Sky City Cultural Center & Haak'u Museum — Attraction in Four Corners States

It’s about a 15 minute drive from the main highway. We went later on a Sunday, the visitor center cafe was closed, there wasn’t much in the unmanned gift shop, and there were only 3-4 vendors there selling crafts (we don’t have time to check out the museum). Luckily we had a leftover juice bottle to fill at the water fountain as there was no water or beverages to buy (but there a convenience store at the gas station at the highway exit). We took the next to last tour of the day, there were only about 8 people total. The van did a minute or two drive to the top of the mesa and then our tour started. Most of the time of the tour was spent inside the big church, getting a history lesson about the Pueblo and its people - plus some wisdom about life in general and a flute performance! - from our friendly and interesting tour guide. The rest of the 1.5 hour tour was walking around the Pueblo with its amazing views and interesting architecture (they are private family homes of varying quality and age, it’s a real place not a museum), and learning more history, as well as passing a handful more vendors (we never felt like we were being pushed into buying stuff). Although it wasn’t hot when we visited, there was no shade and it looked like it had been very muddy recently (the streets are dirt, not gravel or paved). There’s no electricity or plumbing or refreshments up top, and the edges of the mesa are peppered with fancy outhouses for the residents (but visitors can use them too). At the end of the tour we had the option to ride the van back to the visitor center or “take the stairs”, which are actually a winding steep path down through the cliffs with some pretty sketchy sections where you need to grab handholds carved into the rocks. It had neat views, but I would only recommend it for people in good shape and who aren’t...

As someone with a degree in history (non European mind you), I was really looking forward to seeing Acoma and learning more about a people and their history I know little about.

The tour was well run, the vendors weren't pushy, and the scenery was amazing. However, I felt like I was being given a lecture the whole time on the evils of the Spanish (explorers, settlers, and missionaries). While I fully acknowledge the horrors most Spanish did (exploitation, enslaving, slaughtering, and maiming to name a few), there was no attempt at a nuanced understanding of the history. It was pretty much all Spaniards are evil and all Acoma were good victims. While I know little about the actual history, I know enough about history to know that this is never how history plays out. There are good Spaniards and bad Acoma in every story.

The Acoma are a proud people. And they certainly have reason to still hold a grudge. But I felt that the instant I started asking any questions about their history, was the instant I turned into just another Spanish conquistador and I was cut off with a curt answer. I didn't feel very welcomed, despite the fact that I genuinely wanted to hear more about their people and history.

I know this could have just been a bad tour guide we had. I had little chance to talk with anyone other than the girl giving us our tour. So don't let my experience cloud what could be a great one for you. I would still recommend going to anyone. Because the place is just amazing. But I left feeling...

This review is for the pueblo tour. For $25 there should be much more to see and a much better trained guide. Ours was lovely yet, sadly completely unprepared for the task. When she talked about the settelment's history she constantly inserted "do" and "does" before each verb which was insanely distracting. "They DO live here", "they DID come here", "they DID build this", "they DID conquer"... every sentence! After five minutes of that all you do is wait for the next "did", "does", "do". She also stuck to her script and struggled anytime a question came up from a group.

The settlement itself is practically abandoned. The only residents we saw were vendors. Wonderfully warm and talented people, but we, the visitors, get no sense of the real life there. The Acoma come up to set up their tables and leave as soon as the last tour group leaves.

Essentially you see some structures, a couple of the "ladders", an oven and then you leave. The one camera limit is likewise bizarre. And what doesn't make sense is the "$15 Camera only" permit mentioned on the website since you CAN'T just buy that and see the pueblo on your own. GUIDED tours are the only way to see the settlement and they leave every hour on the half-hour.

Overall, I felt the tour price didn't justify the experience. The objective, it seemed, was to shuttle us from one vendor to the other and show something in between. Also, the guide knew practically nothing about the interior...