Taos On The Cheap

Open House Reception at The Taos Gallery, 5:00 – 7:00 pm on Friday April 17, 2009.  ‘Melting Pot – An Exhibition of Expression and Letting Go’ features new works from a trio of diverse artists:  ceramic sculptures by Steve Gootgeld, and paintings by Bill Hudson and Kristin Jones. Show continues through April. Free reception at The Taos Gallery,103 Paseo del Pueblo Norte.

Snuggle up at the Sagebrush Inn with a Summer of Love $100 package rate until September 2009. Package includes a standard king bed room, $28 certificate for the Los Vaqueros restaurant or the Cantina bar, full breakfast for two, a bottle of New Mexico wine in your room upon arrival, and all taxes. The traditional adobe-style Sagebrush Inn has an outdoor seasonal pool, indoor hot tubs, and is set in pretty leafy grounds with patio areas. Some of the best regional bands play there at weekends if you fancy a bit of two-stepping, or just relax at the bar and admire the local art and enormous hand-carved vigas. (Package not available on holidays and some other dates.) Add on a 50 minute massage for $65 at the nearby Taos Spa, and get a Spa Day Pass for your entire stay (up to 5 days) and an additional Spa Day Pass for your companion.

Santa Fe Opera’s annual Spring Opera Tour presents a free concert at the Taos Community Auditorium, 6:00 – 8:00 pm on April 19, 2009. Performers are soprano Ashley Logan, tenor Jon-Michael Ball, baritone Michael Nyby, and pianist/music director Kirt Pavitt. The  free TCA concert includes an adaptation of The Elixir of Love, plus popular arias and songs such as Shenandoah and Home on the Range. Everybody sing along now…

If you love Taos, or if you’ve never been but want to find out exactly what you’re missing, it’s a no-brainer to enter the Taos Summer of Love sweepstakes FREE online, to win a fabulous $4000 trip for two to the heart of the Land of Enchantment.

Grand Prize: Four day Taos trip for two including airfare within the US, staying at your choice of three hotels (El Monte Sagrado, Taos Inn, or Sagebrush Inn), plus meals at three favorite Taos restaurants (Joseph’s Table, Lambert’s, Old Blinking Light), spa treatments at Ojo Caliente Mineral Springs, a $1000 certificate to spend in a Taos art gallery, tickets to five Taos museums, a Harley-Davidson tour (if you have a motorcycle license), and a choice of outings (ski, raft, balloon, golf, or llama trek.)

Come ON people, why are you even still reading this? Go to Taos Summer of Love to enter free online by 11:59 am MST on July 31, 2009. I’ve never heard anyone in Taos be so precise about time, we’re usually pretty casual around these parts, but there’s a lot at stake here. The best trip of your life, for one. Drawing on August 1, prize trip to be taken by Dec 31, 2009.  Good luck!

Receive Dining Rewards Points when you make FREE reservations through Open Table for restaurants nationwide, including these Taos faves:  The Stakeout Grill & Bar, Joseph’s Table, Sabroso, Doc Martin’s, and Graham’s Grille.

Each reservation earns you 100 points. Redeem points for dining cheques that you use like cash at any Open Table restaurant: 2,000 Points = $20 Dining Cheque. 5,000 points = $50 Cheque.  10,000 Points = $100 Cheque. (Look, they’re the ones spelling it cheque; it’s not just this Brit Bird getting her transatlantic spellings muddled.) Basically, eat out 20 times, get $20 to splurge on more lovely grub.

How it works: Create a free account at Open Table (quick, no credit card info needed) and make reservations from the site for these Taos restaurants or others in the program. There’s 41 New Mexico restaurants so far, mainly in Santa Fe and ABQ, plus restaurants across the US, Canada, and the UK, where you can earn points and spend rewards. So if you travel and eat out a lot, the savings add up even quicker.

Some restaurants offer 1,000 points per reservation, for select days and times, but none in NM at time of posting.  Reservations must be made from Open Table’s site, for two people or more, each ordering a minimum of one entrée,  and you must turn up (duh!). All details at Open Table, but basically it’s rewards galore for foodies, and an easy way to manage your table reservations. I’d love to know if you use Open Table, and how it works for you.

That’s Llama the critter, not Dharma Lamas, although Taos has its fair share of those too.  Wild Earth Llama Adventures is holding its 2008 prices for 2009 reservations made before April 30.  A ‘Take a Llama to Lunch’ day hike including lunch is $89 (will go up to $99) or $69 for children under 12, children under 2 years go FREE. Savings too of $30 – $50 on overnight or multi-day fully catered pack trips into the backcountry. Explore the Rio Grande Gorge, Wheeler Peak, the Columbine/Hondo Wilderness, and other New Mexico treasures.  So if you’re lured by llamas, save bucks by booking your 2009 trek before April 30.