N.M. museums offer Native American culture

Q. I plan to take my grandson to New Mexico as a graduation present. We’re both interested in Native American culture. Any recommendations?

A. The Indian Pueblo Cultural Center (505-843-7270, www.indianpueblo.org), representing the 19 pueblos of New Mexico, is a good starting place. Its 10,000-square-foot museum in Albuquerque showcases the cultural development of the Pueblo Indians. The cultural center also keeps an events calendar and info for visiting the individual pueblos.

Also, the Museum of Indian Arts and Culture (505-476-1250, www.miaclab.org) in Santa Fe houses 10 million Native American artifacts from 12,000 excavations.

You will also want to visit several sites administered by the National Park Service that feature Indian artifacts and culture. They include the Petroglyph National Monument (505-899-0205, www.nps.gov/petr), just west of Albuquerque; Bandelier National Monument (505-672-0343, www.nps.gov/band), west of Santa Fe; and Chaco Culture National Historical Park (505-786-7014, www.nps.gov/chcu), closer to the Four Corners region.

For more information, including organized tours, contact the New Mexico Tourism Department (800-733-6396, www.newmexico.org).

Q. Can you provide any information on the Bay Islands off the coast of Honduras?

A. The Bay Islands are about 35 miles off the northern coast of Honduras in the western Caribbean. They consist of Roatan, Guanaja, Utila and the Cayos Cochinos, and scores of other islets and keys.

The cheapest and easiest way to get to Roatan is to fly to Miami, then take the Friday evening nonstop (Saturday return) on Sol Air (866-4-SOLAIR, www.solair.net) to Roatan; the combined round-trip airfare should be about $600. Getting to the other islands is more expensive and complex: You must first fly to the mainland and then take a flight or ferry or arrange private transport.

All of the islands are popular with divers. Roatan is the most developed and has dozens of resorts and hotels; Anthony’s Key Resort (800-227-3483, www.anthonyskey.com) is one of the most popular. Guanaja has no roads and transit is by boat; Bo Bush’s Island House (011-504-991-0913, www.bosislandhouse.com) is a laid-back retreat. Utila is popular with backpackers, and the Cayos Cochinas offers a dive resort, Plantation Beach Resort ( www.plantationbeachresort.info), in a biological reserve.

For more info, contact the Honduras Institute of Tourism, 800-410-9608, www.letsgohonduras.com. A good Internet resource is www.bayislandstourism.com.