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Oaxaca, Mexico, top 10 things to do (Wimup travel guide)
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Top 10North AmericaMexico

Top 10 Things To Do in Oaxaca

Country
Mexico
Best months
Nov · Feb · Mar
Population
271K
Language
Spanish
Budget / day
$60–120
Quick answer

The best things to do in Oaxaca are Monte Albán, the Santo Domingo complex, the two market halls off the zócalo and a run of craft villages in the valley. Give the city four to five days, come between November and April for dry weather, and set aside at least two of those days for the valley: the ruins, the weavers and the mezcal all sit within an hour of the centre.

Best of Oaxaca

▶ Video guideOpen the film page (12:27) →

Oaxaca is a colonial grid you can cross on foot, with a Zapotec capital on the ridge above it and a valley of craft villages spread out around it. Below are the ten experiences worth your time, plus where to eat, where to drink mezcal, and how to reach the ruins and the weavers without booking a coach tour.

The 10 best things to do in Oaxaca

Monte Albán, Oaxaca, Mexico
1

Monte Albán

Ruins· Carretera Dr. Ignacio Bernal s/n, Santa Cruz Xoxocotlán, Oaxaca

The Zapotecs levelled an entire ridge above the valley floor and built their capital on top of it, and the Gran Plaza still reads as one deliberate act of engineering. Founded around 500 BC, it held the valley for more than a thousand years. Come for the ball court, the carved Danzantes slabs and the view down three arms of the valley at once.

TimeHalf a day
CostTicket at the gate
Best atOpening time
TipShuttles run from the centre
Map↗ Website
Santo Domingo de Guzmán and the Museo de las Culturas, Oaxaca, Mexico
2

Santo Domingo de Guzmán and the Museo de las Culturas

Landmark· Macedonio Alcalá s/n, Centro Histórico, Oaxaca de Juárez

The church stops people mid-sentence: every surface gilded, and a family tree of the Dominican order spreading across the ceiling above the door. The former convent next to it holds the Museo de las Culturas de Oaxaca, whose room of Tomb 7 gold from Monte Albán justifies the ticket on its own.

Time2 hrs
CostChurch free, museum ticketed
Best atLate morning
TipEnter the museum from the cloister
Map↗ Website
The market halls and the Pasillo de Humo, Oaxaca, Mexico
3

The market halls and the Pasillo de Humo

Market· 20 de Noviembre s/n, Centro Histórico, Oaxaca de Juárez

Two halls sit back to back a block off the zócalo. Benito Juárez is the dry side: mole pastes, chocolate ground to order, chapulines, baskets, quesillo pulled into balls in front of you. Mercado 20 de Noviembre is the eating side, and its smoke-filled corridor of charcoal grills is where you buy tasajo by weight and eat it at a shared table.

Time1–2 hrs
CostCash, small notes
Best atLunchtime
TipBuy the meat first, the sides second
Map
Jardín Etnobotánico de Oaxaca, Oaxaca, Mexico (Wimup)
4

Jardín Etnobotánico de Oaxaca

Garden· Reforma esq. Constitución, Centro Histórico, Oaxaca de Juárez

The convent garden spent most of the twentieth century as a military barracks. A campaign led by Francisco Toledo stopped a hotel scheme from taking the site, and it became a garden of Oaxacan plants instead. Every species in it grows somewhere in the state, and the walk explains which ones became mezcal, cochineal dye and the glaze on the black pottery.

Time1–2 hrs
CostTicketed
Best atMorning
TipAsk at the gate about the English walk
Map
Hierve el Agua, Oaxaca, Mexico
5

Hierve el Agua

Nature· San Lorenzo Albarradas, Oaxaca

Two mineral cliffs that look like waterfalls frozen mid-fall, with spring-fed pools on the terrace above them and the Sierra opening out beyond. It sits about 70 km east of the city on communal land, and access is run by the communities that own it, which has meant temporary closures in the past. Confirm it is open before you commit a day to it.

TimeFull day
CostCommunity fee at the gate
Best atEarly morning
TipCheck access before you set out
Map
Mitla, Oaxaca, Mexico
6

Mitla

Ruins· San Pablo Villa de Mitla, Oaxaca

Where Monte Albán is scale, Mitla is surface. The palace walls carry more than a hundred mosaic panels of cut stone fitted without mortar, every one a variation on the step-and-fret motif, and the Spanish built a church directly onto one of the courtyards. It is 45 km east of the city and pairs naturally with the mezcal road beyond it.

