Old Town is where Albuquerque began: a Spanish colonial settlement founded in 1706 around a central plaza with a church on one side. The San Felipe de Neri church anchors the plaza and remains active. The surrounding streets have been thoroughly converted into a tourist district — galleries, shops selling Native American jewelry and pottery, and restaurants — but the physical form of the old settlement survives beneath the commercial overlay.
The Albuquerque Museum of Art and History at the edge of Old Town is worth the entry fee, with strong collections on New Mexico history including a good section on the Route 66 era. The smaller Natural History Museum nearby has excellent dinosaur exhibits. The plaza itself is most atmospheric early in the morning before the shops open, or in the evening. For the galleries, go between 10am and 5pm on any day except Monday.