As summertime comes to a close here in Albuquerque, New Mexico, I’m reflecting on all the things I truly love about this season in my hometown. As a fairly large city with an eclectic population, there’s never any shortage of things to do in Albuquerque, but the warm weather of summer offers even more amazing opportunities for joy. If you need an excuse to visit during the summer, here are a few:
Summerfest
Annually the city hosts several music festivals throughout Albuquerque in different locations to showcase the diverse neighborhoods that make the city unique. On top of booking amazing music acts, both local and national, Summerfest also offers beer gardens featuring the cities many breweries, arts and crafts, and activities for the children.
Hiking
Hiking in the Sandia Mountains offers gorgeous views of the city and up close encounters with the interesting plant life of the area. But if you want to venture outside of the city limits, great hiking is not hard to find in New Mexico. My personal favorites include hikes in the Jemez Mountains and El Malpais National Monument. Wherever you go, you’ll notice an abundance of wildflowers that litter the desert with lovely color this time of the year.
The Amazing Weather
Blessed with mild winters, Albuquerque has amazing weather pretty much year round, but the summertime is an especially great time to be here. While it can get pretty hot, the monsoons that arrive in July cool things off pretty well and offer brief glimpses of beautiful desert rain.
Summer Concerts
Both the zoo and the balloon museum put on concerts with local and national acts throughout the summer. The balloon museum concerts are free, and both locations offer plentiful grass space for you to set up a blanket and enjoy some music al fresco with your loved ones.
The Sky
This is more of a year-round blessing here in ABQ, but you are more likely to be outside during the summertime to enjoy the constant beautiful displays of the sky. On top of stunning sunsets and sunrises, the big blue sky overhead seems endless with the high visibility of this area.