Time2 hrs
CostTicket at the gate
Best atMorning
TipPair it with Santiago Matatlán
Map
Museo Textil de Oaxaca, Oaxaca, Mexico
7

Museo Textil de Oaxaca

Museum· Av. Hidalgo 917, Centro Histórico, Oaxaca de Juárez

A small museum doing serious work. Rotating shows of Oaxacan and international cloth, with the back-strap loom, the treadle loom and the dye plants explained clearly enough that the rugs in Teotitlán make sense afterwards. Come here before you shop, not after.

Time1 hr
CostFree entry
Best atAny time
TipVisit before the craft villages
Map↗ Website
8

Barrio de Jalatlaco

Neighborhood· Barrio de Jalatlaco, Oaxaca de Juárez

Ten minutes east of the cathedral the grid narrows into cobbles, low colour-washed houses and murals that are repainted often enough to be worth a second visit. It is the neighbourhood people photograph, and it has enough cafés and small kitchens to justify staying rather than walking through.

Time1–2 hrs
CostFree to walk
Best atLate afternoon
TipStart at the San Matías church
Map
Teotitlán del Valle, Oaxaca, Mexico (Wimup)
9

Teotitlán del Valle

Craft village· Teotitlán del Valle, Oaxaca

The weaving village, half an hour east. Families work treadle looms in their own courtyards and will show you the cochineal, indigo and marigold behind the colour, which is the reason to come out here: a naturally dyed rug and a chemically dyed one cost different money, and now you know why. Buy at the workshop rather than in town.

TimeHalf a day
CostWorkshops free to visit
Best atMorning
TipAsk to see the dye pots
Map
The mezcal road to Santiago Matatlán, Oaxaca, Mexico
10

The mezcal road to Santiago Matatlán

Mezcal· Santiago Matatlán, Oaxaca

The town calls itself the world capital of mezcal and the highway into it is lined with palenques. Ask to see the roasting pit, the stone tahona and the still before anything is poured. Understanding the process is what separates an afternoon here from a bar back in the city, and it is also the argument for hiring a driver.

TimeHalf a day
CostTastings, cash
Best atLate morning
TipDo not drive yourself
Map

All 10, mapped

Oaxaca · 10 spots
AllRuinsMarketsMuseumsFree

Oaxaca travel FAQ

How many days do you need in Oaxaca?+
Four to five days is the right length: two for the city and two for the valley, where Monte Albán, Mitla, the craft villages and the mezcal are. Three days works if you accept picking one valley day and letting the rest go.
What is the best time of year to visit Oaxaca?+
The dry season runs roughly November to April, and those are the easiest months for walking the city and the valley. May is the hottest. June to September brings afternoon storms that usually clear the mornings. Late July for Guelaguetza and the days around Día de Muertos are the busiest and priciest weeks of the year.
Is Oaxaca expensive to visit?+
Budget roughly $60 to $120 per person per day mid-range: a small hotel in the centre, market meals with one restaurant dinner, and shared transport out to the valley. Guelaguetza and Día de Muertos push accommodation well above that, and they book out months ahead.
Where should I stay in Oaxaca for the first time?+
The Centro Histórico, inside the UNESCO grid, puts nearly everything in this guide within a twenty-minute walk. Jalatlaco is quieter and prettier and still ten minutes from the cathedral. Colonia Reforma is better value for a longer stay but has no colonial sights.
Do you need a car in Oaxaca?+
Not for the city, which is flat and walkable. For the valley, colectivo vans cover the main villages cheaply and a hired driver covers the rest, which is the sensible choice on a mezcal day. A car only earns its keep if you want to string several villages together on your own schedule.
Where to eat

Best restaurants in Oaxaca

Six tables that cover the range, from a heirloom-corn tortillería to two Michelin-starred kitchens.
Terrace
Centro

Casa Oaxaca El Restaurante

Modern Oaxacan

Alejandro Ruiz’s rooftop looks straight across at Santo Domingo, and the kitchen is where a lot of people first understand modern Oaxacan cooking.

