<p>My son will be attending UNM in the fall. We are scheduled to attend orientation on August 14-15th. My son will be moving in on the 13th, however I need to know where I should stay. My preference would be a hotel that has a shuttle service as I am not planning on renting a car. Because of that I would prefer the hotel to have a restaurant/lounge and be close to shopping to pick up needed dorm supplies. We will be traveling via Southwest, so good luggage capability; but will still need to pick up a few items when we get there. Any suggestions? So excited to see Albuquerque and share the next journey in my son's life.</p>
<p>UNM hasn’t hooked up with alot of hotels for orientation but I did find the link for one hotel where you might stay. I am sorry but it isn’t close to any major stores but it does have a shuttle to UNM. You might just call to see if they could shuttle you to a Walmart. Good luck to your college student.</p>
<p>[Accommodations</a> :: New Student Orientation | The University of New Mexico](<a href=“http://nso.unm.edu/family-connection/accommodations.html]Accommodations”>http://nso.unm.edu/family-connection/accommodations.html)</p>
<p>UNM doesn’t run any shuttles to any of the local stores, unfortunately. Shuttle service is largely confined to the main campus, South Campus/Redondo (The Pit, football stadium and married student housing located near University Blvd and Cesar Chavez), UNMH (med/law school campus, aka North Campus, located north of Lomas Blvd.) and the NM RailRunner train station downtown.</p>
<p>To get around town, you will need either to rent a car. (There’re Zipcars in campus.) </p>
<p>Or use the ABQ city buses.</p>
<p>[Bus</a> Routes & Schedules — City of Albuquerque](<a href=“http://www.cabq.gov/transit/bus-routes-and-schedules]Bus”>Routes & Schedules — City of Albuquerque)</p>
<p>Like many western cities, ABQ sprawls. Fortunately it’s mostly laid out in a grid. (Areas are designated by NE, SE, NW, SW. The North-South divider is Central Ave [old US Route 66]; the East-West divider is I-25.)</p>
<p>The big shopping areas are the Winrock/Coronado/Uptown Malls area near Indian School Rd and Louisana Blvd NE; along Paseo del Norte NE (not compactly located, but spread out along 5 miles or so); and Nob Hill—within walking distance of east of campus along Central Ave. </p>
<p>Nob Hill is mostly restaurants and funky student-oriented shops. There are no chain stores except for Urban Outfitters. (This is by design. The Nob Hill area has been designated for independently owned stores.)</p>
<p>There are other shopping areas, but they’re much farther away—Cottonwood Mall area in Corrales/Rio Rancho.</p>
<p>The nearest BBB is at Winrock Mall. The other BBB is on Paseo de Norte near Ventura.</p>
<p>There’s WalMart at Menaul and San Mateo, but it’s too far to walk from campus. </p>
<p>I’m a long-time resident of ABQ. D1 graduated from UNM and is currently a med student at UNM SOM. (D1 lived in the dorms for a couple of years of undergrad so I can answer questions about the dorms.)</p>
<p>If I can answer any questions–please ask!</p>
<p>This is late response bcuz you are @UNM now but, I was accepted to UNM fall 2013. I was impressed with the school, the students, staff and programs. I attended Senior Day 2012. We flew in and took the shuttle to the Best Western hotel very close to airport . On Saturday we took the city bus to UNM,it was a good experience. After the Event we took bus 50 that goes from the school to the airport. Public transportion and hotel shuttles are very easy to access. the airport guest services was helpful. I loved the school. I dont come from a big city with public transit but I found it easy to get around and my UNM tour guide has a car but uses the bus often which cost a $1 OR $2 for transfer,I understand students with ID can access transportation for free. The bus also gave me a chance to see the city.The people I met in the town and bus driver was also nice.</p>
<p>Yes, with a student ID (public high school, CNM or UNM) you can ride the city buses for free. That includes transfers. You can also bring your bike on the bus. All city buses have bike racks on the front bus bumper and there is no charge to use them.</p>
<p>Albuquerque is one of the most bike-friendly cities in the US.</p>
<p>Congratulations on your acceptance!</p>