This was one of the highlights during our family vacation to Northern NM this past early June. The ranch is quite large but our 3 yo was able to walk to all the exhibits and places throughout the property with little difficulty. We were impressed with the knowledge of the various docents and thought it was such a wonderful living history of how things used to be in times gone by in the region. Our daughter just loved the animals and exploring the different rooms in the historic houses. We were shocked how few other visitors were there when we visited midweek in early June. Don't miss it if you've got kids and are in the Santa Fe area!

We were fortunate to be visiting during the annual Spring festival. This place is a “can’t miss” for families with children. The entire area was full Of volunteers explaining the history of the area, how people lived And worked and more. We did many hands on activities, watched sheep sheeting, some local dance groups, made tortillas as well as rope as it was made in the past prior to technology. An overall wonderful experience and will definitely come back when in the area again!! Highly Recommend!!!

Las Golondrians is an outdoor museum site that has original homes various phases of New Mexican history. The guides are excellent in explaining how New Mexico was settled and how the people have lived through the ages. The guides are excellent and very knowledgable. On certain days, live active recreations take place and hands on experiences in historical art forms are part of the experience. It is a great way to learn about New Mexican history. Plan to spend at least 1-1/2 hours on a tour of part of the site and then at least an hour or two wondering the rest of the area.

We were there for the Santa Fe Beer and Food Festival. But, we realized that this a special place in the history of the West. It is visit back in time with enactors dressed in period costumes and telling the stories of the Old West. We felt that this is place to visit even without the Festival.

El Rancho de las Golondrinas, "Ranch of the Swallows", is a preserved working Spanish ranch originally built in the early 1690's. It is located just outside of Santa Fe, New Mexico on the northern end of the Spanish trade route from Mexico City, the Camino Real, and the southern end of the Santa Fe Trail. It is a living history exhibit with demonstrations and tours and samples of bread baked in old earth ovens. The Ranch was self-sustaining, where corn and wheat were grown, sheep were raised for wool and meat, yarn was spun and woven into cloth, tools were made by the blacksmith, and a family chapel was built and worshipped in. The Ranch was an official stop for travelers on the Camino Real into the 1800's. Costumed docents explain the workings of the ranch, and free tours of the main areas are provided. Our guide, Jim, was so knowledgeable that we thought that he was a retired history professor, but he told us that the history of northern New Mexico was a passion and hobby of his and it really showed! We learned more about New Mexico history in a light and entertaining way (including guide Jim's version of 'history Jeopardy'), than we did in all of our previous visits to northern New Mexico. If you love New Mexico, want to see an over three-hundred-year-old working ranch, and enjoy bread baked in an outdoor earth oven, don't miss El Rancho de las Golondrinas! (yes, it does have a gift shop!)

The ranch is just south of Santa Fe but it is still out of the way in the "country". I very highly recommend you try to arrive to take the free guided tour. Usually, it is at 10:30 am daily and lasts close to 2.5 hours. The advantage is you can enter every room of the ranch and get a thorough description of the elements of life there. Just touring on your own will not be as effective without the excellent information from the costumed guide. You can tour other parts of the property beyond the ranch complex on your own if time permits. The cost of admission is very reasonable for the experience, I highly recommend including a visit here.