Getting Here, Getting Around

Although Albuquerque has sprawled over recent decades, and the city can seem daunting to first-time visitors, it’s actually pretty easy to find your way around, with wide, clearly signed roads and the best compass of all in Mother Nature. To orient yourself in the city, remember that the mountains are to the east.

Albuquerque addresses are divided into four quadrants: northwest, northeast, southwest, and southeast, with the letters NW, NE, SW, and SE appearing in the address to tip you off on the general area. Central Avenue marks the north/south divide. The railroad tracks (just east of First Street, or west of I-25) split east/west.

Historically, transportation has played a major part in shaping Albuquerque—quite literally from the ground up! Consider the famous roadways of the Camino Real, the major trading route in the city’s early days, and Route 66, which helped put Albuquerque on the map as a tourism destination. The railways also performed a vital role in the city’s development and its current geography. Finally, we take to the skies, with Albuquerque’s important ballooning and aviation history, not forgetting the Sandia Peak Tramway, the longest aerial passenger tramway in the world. You quickly start to see transportation’s influence on Albuquerque’s economy, character, and culture. You can read more about that in the History chapter, but first let’s focus on the information you’ll need when you arrive.