Private Jeep Tours in New Mexico
Private Guided Jeep Tours in New Mexico
Our private Jeep tours in New Mexico take you a world away, just off the beaten path, between Albuquerque and Santa Fe. A driver-guide takes you onto a 20,000-acre private ranch that most visitors never see, to Ancestral Puebloan ruins, petroglyphs, sea-life fossils, painted hills and ghost towns. Only your group rides along.
Private Jeep Tours near Albuquerque & Santa Fe
Southwest Safari Jeep Tour
New Mexico Jeep Tours has exclusive access to a beautiful 20,000 acre private ranch between Albuquerque and Santa Fe. The Southwest Safari tour is your grand introduction to the property as we show you Ancestral Puebloan ruins and petroglyphs, sea life fossils, painted hills, beautiful southwestern vistas, and the ranch's movie set. We see wild horses wandering the beautiful southwestern landscape on almost every tour, so keep your cameras ready!
Tours are personal and private — only your group — and we can customize them to the needs of your party. Your guide drives and provides water and snacks. We meet at The Merc in Placitas for free, or we can pick you up wherever you're staying in Albuquerque or at the Hyatt Tamaya for a small fee. Walking is optional: for those wishing only to ride, we can take you to some amazing places without ever setting foot outside the Jeep. Full rates are on our pricing page.
Petroglyphs Hike Jeep Tour
In addition to seeing all the Southwest Safari tour has to offer, hike to an amazing site to see the stories of the ancients etched in stone! The Ancestral Puebloan people left over 2,000 petroglyphs on the 20,000 acre, private ranch where we do our tours. These ancient pictures and symbols are glimpses into the life, history and religion of the Puebloan culture. We invite you to join us as we explore these sacred sites.
The Petroglyphs tour includes a short but steep hike over rocky terrain. Please consider hiking ability before booking this tour.
Tours are personal and private, so we can customize them for your group.
Ghost Town Jeep Tour
Experience everything on the Southwest Safari tour and then visit a coal mining ghost town that you can only see with New Mexico Jeep Tours! The Ghost Town tour takes you to the site of the largest adobe structure in NM in its day and to the location of a short but booming coal mining operation. You will also see a dinosaur fossil from the Cretaceous period and the ranch’s movie set.
The Ghost Town tour includes what you see on the Southwest Safari tour: Puebloan ruins and petroglyphs, sea-life fossils, and painted deserts, but adds the ghost town of Hagan and a couple of side stops along the way.
Tours are personal and private — only your group — and we plan them with you once you reserve. This one suits anyone who would rather read a place than a plaque. Full rates are on our pricing page.
Ultimate Adventure Jeep Tour
But wait...there's more! If you're looking for an all-day Jeep tour adventure, we've got you covered! Want to see the ghost town and do the petroglyph hike? We'll add the glyphs to make a 5 hour tour. Or do you want to explore places not seen on other tour options? We've got plenty! Choose from a number of additonal options below, one hour each, to create your own tour up to 7 hours.
You'll see everything you'd like from the Southwest Safari tour, but we'll take you to up to 4 additional sites of your choosing. Not sure what to choose? We'll work with you to put it all together. Call, email, or text for questions about your Ultimate Adventure!
Lunches are provided on 6 and 7 hour tours.
Private tours at your pace
Only your group will be on the tour, with a driver-guide at the wheel, so the stops and the pace are yours. Guests never drive; you ride, look and listen. Fully insured, permitted and certified.
Ruins, petroglyphs and fossils
Ancestral Puebloan ruins and petroglyphs offer a glimpse of life in bygone days. Writings on the Wall is a volcanic wall covered in petroglyphs; Ceremony Rock holds what may be some of the oldest Spanish rock art in the Southwest. Sea-life fossils sit in the rock along the way.
Ghost towns and film sets
Ghost towns cast shadows of the historic past. Hagan was a coal-mining town with the largest adobe structure in New Mexico in its day. The ranch has stood in for the Old West in Lonesome Dove, Maze Runner and Lone Survivor, and a movie set is one of the stops.
Wild horses and wildlife
Wild horses roam the ranch and may be seen on any tour, though they cannot be guaranteed. Our guides know the land and where the herds tend to be.
Hike as much, or as little, as you like
Optional walks include a quarter-mile grotto and ruin hike, the half-mile Tejon slot canyon, and moderate hikes to Ceremony Rock and Writings on the Wall. For those wishing only to ride, we can take you to some amazing places without ever setting foot outside the Jeep.
20,000 acres of private ranch
Exclusive access to a beautiful 20,000-acre private ranch nestled in the vast Southwest landscape between Albuquerque and Santa Fe: painted hills, volcanic necks and views that go on for miles. We also visit land behind locked gates that is kept pristine.
Planning Your Private Jeep Tour in New Mexico
How long are the tours?
Every tour starts from the 3-hour base tour: ruins, petroglyphs, fossils and big landscapes, plus your choice of a Spanish land-grant town's ruins or the movie set. Add an hour at a time, up to 7 hours, with the Hagan ghost town, Ceremony Rock, Writings on the Wall or the hikes. Minimum length is 3 hours.
What do private Jeep tours cost?
The 3-hour tour is $170 per adult with two riders, $140 per child 17 and under, or $300 for a single rider. The 7-hour tour with lunch is $360 per adult. Groups of three or more pay lower per-person rates, seniors 65 and over and military get 10% off, and tax is added. Credit cards are accepted and you pay at the end of the tour. The full table is on our pricing page.
Where do we meet?
Tours leave from The Merc in Placitas, New Mexico 165 Suite I, off I-25 exit 242 and 2.3 miles east: about 20 minutes north of Albuquerque and about 40 minutes from Santa Fe. Meeting there is free. Hotel pickup within Albuquerque city limits is $45 per Jeep, and $25 per Jeep from the Hyatt Tamaya; pickup adds about an hour of travel. Directions are on our meeting locations page.
Good to know
The ranch sits over a mile high with low humidity, so bring a hat and sun protection. Children are welcome. No dogs, and we do not run ATV tours. Everyone signs a waiver. There are restroom stops at the start and end of the tour and a portable potty on board. We are open Monday to Saturday, 9am to 5pm Mountain time; call or text 505-633-0383, pick a tour and send us a request, or contact us.
