Best breakfast: Dragonfly Cafe:http://dragonflytaos.com/

Best lunch: Graham's Grill: We are not just praising them because they are right around the corner from Artemisia - we are recommending them because they have great food, period! http://www.grahamsgrille.com/

Best dinner: We have great places to eat in Taos, to pick just one doesn't do it justice.
Try these, and you'll be happy:

Lambert's: excellent selection of dishes - always consistent: http://lambertsoftaos.com/

Apple Tree: wonderful ambiance and court yard: http://www.taosdining.com/content/view/45/3/

Orlando's: no credit cards, all word by mouth, always packed! http://www.taosdining.com/content/view/50/3/

Downtown Bistro: We recently rediscovered this gem, and now it is one of our favorites in town! http://www.999dine.com/nm/downtownbistro/indexmain.html

Trading Post Cafe: http://taoswebb.com/menu/tradingpost/

In May and June, poppies are everywhere

Lodging

Places to stay: That's tricky for us locals to judge, because we sleep at home in our own bed. But at Artemisia we get plenty of feedback from visitors, so we have an idea... To get impartial recommendations from other travelers, try tripadvisor.com

A good place to start your search:
The Taos Association of Bed and Breakfast Inns: http://www.taos-bandb-inns.com

We would like to particularly mention these places:
Casa Gallina : http://www.casagallina.net

American Artists Gallery House : http://www.taosbedandbreakfast.com

Country Inn of Taos: http://www.taos-countryinn.com

The Mabel Dodge Luhan House : http://www.mabeldodgeluhan.com/

Old Taos Guest House: http://www.oldtaos.com

Salsa del Salto: http://www.bandbtaos.com

Alma del Monte: http://www.almaspirit.com

Fun Stuff

Now that that is taken care of, let's think recreation, and fun :
Check out these web sites to get an overall feel for Taos:

http://www.thesantafesite.com/Articles/Taoshistory.htm

http://www.virtualtourist.com/travel/North_America/United_States_of_America/
New_Mexico/Taos-836111/TravelGuide-Taos.html

http://www.taospueblo.com/

http://www.travellady.com/Issues/February05/1269TaosItsaStateofMind.htm

http://www.taosplaza.com/content/view/18/72/

Annette at the Rio Grande Gorge

One of the best things about Taos are the endless possibilities for outdoor fun:

Hiking and Biking:

1.) If you have an hour or two, head out to the rest area past the Rio Grande Gorge Bridge, and hike or bike along the West Rim trail: It's easy, do as long or short a loop trail as you wish, spectacular views are your reward.

2.) If you have more time, you MUST get out to the Wild Rivers Recreation area:
Some 25 miles or minutes north of Taos, it's at the confluence of the Rio Grande River and Red River. Great camp sites, easy or strenuous hiking down into the gorge, a great loop trail (5.5 miles) for easy hiking or biking - all away from the crowds. It's one of our favorite places in the whole area!

3.) And then of course, there is always the 1 to 1 1/2 hour hike up to William's Lake:
http://www.fs.fed.us/r3/carson/recreation/trails/trail-descriptions/trail_williams_lake.shtml
Our recommendation is to start at the Phoenix restaurant parking lot:
From the upper parking lot at the Taos Ski Valley, take Twining Road to the Phoenix restaurant parking area, which is the beginning of the trail head. It's a dirt road, at times a little steep, but no problem if you don't have a 4 wheel drive.
The very beginning of the trail is wide, and rather rocky: Don't despair, It gets better very soon.
Check out these pictures by Stephen Bass from his trip up to William's Lake: http://www.pbase.com/sabass1/hiking

Other things to do:

Wild Water Rafting down the famous "Taos Box" is best in early summer, when the water comes off the mountain: http://www.losriosriverrunners.com/riogrande.html

Ballooning over the Rio Grande Gorge: http://www.puebloballoon.com/

Curtis' Birthday Balloon ride

Soaking it up in Natural Mineral Springs:
You may want to be adventurous and try out the Black Rock Hot Springs outside of Arroyo Hondo ( get directions from locals to find it).
A little more "civilized" are the Ojo Caliente Mineral Springs: http://www.ojocalientespa.com/
The rates are very reasonable, and make sure not to miss the "Milagro Relaxation Wrap" after your soak: 25 minutes for $10. - it's worth every penny of it!

The best way to get to Ojo Caliente:
From Taos, head out on US 64 to the Gorge, pass it, and about 4/10 of a mile after, on your left side, there is a wide dirt road, right after an orange sign on the right that says something like "trucks turning" or so.
Take that dirt road, the left arm of it, it runs parallel to the gorge (and the west rim trail). It goes for about 8 or 9 miles until you hit a paved road:
There, take a right turn ( it says: Carson), and after a few miles, you'll run into US 285. Take a left turn, and soon you're down in Ojo Caliente - and you saved yourself the long way over Tres Piedras...

The Taos "Outback"

A fun drive around Taos:

This is my own custom tailored "Experience New Mexico at its best" drive around Taos:
You can do it in 2 to 3 hours, but much better would be planning on 3 to 4 hours, or even more.

Head north on US 64. At the "old blinking light" (which is now the big intersection of US 64, Hwy522, and 150), take a right turn onto Hwy 150, heading for the Taos Ski Valley. In Arroyo Seco ( why not stop, visit the Doug West Gallery and check out all the other fun places), take a left turn right at the "Abominable Snowmansion".
You're now on the "Hondo-Seco" Road. Very soon you come to Hwy 230: cross it, and continue south on the Hondo Seco Road. It drops down, leads back to the left, until eventually you reach the main Highway again (522).
Take a left turn back to Taos, and you'll be back at the the "old blinking light" in no time. This time, take a right turn, onto US 64. Drive 7 miles to the Rio Grande Gorge.
Stop before the bridge, and walk on the side of the road to the middle of the bridge or so, so that you'll get the feel for the incredible depth. Hop back into your car, just drive across the bridge and stop on your left at the rest area: it has a spectacular view back to the gorge, and you can take an easy 15 minute walk to the bench on the west rim trail.

Annette on the West Rim trail at the gorge

Drive on, to about 4/10 of a mile after the bridge: Where there is an orange sign on the right side that says "trucks turning" or so, take a left turn, onto a wide dirt road . Stay to your left once you're on it, and drive about 6 to 8 miles on that dirt road, parallel to the gorge, until you hit the paved road.
Take a LEFT turn - slow down, and be careful: before you know it, it's a dirt road again, and it drops down, rather steep, all the way down into the gorge! It's a breathtaking drive. You don't need a 4 wheel drive, I have done it numerous times in my Honda Civic.
When you reach the river, there are camping sites, picnic areas (have you brought your lunch?), and then, turn to your right and follow the river (it is paved again now) all the way to Pilar, where you intersect with the main Highway (68).
Take a left turn, and before you know it, you're almost back in Taos. Depending on the time of day, if it is late afternoon or so, make a stop at the Stakeout Restaurant (http://www.stakeoutrestaurant.com) : It comes up on your right, heading back to Taos, a few miles south of town. It's great for appetizers and a drink, maybe also for dinner. The view from the terrace is wonderful!
If you still have energy left, also stop in Ranchos de Taos, at the San Francisco de Assisi church, made famous through Georgia O'Keefe's painting:
http://www.ellensplace.net/okeeffe4.html

And now you'd want to head back to Artemisia and tell us how it all went...