Everybody has a distinct explanation why for coming to Santa Fe: Some are drawn via its ties to mythical artist Georgia O’Keeffe, and others are fascinated with studying in regards to the Local American heritage and native structure. The ski inns, the famend opera, Christmas-style burritos (doused in pink and inexperienced chile sauces), and the semi-arid circumstance are similarly alluring. My proceed rationale was once two-fold: Discover a pristine town with my dad and talk over with the lately renovated Four Seasons Resort Rancho Encantado.
Named some of the perfect lodges in Santa Fe via Advance + Holiday readers within the 2024 World’s Best Awards, the 4 Seasons constituent finished a three-phase revitalization previous this yr. Led via boutique company Langlois Design, the updates had been centered basically at the visitor casitas, marking the primary presen the lodging have been up to date since 2008 — 4 years sooner than the lodge took at the 4 Seasons title.
“We knew we wanted to keep the original footprint of the rooms and suites but enhance it in a subtle, modern way,” normal supervisor Melissa Sims informed T+L. This pristine bankruptcy is closely accented via copper and sun shades of coral and rust, and each and every minimalist, pueblo-inspired field options in the community sourced art work and artisanal touches.
With best 65 visitor rooms, the 4 Seasons Hotel Rancho Encantado is definitively some of the smallest lodges within the hospitality emblem’s portfolio (the 57-room Four Seasons Hotel Tokyo at Marunouchi is understood to be the smallest). Don’t let its dimension dissuade you; it’s all a part of the allure. The casitas are unfold out in some way that creates a facade of a bigger vacation spot, nevertheless it doesn’t pluck lengthy to acknowledge fellow vacationers and method a familiarity with the team of workers. Upcoming all, says Sims, “The common thread for all [guests] seems to be connection,” whether or not it’s to at least one alternative or the “inherent mysticism of Santa Fe.”
Learn on for my complete evaluation of the 4 Seasons Hotel Rancho Encantado.
4 Seasons Hotel Rancho Encantado
- The constituent wrapped a multimillion-dollar revitalization within the spring of 2024; all 65 casitas had been up to date in a pueblo-inspired design with customized furnishings, a coral and rust colour palette, and all of the luxurious touches you’d be expecting at a 4 Seasons.
- Visitors can keep some of the personal spa courtyards, which incorporates a roasting bath, out of doors bathe, and sauna, at refuse difference rate.
- The constituent do business in complimentary shuttles downtown, permitting vacationers to spherical out their shuttle with visits to the Santa Fe Plaza, the Georgia O’Keeffe Museum, and the Cathedral Basilica of St. Francis of Assisi.
- There’s refuse higher spot to recognize a Santa Fe sundown or sip on a Tajín-rimmed margarita than Terra, the place the menu is focused round regional flavors.
- Discover the condition segment on bottom via climbing the Camino Encantado Path; a complimentary guided hike could also be introduced day-to-day.
The Rooms
“We are fortunate the property had excellent bones to begin with,” says Sims. On the other hand, the hot revitalization has ushered in a pristine, decidedly extra recent really feel that deliberately honors the normal design of the Southwest.
My dad and I shared a 770-square-foot deluxe two-queen casita, however my favourite parts of this actual section are to be had in many of the rooms and suites: hot flooring, a wood-burning hearth, a deep-soaking bath, and the splendid linens and pillows that furnish all 4 Seasons’ beds. The personal patio was once additionally conducive to balancing respiring within the humidity-free wind and sending off a couple of emails during my keep.
In the event you’re touring with a bigger birthday celebration or need extra field, the two-bedroom interconnecting premier casita or the 1,100-square-foot Rancho and Encantado Suites could also be higher. Along with a king mattress, the suites may also be provided with a settee mattress, rollaway, or crib. Each and every has a visitor powder room to counterpoint the whole marble bathtub.
Meals and Drink
The primary construction is the guts of the lodge. Right here, visitors get their room keys, experience a drink on the increased watering hollow, aptly named The Bar, and take a seat indisposed for breakfast, lunch, and dinner at Terra. The signature eating place’s provider was once on par with all alternative 4 Seasons I’ve visited — environment friendly, considerate, and delightfully delightful. The breakfast, lunch, and dinner menus, showcasing the “flavors of northern New Mexico,” are well-curated, and the day-to-day dinner specials grant a time of preferred intrigue for visitors on their 2nd or 3rd foods on-site.
I used to be specifically keen on the extra aimless lunch pieces, a couple of of which can be additionally at the all-day eating menu at The Bar. The fairway chile queso, the Terra Signature Burger (crowned with inexperienced chile and candied chile bacon), and the meat brisket tacos took middle degree in my culinary walk on the lodge. (I’d even move so far as to mention that the queso was once the most productive factor I ate all of the presen I used to be in Santa Fe.)
