Nov. 14-18, 2012
With its new LEED Gold-certified convention center, proximity to Spaceport America, unique high desert environment and a wealth of venues reflecting a colorful Spanish-Mexican colonial past, Las Cruces is poised for takeoff as New Mexico’s other meetings destination. Tucked into the southeast corner of the state, Las Cruces is so distant from either Albuquerque or Santa Fe that most visitors fly into El Paso, Texas, just 40 miles away.
“This is an exciting time to be in Las Cruces,” says Philip San Fillipo, who joined the Las Cruces CVB as executive director last spring. “Not only do we have a brand-new 55,000-square-foot convention center, but Spaceport America, which is gearing up for commercial space travel, is giving us global attention.”
With views of the Organ Mountains from its windows and outdoor event spaces, the sleek, modernistic Las Cruces Convention Center (www.meetinlascruces.com) opened in 2010 across from New Mexico State University and within a six-mile radius of 3,000 hotel rooms. The LEED certified center, which features energy efficient operations and locally sourced cuisine, has a 14,500-square-foot exhibition hall, a 9,000-square-foot ballroom and six breakout rooms.
Perhaps the most exciting activity option for attendees is the chance to visit Spaceport America (www.spaceportamerica.com), where Richard Branson’s Virgin Galactic is scheduled to start launching flights in 2014. So far over 500 passengers have paid over $200,000 for the two-hour flights, in which they will soar 62 miles into space, high enough to experience a few minutes of weightlessness and view the curvature of the earth.
About 60 miles north of Las Cruces, Spaceport sits in splendid isolation in the high desert, with pod-like administrative buildings, a long runway dubbed the Spaceway, and the futuristic Virgin Galactic terminal. The only way to have access to Spaceport is through Follow the Sun (www.ftstours.com), which provides half-day group tours.
Whether groups are coming from Las Cruces or Albuquerque, Spaceport requires a full-day commitment. But if time allows, the experience is worth it, according to Sally Lane of Destination Southwest, an Albuquerque-based DMC.
“Everyone really enjoyed it,” she says of a recent excursion. “They were amazed at the size and scope of Spaceport. Everyone got really excited about space travel.”
In contrast to the futuristic Spaceport and ultra-modern convention center, Mesilla is a charming Spanish colonial-era village adjacent to Las Cruces. Low adobe buildings, where outlaw Billy the Kid once stood trial and Pancho Villa took shelter during the Mexican Revolution, now serve as art galleries and restaurants. History and local lore are brought to life by Preciliana Sandoval of La Morena Walking Tours (www.oldmesilla.org), who greets groups at the plaza dressed as one of Villa’s female soldiers, complete with bullet belts draped across her chest.
Two of Mesilla’s most historic structures, both on the National Register of Historic Places, are now group-friendly restaurants. Built in the 1840s and once a stop on the Butterfield Stagecoach Line, La Posta de Mesilla (www.laposta-de-mesilla.com) accommodates groups of up to 200 in its meandering series of rooms adorned with Mexican folk art, fountains, tropical plants and a resident toucan. Locally grown red and green chile peppers are liberally used in menu selections, even in a flavorful red chile margarita.
Choosing among the elegant dining rooms at the Double Eagle (www.double-eagle-mesilla.com), an 1840s mansion overlooking Mesilla Plaza, is no easy task. With Baccarat crystal chandeliers hanging from a gold-leafed ceiling, the Maximilian Room is the height of 19th century splendor, while the intimate Carlotta Salon is said to be haunted by the ghost of a former owner driven mad. Guests can gather to hear the ghost story by candlelight in a darkened room following dinner.
Las Cruces’ compact downtown is the place to be on Saturdays, when the main street is given over to the outstanding Las Cruces Farmers and Crafts Market (www.meetinlascruces.com), where visitors will find locally grown pecans and chile products, including infinite varieties of salsa, pine nut brittle, Mexican pastries, art objects and more. Downtown is also home to the Branigan Cultural Center (www.las-cruces.org), a former 1930s public library, which houses a permanent local history gallery, changing exhibitions and an outdoor events area where attendees can try their hand at grinding corn and other traditional activities.
Both history and agricultural traditions are the focus of the New Mexico Farm and Ranch Heritage Museum (www.nmfarmandranchmuseum.org) where there are 47 acres of livestock exhibits and a working blacksmith’s forge. Indoor galleries are devoted to New Mexico pioneer history, including replicas of a 19th century general store, railway station and farm kitchen. The museum offers a spacious outdoor courtyard with mountain views for large gatherings, as well as several indoor banquet rooms.
