New Mexico PBS stations a few days ago broadcast a new 21-minute documentary about La Fonda on the Plaza, the storied and highly influential hotel in the middle of downtown Santa Fe.
You can watch the film below. It’s also available for viewing on the PBS app.
According to a recent article in the Albuquerque Journal about the film, including an interview with La Fonda historian Edward Pulsifer:
The documentary highlights the hotel’s fascinating past and the many people involved in preserving the historic hotel, including some of its most famous guests.
It shows how the beloved landmark has set the standard for Santa Fe hospitality since 1922. The hotel, as a Harvey House, had a front-row seat to the development of Southwestern tourism.
Pulsifer, as the hotel historian, has learned a lot about the property in his 11 years at the property.
“I got asked to do a tour in 2013,” Pulsifer says. “We now have regular art tours Wednesdays through Saturdays at 10:30 a.m. There’s a heavy emphasis on the property’s private collection. We’ve had over 8,000 people take our tours since 2013.”
La Fonda marked its official centennial in January 2022, though historic records indicate a lodging establishment was on the site in 1607, bolstering its claim as “the oldest hotel corner in America.”
La Fonda sits less than a block from the 1926-1937 alignment of Route 66 that goes into downtown Santa Fe.
(Courtesy image of La Fonda in Santa Fe, New Mexico)