Rio Rancho New Mexico
This is a jewel. Easily accessible via the highway, with some strong reminiscences of the Colonial Era, this small City is suited for family vacations or some couple getaways. The Old Town has quite a lot to offer with many buildings dating from the Mexican Era.
If you are planning a family vacation you can use Rio Rancho as a base for hiking trips in the neighboring areas. The city also has several museums and a Zoo. Of the museums The Natural History Museum I found to be the most attractive. But let's be serious it's not exactly museums that you want to visit in a vacation. I found Rio Rancho to be best suited for those types of vacation where you badly need some nice, affordable hotel to spend your nights in and some awesome natural landscapes to visit during daytime. If the rough desert appeals to you than Rio Rancho is it.
If you intend a couple vacation Rio Rancho is specifically suited as several hotels provide quite beautiful and romantic rooms and the people over there tend to respect your privacy. This will not be something similar to a Las Vegas vacation, where noise and yells will accompany you at every step. A visit through the Old Town or through the park will be intimate and you will enjoy that shroud of anonymity. It's great to go with your girlfriend to a quiet place where nobody knows you and small cities seem to nurture such getaways especially under the bright blue New Mexico sky.
If on the other hand you plan a vacation with your friends, make sure you do some planning. Rio Rancho New Mexico does actually have some thrilling sensations to offer, but you must search for them. If extreme sports are your game the areas around Rio Rancho might have the fix for you. Sky diving, acrobatic aerials, full throttle choppers can all be found if you look hard enough for them. New Mexico is the land of freedom where you can use that open space to satisfy all your needs. But as a warning though, don't expect the locals to get too friendly when you and your friends show up on your bikes dressed in full leather. The other bikers will be friendly though.
Rio Rancho New Mexico really has a lot to offer. Something special to anyone. This place is pretty much an oasis of peace and silence, a retreat place for those tired of the rumble of the big cities.