Things to do in Oaxaca City
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Oaxaca Sierra Norte: Guided Hike, Local Food & Private TransportYou’ll breathe mountain air on quiet trails above Oaxaca, share homemade breakfasts in Cuajimoloyas, and hike at your own pace through pine forests with a local guide who knows every turn. There’s time to laugh over lunch in a village kitchen before heading home tired but happy — it’s less about conquering miles than feeling part of these mountains for a day.
Oaxaca Food & Markets Tour: Taste tamales, tlayudas, tejateA 2.5-hour food tour of Oaxaca's Benito Juárez and 20 de Noviembre markets with a local English-speaking guide and lunch included. You taste traditional waters, tejate (a famous cocoa drink), grasshoppers, roasted meats, tamales, tlayudas and Oaxacan sweets at the stalls where they're made, moving between the two markets to understand how the region's cuisine actually works.Is it for me?Book this tour if you want to taste real Oaxacan food at the source—the stalls and vendors where locals actually eat—rather than in a restaurant. The guide explains what you're tasting and why it matters, so you leave knowing how to navigate the markets on your own.
Monte Albán tour with ruins, workshops & chocolate tastingThis nine-hour guided tour from Oaxaca takes you to Monte Albán, the most important archaeological site in the region, built by the Zapotec culture. You'll explore the ruins with a live guide in English or Spanish, then travel to San Antonio Arrazola to visit an ancestral mezcalería, watch alebrijes being made in a workshop, see black clay ceramics being shaped, and stop at a traditional Oaxaca restaurant for lunch. The day ends with a chocolate tasting at an authentic shop. Pickup is included.Is it for me?Book this if you're staying in central Oaxaca without your own car—pickup and drop-off mean you skip the taxi coordination between Monte Albán, the craft workshops, and Cuilapam.
Oaxaca: Hierve el Agua Hike, Mineral Pools & Mezcal TastingYou’ll wake before dawn in Oaxaca City for a sunrise drive to Hierve el Agua, sharing breakfast with locals before hiking past petrified waterfalls and soaking your feet in mineral pools. Walk through valleys with your guide, visit a Zapotec family for mezcal tasting, then end with a home-cooked lunch—leaving you quietly changed by Oaxaca’s gentle pace.
Traditional Oaxaca Cooking Class with Local ChefA hands-on cooking class in Oaxaca where you learn to prepare three traditional regional dishes—mole, handmade tortillas and chocolate tamales—from a local chef and cookbook author. The class runs 3.5 hours, is 100% practical, and includes all the food and drinks you make. Vegetarian, gluten-free and vegan menus are available on request.Is it for me?Book this class if you want to leave Oaxaca knowing how to make the dishes you've eaten there—the hands-on format and the chef's expertise in regional cooking mean you're learning techniques and stories, not just following a recipe.
Hierve el Agua from Oaxaca: Petrified Waterfalls & Natural PoolsYou're driven to Hierve el Agua's petrified waterfalls, swim in natural mineral pools, and have the option to hike to the main cascade—all in one half-day without stopping elsewhere. The 3-hour stay lets you move at your own pace instead of being herded through, and your air-conditioned vehicle handles the mountain roads both ways. Bring cash and swimwear; no card payments or restaurant stops along the route.Is it for me?Choose this if you want to see Hierve el Agua's unusual geology without arranging your own transport or timing—the fixed 3-hour stay gives you room to swim and rest instead of rushing, and the driver handles the mountain roads both ways.
Oaxaca: Street Art Bike Tour with Local Artists & WorkshopsYou’ll cycle through Oaxaca’s most vibrant neighborhoods with a local guide, stopping for murals, artist workshops, and organic snacks along the way. Expect laughter over coffee breaks, spontaneous chats with locals, and plenty of time to soak in both art and everyday life on this street art bike tour.
Oaxaca: Art Walk & Cacao Tasting in Jalatlaco StudiosYou’ll wander Oaxaca’s colorful Jalatlaco streets with a local guide, meet working artists in their studios, try your hand at printmaking (and take your own piece home), then taste three different cacao drinks in Centro’s cozy chocolatería. Expect laughter, paint-stained fingers, and stories you’ll remember long after you leave.
Oaxaca: Tule, Mitla & Hierve el Agua Day Trip with MezcalYou’ll stand beneath Oaxaca’s ancient Tule Tree, trace your fingers along Mitla’s Zapotec mosaics, taste smoky mezcal at a family distillery, and catch your breath overlooking Hierve el Agua’s petrified waterfalls—all with a certified local guide and easy pickup. This day trip weaves together history, flavor, laughter, and those small moments you’ll remember long after you’re home.
Oaxaca Small Group Hierve el Agua & Mezcal TourIf you want real Oaxacan flavors—fresh bread, smoky mezcal—and time to soak in those wild valley views at Hierve el Agua without big crowds or rushed stops, this tour nails it. You’ll meet locals who actually live here and taste things you won’t find in touristy spots.