Map↗ Website
Michelin star
Centro

Los Danzantes Oaxaca

Contemporary

An adobe courtyard open to the sky just off the Alcalá, holding both a Michelin star and a Green Star since the guide reached Mexico in 2024.

Map↗ Website
Booking needed
Centro

Criollo

Set menu

Enrique Olvera and Luis Arellano’s set menu, served in a converted house on Madero and built around what the valley grew that week.

Map↗ Website
Centro

Origen

Modern Oaxacan

Rodolfo Castellanos cooks the Oaxacan repertoire with technique rather than reverence, a few blocks south of Santo Domingo.

Map↗ Website
Levadura de Olla
Michelin star
Centro

Levadura de Olla

Sierra Sur cooking

Thalía Barrios García cooks the food of San Mateo Yucutindoo, her village in the southern sierra, and took a Michelin star for it in 2024.

Map↗ Website
Breakfast
Colonia Reforma

Itanoní

Heirloom corn

A tortillería in Colonia Reforma that has been milling heirloom criollo corn since 2001. Order memelas and a tetela and taste what the corn is doing.

Map
Where to drink

Best mezcal bars in Oaxaca

Five rooms in the centre, from a tasting library to a bar with one guitar in it.
Start here
Centro

In Situ Mezcalería

Tasting-led

The reference room for tasting by agave rather than by brand. Small, plain, and staffed by people who will steer you through it properly.

Map
Centro

Mezcaloteca

By appointment

More study room than bar: single-batch bottles catalogued by producer, agave and still, poured in small measures and explained.

Map
Late
Centro

Sabina Sabe

Cocktails

The one to pick for cocktails rather than a flight, with a kitchen that keeps pace with the bar.

Map
Centro

Mezcalería Cuish

Producer-led

Built around a group of small rural producers, with a terrace upstairs that doubles as a gallery and a music room.

Map
Centro

Los Amantes

Tiny

One room on Allende, a bartender, a guitar and a short list. It fills early and stays full.

Map
Where to shop and eat

Best markets in Oaxaca

Five markets, from the halls tourists find in an afternoon to the wholesale yard the city actually shops in.
Mercado Benito JuárezCentro

Mercado Benito Juárez

Daily

The dry-goods hall a block off the zócalo: mole pastes, chocolate ground to order, chapulines, baskets and quesillo pulled into balls at the counter.

Map
Grills
Centro

Mercado 20 de Noviembre

Daily

Next door, and the one you eat in. The Pasillo de Humo is a corridor of charcoal grills where the meat is bought by weight and cooked in front of you.

Map
Local
Centro

Mercado Sánchez Pascuas

Daily

A neighbourhood market north-west of the centre: produce, flowers, a few breakfast stalls, and almost no visitors.

Map
Tlacolula Sunday market
Weekly
Tlacolula de Matamoros

Tlacolula Sunday market

Sundays

The valley’s big weekly tianguis, an hour east. Zapotec is the working language and most of the trade is still between villages.

Map
West of centre

Central de Abastos

Daily

The wholesale market on the western edge, vast and loud, where the city buys. Go with a plan or go with someone who has one.

Map
What to see indoors

Best museums and galleries in Oaxaca

Six collections in the centre, three of them founded or rescued by the artist Francisco Toledo.
Ticketed
Centro

Museo de las Culturas de Oaxaca

Pre-Hispanic

The former Dominican convent beside Santo Domingo, and the Tomb 7 gold recovered from Monte Albán is the strongest room of pre-Hispanic craft in the state.

Map↗ Website
Museo Textil de Oaxaca
Free entry
Centro

Museo Textil de Oaxaca

Textiles

Rotating shows of Oaxacan and international cloth, with the looms and the dye plants explained beside them.

Map↗ Website
Museo de Arte Contemporáneo de Oaxaca
MACO
Centro

Museo de Arte Contemporáneo de Oaxaca

Contemporary

Contemporary work in a seventeenth-century house on the Alcalá, with Toledo, Tamayo, Morales and Nieto in the permanent collection.

Map↗ Website
IAGO
Centro

Instituto de Artes Gráficas de Oaxaca

Prints & library

Toledo’s graphic arts institute opposite Santo Domingo, with a print collection and an art library open to anyone who walks in.