Actions and Stories
Month the lodge epitomizes inactivity, this isn’t a sit-by-the-pool-for-multiple-days more or less lodge — even though you’re welcome to take action if the elements lets in. Rather, maximum visitors, myself integrated, come to find the artwork, nature, Indigenous tradition, and historical past of the larger Santa Fe segment. Upcoming the use of age one for post-flight fix and acclimating to the elevation (Santa Fe sits just about 7,200 ft above sea degree), I used to be able to take on our first task: a Local American cultural excursion with some of the Journey Middle guides. The half-day tour to Bandelier Nationwide Monument and its 800-year-old cliff dwellings may also be adjusted in keeping with pursuits and climate; because of mist from previous within the past, our excursion was once tweaked to incorporate Valles Caldera National Preserve.
One of the crucial distinctive sides of the 4 Seasons constituent is its unbeatable proximity to climbing trails; the Camino Encantado Path brings you alongside ridges and arroyos to one of the vital maximum breathtaking perspectives I noticed all the way through the shuttle. Month you have to manufacture the trek rejected, some visitors desire the day-to-day guided excursion. “This scenic hike is led by our Adventure Center team and includes great nuggets of information about our setting, including the native plants and animals,” added Sims. “I find that time in nature — surrounded by wide open spaces — allows for deep contemplation and the space to reset.”
In the event you desire extra adrenaline-pumping actions, the workforce can organize hot-air ballooning, white-water rafting, horseback driving, or Jeep excursions in the course of the backcountry. {Golfing}, mountain cycling, or even a self-discovery direction with horses (The EQUUS Experience) also are imaginable itinerary additions. Some of the tougher portions of the shuttle was once merely choosing from the intensive space of choices the Journey Middle has on deck.
The Spa
A gradual, slightly perceptible hum radiates around the 57-acre constituent, surroundings a baseline for a stillness that encourages visitors to respire deeply and immerse themselves, albeit quickly, of their fast setting. Nowhere is that this extra tangible than the ten,000-square-foot, 15-treatment-room spa, stated to be located on a non secular vortex.
The menu accommodates anticipated products and services (healing massages and manicures) and the ones adapted in particular for the lodge. Following an future of natural completely satisfied solitude within some of the personal spa courtyards — the place I turned around between the recent bath, sauna, and chaise loungers — I started the regionally-inspired Mountain Spirit Purification medication. Incorporating sage smudging, an adobe clay frame masks, frame wrap, and scalp and bottom therapeutic massage, the 110-minute medication was once considered one of my maximum refreshing spa reviews. Throughout the frame wrap, I existed in that relaxed, not-quite-cognizant surrounding that’s best accomplished proper sooner than you nod off.
Society-friendly Choices
Consistent with Sims, many of the lodge’s clientele are {couples} or the ones on “girlfriend getaways,” however the concierge and team of workers on the Journey Middle can backup plan suitable actions for visitors of every age — from horseback driving and cycling to excursions of Diablo Canyon and academic hikes. The hot out of doors puddle could also be a favourite for more youthful vacationers, and kids ages 5 and below obtain complimentary foods at Terra.
Accessibility and Sustainability
Out there guestrooms are to be had in 4 sections: the two-bedroom interconnecting deluxe casita, the deluxe two-queen casita, the patio casita, and the Encantado Suite. Each and every has a roll-in bathe, take hold of bars, and an obtainable bathroom. Sims additionally notes that there’s golfing cart transportation between the principle construction and the casitas “for guests’ convenience.”
Sustainability is supremacy of thoughts during the constituent. Electrical automobile charging stations are to be had, there are not any single-use plastic aqua bottles or rest room facilities, and the workforce makes use of eco-certified cleansing merchandise. Terra’s menu options native, sustainable, and seasonal pieces, and the on-site Chef’s Ground supplies form and homes the on-site apiary. “We also planted indigenous landscaping for water conservation purposes,” added Sims.
Location
The 4 Seasons Hotel Rancho Encantado Santa Fe is situated within the Sangre de Cristo foothills, simply 10 miles from downtown Santa Fe and a modest over 19 miles from Santa Fe Regional Airport (SAF). The biggest airport in Unutilized Mexico, Albuquerque World Sunport (ABQ), is steadily the simpler choice for vacationers, as Santa Fe’s smaller airport best do business in direct flights to and from Dallas, Denver, and Phoenix. It’s notable to notice, on the other hand, that Albuquerque is a 65-minute pressure from the lodge, so renting a automobile or arranging an airport switch is important.
Month the 4 Seasons constituent isn’t inside of strolling distance of Santa Fe’s galleries, eating places, and museums, the lodge does trade in complimentary day-to-day shuttles to and from the historical Plaza.
Easy methods to Get the Maximum Out of Your Keep
4 Seasons Hotel Rancho Encantado Santa Fe has plenty of ongoing and limited-time packages for visitors to imagine, together with an trade in for a complimentary fourth night time and a “Ski Santa Fe” offer, with Ski Butler leases and two grownup raise tickets for 2 days on the close by ski lodge.
American Express cardholders obtain early check-in and room upgrades (when to be had), in addition to complimentary past due checkout, day-to-day breakfast for 2, and a $100 constituent credit score to significance all the way through their keep; eligible Chase cardmembers obtain the same deal when reserving thru The Edit by Chase Travel.