WHAT MAKES OAXACA CITY UNIQUE?
Full of history, gastronomy and indigenous culture, Oaxaca is a wonderfully attractive city. The renowned churches and refined plazas have deservedly earned it a Unesco World Heritage badge.
The streets are lined with coloured colonial buildings, vibrant yet tranquil. There is a wonderful feeling of past meets present in its best form with historic boutique hotels, artisanal mezcal stores, speakeasy bars, rooftop terraces, street art, contemporary art, indoor and outdoor markets, fine dining, street tacos, street performances and so much more.
Get access to our pinned-for-you-map of Oaxaca here. We have pinned all our favourite places in Oaxaca city for you so you can roam around with ease.
HOW DO YOU GET TO OAXACA CITY?
Oaxaca Airport (IATA: OAX | ICAO: MMOX) officially known as Xoxocotlán Airport is an international airport located in Oaxaca City, Oaxaca, México. It takes a little over 20 minutes to drive from the airport to the city centre.
Coming from Mexico City to Oaxaca? Travel with the ADO bus company. The trip takes aprox 8 hours and costs approx 1000 Mexican pesos per person for their executive class. This is their premium bus. The ADO are the most renowned bus company in Mexico and they do make the longer trips much more enjoyable.
WHAT IS BEST AREA TO STAY IN OAXACA CITY?
When choosing what area to stay in and what accomodation to choose in Oaxaca city, the bulk of accommodation options are concentrated in the downtown area of Oaxaca City, also referred to as the Zocalo or city center.
We highly recommend you stay in the centre for plenty of reasons including great access to restaurants, bars, sites, culture, museums and tours. You are also guaranteed beautiful surroundings with the beautiful coloured colonial architecture, 360 degree mountain views and of course, plenty of accomodation options available too.
WHAT ARE THE BESTÂ HOTELS IN OAXACA CITY?
There are plenty of great hotel options available in Oaxaca City. Below are some of our recommendations but you can find a full range of accomodation at competitive prices here.
Luxury accomodation recommendation (+10000 mexican pesos a night) Hotel Casa Santa Origen
Luxury accomodation recommendation (<10000 mexican pesos a night) Macondo Arte Oaxaca
Best affordable accomodation recommendation (<1000 mexican pesos a night) Casa 821
There are also a huge range of Hostels varying from social to more chilled available in and around the city centre. You can check these Hostels in Oaxaca city out here
IS OAXACA CITY SAFE?
Yes. We never felt unsafe and saw nothing that would suggest the city is unsafe. In our opinion and from our time there we found the city to be very safe and everyone to be very friendly.
As with all cities and anywhere you are travelling, use common sense, avoid empty streets, keep your belongings on your body at all times. The central square gets busy at night with lots happening from stalls, music, live performance etc. These highly populated, high stimulating areas are where people could get pick pocketed so just take the usual caution.
IS OAXACA CITY WORTH VISITING?
HOW LONG SHOULD YOU STAY IN OAXACA CITY?
3 - 4 days is our recommendation but you could definitely stay longer, especially if you are just visiting one or two places in Mexico.
HOW TO SPEND FOUR DAYS IN OAXACA CITY?
Day 1: Explore the streets, do a free walking tour and enjoy the sunset. Make sure to hang around the Zócalo in the evening and enjoy live music and dancing. It is a really great atmosphere in the evening in Oaxaca City.
Day 2: Do a traditional Oaxacan cooking class. We highly recommend Flavours of Oaxaca. You can view the link here. You do a wonderful market tour and get to personalise your menu with the group. You will make mole and a range of other beutifful Oaxcan dishes. Cost approx 1200 Mexican pesos per person.
There are also a range to choose from here.
Day 3: Do a Mezcal tour or tasting. You can opt to do a tour that includes a visit to the wonderful archeological sites of Mitla or Mount Alban. We did the Mezcal Journey tour which was a great day, especially because we are Mezcal Lovers. We learnt and tasted a lot. Cost is approx 1500 mexican pesos per person.
You can also pop into a few Mezcalaerias in the city centre and taste with the. We recommend Mezcaloteca.
Day 4: If you didn’t see the archeological sites, head to see these. If you have, enjoy the city some more. Explore the markets the markets, experience the wonderful food, explore the streets, do a chocolate tasting, explore the rooftop bars, the options are endless. Just take it all in.
Get access to our pinned-for-you-map of Oaxaca here. We have pinned all our favourite places in Oaxaca city for you so you can roam around with ease.
BEST RESTAURANTS IN OAXACA CITY
Humito Cocina y Foro 8 Temblor
This hidden gem sits a little back from the main streets, higher up so you get the most spectacular view of the city. Owned by Lila Downs the famous Latin Grammy award winner, this special place offers great food and live music every night. You can check in advance on their Instagram/ Facebook who is playing or what genre to expect because it varies greatly but usually Humito Cocina Y Foro 8 Temblor presents traditional Mexican music, live jazz, boleros, cumbia and more.
Make a reservation online, it’s easy with their booking system but be sure to choose the Terraza when booking. That is where the music is and it plays from 8pm-10pm. You can eat on the terrace as well.
Food was delicious, the prawns especially. The mezcal margarita also packs a punch. It is on the pricier side as expected, approx 300-350 Mexican pesos for a main and sometimes you will pay a 100 Mexican pesos cover to go upstairs but this was a highlight for us in Oaxaca City.
For a more local and more casual food experiences we had two great experiences in Oaxaca City.
Mercado 20 de Noviembre
Packed with locals and tourists, this busy market is a winner for a hearty Tslayuda. The traditional Oaxacan dish. It can either be described as a huge, fried taco or as we saw it, a Mexican Pizza. They are huge and one can usually do two people, approx 150 Mexican pesos for one.
Chefinita
A casual street taco stand but the place was absolutely packed and there was a great atmosphere with families driving up and using the boot of their cars to sit in and eat tacos.
They offer beef and pork options, the beef was definitely the winner. Get the tacos and the pozole (traditional Mexican stew).
Check these places out on our pinned-for-you-map of Mexico
BEST BAR IN OAXACA CITY
Sabina Sabe
A very cool bar that gives a bit more of a New York atmosphere. It is a great option if you are look for a really good cocktail. One thing we did find around Mexico is that the cocktails are sweet, too sweet for us but at Sabina Sabe, the cocktails were well balanced. They have a great selection to choose from and the selection is great. The spicy pineapple cocktail (can't remember the exact name) was a winner.
BEST COFFEE AND BREAKFAST IN OAXACA CITY
Boulenc Pan Café
If you are picky about your coffee, you have to try Boulenc Pan Cafe. They have the option to sit in and enjoy their wonderful breakfast or you can go through the next door and order a takeaway with some of their great pastries. The building is absolutely stunning, the service is great, the coffee and breakfast is our winner for the best in Oaxaca City.
Muss Café
We also really enjoyed our coffees from Muss cafe. Definitely worth a visit and on par (maybe even better) than Boulenc coffee…. The verdict is out. If you try both, let us know 😃
If you are travelling through Mexico and make sure to check out the rest of our Mexico guides.
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