Map
Centro

Centro Fotográfico Manuel Álvarez Bravo

Photography

A photography centre, also founded by Toledo, with a darkroom and a specialist library behind the exhibition rooms.

Map
Museo Rufino TamayoCentro

Museo Rufino Tamayo

Pre-Hispanic art

The painter’s own collection of pre-Hispanic pieces, arranged by form rather than by culture, which is the whole argument of the place.

Map
Out in the valley

Best craft villages in Oaxaca

Six villages, each with its own material. All are within an hour of the centre and reachable by colectivo.
Teotitlán del Valle
Start here
30 min east

Teotitlán del Valle

Weaving

Rugs on treadle looms, half an hour east. Ask which pieces are dyed with cochineal and indigo; the price gap is the answer.

Map
San Bartolo Coyotepec20 min south

San Bartolo Coyotepec

Black pottery

Barro negro, the burnished black pottery, about twenty minutes south. The state folk-art museum sits on the same square.

Map
45 min south

San Martín Tilcajete

Alebrijes

Alebrijes carved from copal and painted in fine line work, on a lane a kilometre off Highway 175.

Map
6 km west

Santa María Atzompa

Green pottery

Green-glazed pottery six kilometres west, close enough to fold into a Monte Albán morning.

Map
San Antonio ArrazolaWest valley

San Antonio Arrazola

Alebrijes

The other alebrije village, tucked under the western slope below Monte Albán.

Map
Santo Tomás JaliezaSouth valley

Santo Tomás Jalieza

Back-strap weaving

Back-strap weaving: belts, table runners and bags, made largely by women’s cooperatives selling from the village square.

Map
Where to base yourself

Best neighborhoods in Oaxaca

Four quarters, and the case for each.
Walkable
Centro

Centro Histórico

Best for a first visit

The UNESCO grid: the zócalo, the cathedral, the Alcalá walking street and most of the museums, all inside about twenty blocks.

Map
Quiet
East of centro

Barrio de Jalatlaco

Best for cafés

Cobbles, murals and small kitchens ten minutes east of the cathedral. The prettiest streets in the city and the most photographed.

Map
North of centro

Barrio de Xochimilco

Best for craft workshops

The oldest quarter, north of the centre, built along the Arquitos aqueduct. Residential, unhurried, and still full of workshops.

Map
North-east

Colonia Reforma

Best for longer stays

The modern residential district north-east. Apartments, supermarkets and Itanoní, no colonial sights, and better value for a long stay.

Map
Beyond the city

Best day trips in Oaxaca

Six trips into the Valles Centrales, none of them more than about ninety minutes away.
Monte Albán
UNESCO
Santa Cruz Xoxocotlán

Monte Albán

10 km west

The Zapotec capital on the ridge, ten kilometres west. Half a day on the shuttle, longer if you walk the South Platform properly.

Map↗ Website
Hierve el AguaSan Lorenzo Albarradas

Hierve el Agua

70 km east

Mineral cliffs and spring-fed pools seventy kilometres east, on communal land. Access is community-run and has closed before, so check first.

Map
MitlaSan Pablo Villa de Mitla

Mitla

45 km east

Zapotec palace walls covered in mortarless stone mosaics, with a colonial church built straight onto one of the courtyards.

Map
Árbol del Tule
Quick stop
Santa María del Tule

Árbol del Tule

10 km east

A Montezuma cypress in a churchyard ten kilometres east, with the widest recorded trunk of any tree on earth. Ten minutes, and worth them.

Map
Santiago Matatlán
Take a driver
Santiago Matatlán

Santiago Matatlán

50 km east

The self-declared world capital of mezcal, past Mitla. Palenques line the highway and most will walk you through the pit, the tahona and the still.

Map
Tlacolula valley

Yagul

35 km east

A quieter hilltop site near Tlacolula with a large ball court, listed by UNESCO alongside the prehistoric caves of the Yagul and Mitla valley.

Map
What's on

Festivals & annual events in Oaxaca (2026)

Time your trip around the city's biggest dates.
Mar–Apr

Semana Santa

Holy Week processions through the centre, including the silent procession on Good Friday. The dates move with Easter.

Late Jul

Guelaguetza

The state dance festival, on two Mondays at the Auditorio on the Cerro del Fortín, with all eight regions.

