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Photo: via Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 3.0
The oldest public building in the United States, the Palace of the Governors is a 17th-century building that once served as the main capitol building and now houses an excellent historical museum and shop, with exhibits on the history of the building and a functioning antique print press. Behind the Palace is the New Mexico History Museum, with three floors of exhibits on the history of New Mexico, including numerous artifacts from the prehistory to the present. While the Palace is being renovated (as of 2022), disruptions are minimal most days and exhibits are displaced but available. Local Native American artists sell their work beneath the portal (covered facade) facing the Plaza. They are awarded a spot via an official lottery system.
The Palace of the Governors is an adobe structure built in the Territorial Style of Pueblo architecture on Palace Avenue in what was Santa Fe de Nuevo México and is now Santa Fe, New Mexico. Located within the Santa Fe Historic District along the Santa Fe Plaza between Lincoln and Washington avenues, it served as the seat of government for centuries, having been established as the capitol building of Nuevo México in 1610. It was New Mexico's seat of government until 1901.
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Though it has been outflanked by the O'Keeffe Museum to some extent, this museum has a somewhat more diverse, although still New-Mexico-centric, collection. The Museum's St. Francis Auditorium is one of the primary venues in town for concerts, particularly of a classical or folk flavor.
At the New Mexico Museum of Art (see above).
The Institute for American Indian Arts (IAIA) is a long-standing Santa Fe institution that helps to promote the Santa Fe Indian Market (see under "Do"/"Festivals"). Their museum holds a superb collection of contemporary Indian art.
Box-office. A converted movie theater with a pleasant atmosphere. As with most downtown sites, parking can be a pain, but there is a parking garage a block west that's usually OK in the evening.
One of the "must-see" places in town, with an impressive interior and beautiful art both inside and out. A tip for the photographer: the main façade faces west, so photographing the exterior (including several striking sculptures out front) tends to be most rewarding, atypically for Santa Fe, in the middle of the day, particularly the afternoon.
Built in 1878 and modeled after the Gothic Sainte Chapelle in Paris. An intriguing legend - the Miraculous Staircase - is attached below and serves as the highlight on the church. The Loretto is also a popular romantic wedding venue.