[11] The city is the commercial center of the San Luis Valley in south-central Colorado, and is the home of Adams State University.

[4] The town was established by the Denver and Rio Grande Railroad and quickly became an important rail center.

[14] The railroad had an extensive construction, repair, and shipping facility in Alamosa for many years and headquartered its remaining narrow-gauge service here with trackage reaching many points throughout southwest Colorado and northern New Mexico.

The town hosts "Summer Fest on the Rio" which occurs the first weekend in June, the Early Iron car show over the Labor Day weekend, and "Weekends on the Rio" on various Sundays throughout the summer[15] The city takes its name from the Spanish adjective Alamosa, meaning "of cottonwood", for the cottonwood forests which grow along the Rio Grande and throughout town.

[11] Alamosa is located along the Rio Grande in the San Luis Valley, in the highest general agricultural land in the United States.

Alamosa is the gateway city to the Great Sand Dunes National Park and Preserve.

The aridity depresses normal seasonal (July through June of the following year) snowfall to 27.6 inches (70 cm).

The altitude and dryness of the air cause day–night temperature differences to be severe year-round, averaging 35.4 °F (19.7 °C) throughout the year.

[21] Adams State University, founded in 1921 as a teacher's college, offers both undergraduate and graduate programs.

Graduate level programs emphasize teaching and education, art, history and business with many of the courses available online.

[24] Alamosa is the shopping center for the San Luis Valley and has several national and regional stores.

ASU is a four-year, state-supported university founded in 1921 and offering degrees in several fields including business and education.

They offer 2-year degrees in gunsmithing, aquaculture, cosmetology, welding and nursing, as well as traditional arts and sciences classes like English, physics and chemistry.