Jul–Aug

Feria del Mezcal

The mezcal fair runs alongside Guelaguetza, with producers from across the state pouring espadín, tobalá and tepeztate.

Jul–Aug

Festival de los Moles

The third of the late-July trio, built around the state’s moles and the cooks who still make them from scratch.

31 Oct–2 Nov

Día de Muertos

Comparsas through the streets, sand tapestries in the courtyards and family vigils in the panteones. The busiest week of the year.

Dec

Las Posadas

Nine nights of neighbourhood processions before Christmas, with piñatas, punch and buñuelos at the end of each one.

23 Dec

Noche de Rábanos

Carvers turn oversized radishes into scenes on the zócalo, then the city queues to see them. More than a century old.

Year-round

Calendas

Street parades with brass bands, giant marmotas and monos de calenda, thrown for weddings, saints’ days and most other excuses.

Getting around

Oaxaca transport & airports

How to arrive and move around the city.
OAX

Oaxaca International

Xoxocotlán sits about 13 km south of the centre, 20 to 30 minutes by road. No rail link, so it is a colectivo van, an authorised taxi from the arrivals desk, or a hotel transfer.

Map↗ Website
ADO

First-class buses

The first-class terminal is on Calzada Héroes de Chapultepec, a little north of the centre, and is how most people arrive from Mexico City and Puebla. Book ahead around Guelaguetza and Día de Muertos.

Map↗ Website
WALK

Walking the centre

The historic grid is flat, compact and closed to cars along the Alcalá. Almost everything in this guide that sits inside the city is within twenty minutes on foot of the zócalo.

Map
VALLEY

Colectivos & taxis

Shared colectivo vans to the valley villages leave from the second-class terminal and around the Central de Abastos, and are the cheapest way to Teotitlán or Mitla. City taxis do not run meters.

Map
Traditional food

Must-try dishes in Oaxaca, Mexico

The classics to order before you leave.
Tlayuda, Oaxaca (Wimup travel guide)

Tlayuda

A large crisped tortilla layered with bean paste, quesillo and grilled meat, folded on the charcoal.

Mole negro, Oaxaca (Wimup travel guide)

Mole negro

The darkest of the state's seven moles, built from chilhuacle chillies, chocolate and plantain.

Chapulines, Oaxaca (Wimup travel guide)

Chapulines

Grasshoppers toasted on the comal with garlic, lime and chilli, eaten here long before the Spanish.

Memelas, Oaxaca (Wimup travel guide)

Memelas

Thick oval masa cakes off the comal, spread with bean paste and asiento and topped with crumbled cheese.

Quesillo, Oaxaca (Wimup travel guide)

Quesillo

The stringy white cheese wound into a ball, sold by weight and pulled apart at the table.

Caldo de piedra, Oaxaca (Wimup travel guide)

Caldo de piedra

A river fish and prawn broth from the Chinantla, cooked in a gourd by dropping in fire-heated stones.

Tasajo

Thin salted beef grilled over charcoal. The default order in the Pasillo de Humo.

Tejate

A cold maize and cacao drink whisked by hand until it foams, with mamey pits and cacao flower in the mix.

Oaxaca fact sheet

Oaxaca at a glance

The essentials worth knowing before you go.
Country
Mexico
Region
Valles Centrales, Oaxaca
Population
270,955 (2020 census)
Founded
1529, as Antequera
Nickname
La Verde Antequera
Language
Spanish
Currency
Mexican peso (MXN)
Time zone
CST · UTC-6
Calling code
+52 951
Airports
OAX
Power
127V · Type A/B
Emergency
911
Ideal length
4–5 days
Getting around
Walking & colectivos
Tourism board
Official site

Interesting facts

  • The historic centre and Monte Albán were inscribed by UNESCO in 1987 as a single World Heritage site, not two.
  • Monte Albán was founded around 500 BC and held the valley as the Zapotec capital for more than a thousand years.
  • Oaxaca is the most linguistically diverse state in Mexico, with sixteen recognised indigenous peoples and dozens of language variants.
  • The Árbol del Tule, in a churchyard ten kilometres east of the city, has the widest recorded trunk of any tree in the world.
  • Mezcal carries a denomination of origin spanning several states, and Oaxaca produces the overwhelming majority of the certified spirit.

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