from the late 1300s to the early 1500s, characterized by its multi-story adobe dwellings and intricate kivas.
In 1540, Spanish explorer Francisco Vázquez de Coronado (for whom the site was named) and his expedition passed through the area, marking a significant chapter in the site’s history. We will explore the ruins of the Pueblo, and the museum and visitor center, housing 14 of the restored kiva murals and various artifacts.
In the afternoon we return to Albuquerque and visit the Indian Pueblo Cultural Center, with time to view the exhibits displaying the history, culture, and art of the 19 Pueblos of New Mexico and watch a display of Pueblo dancing. (B/L/D)
An early start this morning for a long but memorable day as we explore remote Chaco Canyon, a UNESCO World Heritage Site. An archaeological survey has recorded over 2,000 ancient architectural remains within the valley and nearby areas. This arid, treeless arroyo was the center for the Pueblo culture a thousand years ago, and magnificent building complexes still stand as mute testimony to its former grandeur.
An important hub for commerce, the immense road system branching out from Chaco Canyon shows the importance of trade to the area. In the complexity of community life, social organization, and architecture, the inhabitants of Chaco Canyon reached heights rarely matched and never surpassed by their kindred in the Four Corners Region.
Overnight for one night at the Comfort Inn & Suites in Aztec, New Mexico. (B/L/D)
Begin today at the multi-storied Aztec Ruins National Monument, situated on the north bank of the Animas River. We will walk through this five-hundred-room complex built almost 1,000 years ago. A highlight will be seeing a large and beautifully restored kiva, an underground chamber used for religious rites. Additionally, this thousand-year-old village is claimed to be the terminus of Chaco Canyon’s Great North Road.
Later and if available, we will meet with archaeologist, Linda Wheelbarger, for a specially arranged private talk on her work. She’s the excavator at Point Pueblo where a great house with attached great kiva has been discovered.
Continue to Cortez, Colorado where we overnight at the Holiday Inn Express. (B/L/D)
Today we go to Mesa Verde, the first national park set aside for its archaeological treasures. It was designated a UNESCO World Heritage Cultural site in 1978. Around 600 AD, thriving communities of Ancestral Pueblo people built elaborate stone multi-storied “apartment houses” on the mesas and in the cliffs of the towering canyon walls.
Our full day here is filled with wonder! Cliff Palace with about 150 rooms is the largest rock-face dwelling in the park. To reach Balcony House, the adventurous must climb a 32-foot ladder. Spruce Tree House is the third-largest cliff dwelling in the Park, and we will be able to look down on it from an adjoining nearby ridge.
In the late afternoon, we drive to Chinle, Arizona, and overnight for two nights at the Best Western Canyon De Chelly. Dinner is on our own. (B/L)
Part of the Navajo Tribal Land, glorious and vast Canyon de Chelly lies at the junction of two immense canyons. Sheer ruddy sandstone walls rise up to 1,000 feet, towering over arroyos with white sand stream beds. Within caves and recesses, dramatic masonry dwellings were forged, some of them hundreds of feet from the valley floor and reached only by hand and foot holds carved into the rock. These cliff houses, along with exquisite rock paintings and petroglyphs recall the prehistoric culture that once existed here.
The grandeur of this countryside will be truly appreciated as we ride through remote canyons in four-wheel drive vehicles with our private Navajo guide. He will provide us with fascinating insights into the present-day life of the Navajo, or Diné, who still inhabit and cultivate the lush valley floor.
After time to rest in the afternoon, we will drive the rim of the canyon and stop for stunning views of the valley. Dinner is on our own. (B/L)
An early departure takes us to Hubbell’s, the oldest, continuously operating trading post on the Navajo Nation lands. It offers a unique glimpse into the time when traders served as the main contact to the outside world for reservation dwellers. John Lorenzo Hubbell purchased the trading post in 1878, and the Hubbell family continued to operate it until it was sold to the National Park Service in 1965. Today, the post store still operates and there will be time to peruse the merchandise after the tour of the site.
After lunch we drive to Zuni Pueblo to visit Hawikuh Pueblo, established in 1400 AD and the Village of the Great Kivas, considered an outlier of Chaco and replete with pictographs and petroglyphs. Hawikuh Pueblo has the distinction of being the first pueblo to be conquered by Coronado. If open to visitors, we will also enter the Zuni Mission Church, Our Lady of Guadalupe, whose construction began in the 17th century.
In the late afternoon, drive to Gallup, surrounded by Navajo, Zuni, and Hopi lands. Spend two nights at the El Rancho Hotel, located on historic U.S. Route 66. This quaint inn, built in 1937 by the brother of movie magnate D.W. Griffith, became the temporary home for many Hollywood movie stars who filmed Westerns in the area throughout the 1930s to 1940s. Their autographed photos adorn the historic two-story lobby. (B/L/D)
Gallup, New Mexico is at the heart of Indian Country and renowned for Native American art. For many Native people, the most trusted non-Navajos in the last century were Lorenzo Hubbell and Bill Richardson. Navajo families would come to these merchants to pawn their most treasured jewelry and rugs, some of which had been in their family for generations. Up until the 1970s, this was one of the main functions of trading posts on reservations, to provide a place to keep these family heirlooms safe.
We will visit Richardson’s Trading Post, established in 1913, to peruse the fabulous array of Native jewelry, handmade rugs, and pottery on display (and for sale!). Here, we meet privately with a staff member who will tell us about the history of Richardson’s and about the vault that safeguards the most valuable pieces of jewelry for the local Navajo population.
We depart Gallup and drive to Acoma Pueblo, perched atop a striking sandstone mesa 367 feet above the valley floor. Known as ‘Sky City’ and inhabited since the 12th century, it is reputed to be the oldest continuously occupied community in the United States. In 1629, Acoma Pueblo received its first missionary, Fray Juan Ramirez, and under his direction, the San Estevan del Rey Mission, a monumental adobe structure, was built. Our guided tour of the pueblo takes us into the church and through the village. Here, we learn about the customs and way of life as well as the distinctive and famous black-and-white pottery made by the people who continue to inhabit the mesa and preserve this ancient and living site.
We return to Albuquerque and overnight for two nights in the Best Western Rio Grande Inn. (B/L/D)
Today we drive to Santa Fe, a city whose past is a tapestry of Native American traditions, Spanish colonization, American expansion, artistic expression, and cultural diversity. Led by a museum-trained docent guide, we embark on a walking tour of the downtown quarter to learn about Santa Fe’s diverse history and how it continues to shape its cultural identity.
Return to Albuquerque in the afternoon, with time for last-minute shopping in Old Town. Gather this evening for a farewell dinner in one of Albuquerque’s renowned restaurants. (B/L/D)
Transfer to the airport for our return flights home. (B)
