By Christopher F. Schiel, Travel Correspondent

Hospitality and Charm in Distinctive B & B Suites

Charles, a long-time handyman at Casa Del Toro Bed & Breakfast, stacks the excess freshly chopped firewood next to the doorstep. Although it is in the high 70s at 3 p.m., the temperature will plummet into the low 40s after the desert sun sets. Having crumpled an old copy of the Santa Fe Reporter around a fire starter, Charles has already fixed the kiva fireplace to compensate for the chill. Once it is lit later that night, the reddish juniper-cedar pieces smolder and crackle pleasantly, and the pale pinyon pine fills the guest suite with Santa Fe's distinctive aroma.

Fireplaces warm up many of Casa Del Toro’s 30 rooms, suites, and adobe casitas—which form a tiny neighborhood mere blocks from the downtown Santa Fe’s gallery-filled Plaza district—but southwest-inspired décor, layout, and other amenities vary in each. While some boast full kitchens with ovens and stovetops and a few house jacuzzi tubs, other suites come with more memorable details, such as a bearskin rug positioned below the coffee table or claw-foot tubs. In all quarters, king-, queen-, or double-size beds invite lounging with cozy patterned linens and pillows piled high.

Between 8:30 a.m. and 9:30 a.m. every morning, the main house at 323 McKenzie Street lays out a home-cooked breakfast spread. Potato-based quiches and sweet-potato muffins rouse a steady stream of guests and locals, paired with coffee, orange juice, and a glass pitcher of strawberry smoothies. By the window, a pair of toasters preps white, wheat, or cinnamon-raisin slices for coats of butter and a choice of three flavors of jam. At the three tables in the middle of the room, diners peruse the provided maps and pamphlets to plan their days and confuse the cook with their Pig Latin acumen.

Santa Fe, New Mexico: Haven for Art in the “Land of Enchantment”

Santa Fe fulfills the promise of enchantment called out in its state slogan through a spectrum of brilliant colors: the deep blue of the dry desert sky, the orange-tinged adobe pueblo revival architecture, and the neon-to-black gradient of the sunsets stretching broadly across the horizon. These hues likely inspire the works that fill more than 250 art galleries throughout the city, making Santa Fe one of America's largest art markets.

Just before dawn, the bells of the nearby Cathedral Basilica of St. Francis of Assisi resound as merchants and Native American artisans lay out jewelry and fine crafts under the sidewalk veranda of the historic Palace of the Governors. Turquoise bangles sit alongside hand-woven shawls, each reflecting a different aspect of native traditions—a stark contrast to the stridently modern works at the Museum of Contemporary Native Arts a block away.

Clothing stores and galleries fill the rest the area surrounding the Plaza, and committed collectors converge on Canyon Road, which juts southeast from downtown through the foothills of the Sangre de Cristo Mountains. This narrow half-mile stretch hosts more than 100 showrooms, art boutiques, restaurants, and jewelry shops.

Similar to its progressive art scene, Santa Fe’s foodie philosophy challenges the traditional role of the restaurant to reflect the region's local produce. Located about 10 miles south of the city, Real Food Nation bases its sustainable menus on the harvests from its own on-site garden. The downtown Vinaigrette bistro crafts a range of unexpected entree salads from vegetables grown at the nearby 10-acre Los Portales farm.