Should you visit Albuquerque or Santa Fe?
Which city should you visit? Read on to compare the prices of travel for Albuquerque and Santa Fe. We’ll break down costs for accommodation, food, transportation and more to help you learn more about these two destinations. Then, you can figure out if either of these two places are accessible based on your travel budget. So, let's dig into it.
Albuquerque
Albuquerque is a large city in the middle of the desert, right in the heart of New Mexico. It's the largest city in the state and has a lot to offer visitors. The city has a quaint downtown with a handful of good shops and restaurants. The surrounding area is quite beautiful and every fall the city hosts a famous and spectacular hot air balloon festival.
Santa Fe
Santa Fe is the state capital of New Mexico as well as the oldest state capital in the United States, founded in 1607. It has become a popular travel destination due to the surrounding scenic beauty, its long history, cultural diversity especially with its proximity to American Indian pueblos and culture, and a rich concentration of arts, music, and food.
Which city is cheaper, Santa Fe or Albuquerque?
These are the overall average travel costs for the two destinations.
The average daily cost (per person) in Albuquerque is $72, while the average daily cost in Santa Fe is $127. These costs include accommodation (assuming double occupancy, so the traveler is sharing the room), food, transportation, and entertainment. While every person is different, these costs are an average of past travelers in each city. Below is a breakdown of travel costs for Albuquerque and Santa Fe in more detail.
Accommodation
For a normal double-occupancy room in Albuquerque, $50 is the average cost for a hotel room. Also in Albuquerque, the typical price for a place to stay for one person is $25, such as in a hostel.
Double occupancy rooms typically run around $128 in Santa Fe For nicer amenities and a premiere location, you can expect to pay a bit more.
Food
Albuquerque food costs typically run travelers around $20 per day. Eating every meal in a nicer restaurant will drive the cost up, and grabbing fast food or casual meals will help you save money.
In Santa Fe travelers spend around $35 a day on food. You can save money by choosing casual restaurants or food stalls, or you can spend plenty more by dining in nicer restaurants at every meal.
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Food
Meals for one day
Albuquerque $20
Santa Fe $35
Food Tours and Cooking Classes in Albuquerque
For Albuquerque, here are some samples of tours and activities related to meals and dining experiences:
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The Dinner Detective Murder Mystery Dinner Show - Albuquerque:
$71
Food Tours and Cooking Classes in Santa Fe
For Santa Fe, here are some samples of tours and activities related to meals and dining experiences:
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Dinner at the Coffee Farm:
$55
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Santa Fe Railyard Arts District Food Tour:
$102
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New Mexican Flavors Food Tour of the Santa Fe Plaza:
$138
Local Transportation
To get around in Albuquerque, the average visitor spends $42 per day, per person. This includes the costs of taxi rides and private drivers as well as public transportation, which tends to be much more affordable.
Santa Fe's transportation costs can vary by the type of transport chosen by visitors. Naturally, taxis and private drivers cost much more than public transportation options. On average, visitors spend $49 per person, per day on transportation in Santa Fe.
Hired Cars and Shuttles in Albuquerque
Also for Albuquerque, here are a few examples of actual transportation services:
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Private Transfer: Albuquerque International Sunport (ABQ) to Albuquerque:
$622
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Private Transfer: Albuquerque to Albuquerque International Sunport (ABQ):
$622
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Albuquerque Airport (ABQ) to Albuquerque - Round-Trip Private Transfer:
$177
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Albuquerque Airport (ABQ) to Albuquerque - Arrival Private Transfer:
$88
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Albuquerque to Albuquerque Airport (ABQ) - Departure Private Transfer:
$88
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Private Arrival Transfer from Albuquerque Airport (ABQ):
$81
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Private Departure Transfer To Albuquerque Airport ABQ:
$49
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Albuquerque International Airport One Way Transfer:
$48
Hired Cars and Shuttles in Santa Fe
Also for Santa Fe, here are a few examples of actual transportation services:
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Private Departure Transfer to Santa Fe Airport SAF:
$125
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Private Arrival Transfer from Santa Fe Airport (SAF):
$62
Entertainment
In Albuquerque, the costs for things to do, activities, admission tickets, and other sightseeing expenses are on average $25 per person, per day.
Sightseeing, admission tickets, things to do, and other entertainment expenses in Santa Fe can vary widely by price. On average, visitors spend around $13 per person, per day on entertainment and sightseeing here.
Tours and Activities in Albuquerque
Also, here are some specific examples of entertainment, tickets, and activities for Albuquerque.
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12pm - Public High Noon History, Legends & Lore Tour - Guided Old Town Stroll:
$35
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ABQ NM Film locations Tour, tour your favorite movies/shows filmed in ABQ:
$45
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Albuquerque Scavenger Hunt Adventure:
$21
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Breaking Bad RV Tour, visiting locations from Breaking Bad and Better call Saul:
$80
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Breaking Bad RV Virtural Tour:
$13
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Georgia on My Mind: Georgia O'keeffe and Ghost Ranch Country Tour:
$395
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Guided Bicycle Nature Tour of Albuquerque - Daily:
$69
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Mezcla de Culturas A Walking Tour of ABQ Sawmill District & Historic Old Town:
$75
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New Mexico Flavors Tour Of Old Town Albuquerque:
$124
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New Mexico Mines, Wild West Towns and Turquoise Trail Tour from Albuquerque:
$295
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Private Tour: Albuquerque Full Day:
$295
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Private Tour: Albuquerque Half Day:
$175
Tours and Activities in Santa Fe
Also, here are some specific examples of entertainment, tickets, and activities for Santa Fe.
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Bantayan Island Day Tour From Cebu:
$173
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Beer and Art Tour:
$40
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Guided Tour: 'Love Stories of Santa Fe":
$498
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Land Tour | Bantayan Island - Sightseeing - Guided Tour:
$46
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Lonely Planet Experiences: Private Walking Tour of Santa Fe:
$170
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Santa Fe Architectural Walking Tour:
$115
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Santa Fe Scavenger Hunt Adventure:
$21
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Search for The Story-Documentary Film School Scavenger Hunt Adventure:
$52
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Small-Group Canyon Road Art Tour:
$37
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Small-Group E-Bike Adventure Tour through Hidden Santa Fe:
$155
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The Best of Santa Fe Walking Tour:
$498
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Walk Granada's Skyline Tour:
$49
Alcohol
Alcoholic beverages can often be a significant portion of a traveler's budget, and the costs can vary greatly from person to person. In Santa Fe, the average amount that a visitor spends on alcoholic beverages per day is $7.74.
Sample the Local Flavors in Santa Fe
Here are a few nightlife and alcohol tours and activities from local tour providers in Santa Fe:
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Join-In Wine Tours:
$152
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White Water Rafting and Wine Tour:
$217
When we compare the travel costs of actual travelers between Albuquerque and Santa Fe, we can see that Santa Fe is more expensive. And not only is Albuquerque much less expensive, but it is actually a significantly cheaper destination. So, traveling to Albuquerque would let you spend less money overall. Or, you could decide to spend more money in Albuquerque and be able to afford a more luxurious travel style by staying in nicer hotels, eating at more expensive restaurants, taking tours, and experiencing more activities. The same level of travel in Santa Fe would naturally cost you much more money, so you would probably want to keep your budget a little tighter in Santa Fe than you might in Albuquerque.
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