Oaxaca Airport to Hotel: Private Transfer with Professional DriverYou get picked up at Oaxaca airport by a named driver with a banner, ride in an air-conditioned vehicle with your luggage, and arrive at your hotel without arranging transport or negotiating a fare. The driver tracks your flight and won't leave you waiting. Takes as long as the route requires, typically 20–30 minutes depending on traffic and your destination in the city.Is it for me?Book this if you land at Oaxaca airport and want to skip the taxi negotiation at arrivals — the fixed price and named driver mean you know exactly what you're paying and who's picking you up, which turns a transfer into one less thing to figure out on arrival day.
Oaxaca: Traditional Mole Cooking Class & Market TourYou'll tour Oaxaca's market with a traditional cook, select fresh ingredients, then prepare authentic mole and regional sauces in a small group kitchen class. Lunch includes the dishes you've made, plus a traditional dessert. Groups stay under twelve, and the class is designed for adults 18 and up.Is it for me?Book this if you want to understand mole beyond tasting it—to learn why it matters in Oaxaca and how to make it yourself. The small group size and market walk mean you're not just following steps; you're learning how a traditional cook actually thinks about ingredients and flavor.
Oaxaca City: Markets Food Tour & 15+ TastingsYou walk through Oaxaca's busiest markets with a local guide who grew up there, stopping at 15+ vendors to taste mole, tamales, chocolate, mezcal and street food. All tastings and drinks are included, the pace is slow enough to talk to vendors and the guide, and you finish knowing why Oaxacan food tastes the way it does. Book early if you're traveling in high season — groups are kept small.Is it for me?Book this if you want to eat real Oaxaca food the way locals do, without arranging your own market route or figuring out which stalls are worth your time — the guide's family connections and years of eating in these markets is what makes the difference between a food tour and an actual introduction to the place.
Mitla & Teotitlán: Half Day Tour with Family GuidesYou’ll join a small group led by a local family guide from Oaxaca, exploring El Tule’s ancient tree, Mitla’s mysterious ruins with their intricate stonework, and an artisan rug workshop where natural dyes come alive in your hands. Includes pickup and lunch—expect laughter, stories, and moments you’ll want to hold onto.
Monte Albán, Alebrijes & Black Pottery: Oaxaca Day TourThis eight-hour guided tour of Monte Albán, San Antonio Arrazola and San Bartolo Coyotepec combines the Zapotec archaeological site with two working artisan villages where you see alebrijes carved and painted and black pottery fired by hand. A certified bilingual guide leads the day, hotel pickup and air-conditioned minivan transport are included, and admission to Monte Albán is part of the package. The tour is built for first-time visitors to Oaxaca who want the major stops without rushing between them.Is it for me?Book this if you want a guided pace through three distinct stops—archaeological site, alebrije workshop, pottery village—rather than rushing between them, with a certified guide providing context at each location.
Hierve el Agua: Small Group Day Trip & Early AccessYou’ll catch Hierve el Agua before the crowds, hike down to its surreal petrified waterfalls with a local guide, swim in mineral-rich pools overlooking valleys, and share lunch at rustic food stalls nearby. Expect real conversation, fresh tortillas, and moments you’ll replay long after you’re back home.
Oaxaca: Cacao Tasting & Chocolate Experience Small GroupsYou taste 15 to 20 varieties of cacao and chocolate over two hours, learning how the same bean changes flavor through different processing and sugar choices. A Zoque guide from a chocolate-making family walks you through the tasting, shares the culture and traceability of cacao in Oaxaca, and includes a cocoa snack break and house drink to finish. Small groups mean you actually hear what's being explained and can ask questions without holding up a line.Is it for me?Book this if you want to understand chocolate beyond the taste — how origin, processing, and sugar choice shape flavor — and prefer learning from someone whose family has actually made it rather than reading about it.
Bicycle Tour through Oaxaca: Urban Art & HistoryA two-hour guided bicycle tour through the City of Oaxaca covers the neighborhoods of Jalatlaco and Xochimilco, the colonial arches of the San Felipe aqueduct, and the Temple of Santo Domingo de Guzmán, with a local guide explaining the art, history and pre-Hispanic roots of each stop. The tour includes a bicycle, helmet and technical assistance; a viewpoint option is available depending on group fitness. English and Spanish guides are available, and the minimum age is 18.Is it for me?Pick this if you want to cover more ground than a walking tour allows while staying in the city center—you'll bike through neighborhoods to see colonial architecture and street art at a pace that lets you actually absorb what you're seeing.
Oaxaca: Agave Fields, Mezcal Tasting & Oaxacan LunchYou’ll wander Oaxaca’s agave fields with a local guide, learn ancient weaving in Teotitlán del Valle, taste mezcal at a family distillery, and share an Oaxacan feast in their home. Expect laughter around the table—and maybe a lingering hint of smoke on your hands long after you return.
Mezcal & Mole Tasting in Oaxaca: Seven Pairings by SommelierA mezcal and mole tasting class in Oaxaca where you taste seven handcrafted vegetarian moles paired with seven artisanal mezcales, led by a professional sommelier. The experience runs 90 minutes in a mountain-view tasting room and includes a welcome cocktail and printed tasting notes. All mezcals are ancestral or artisanal, sourced from single-family producers across six agave varieties: Espadiín, Tobalá, Cuixe, Tepeztate, Jabalí, and Papalometl.Is it for me?At 90 minutes, the tasting leaves room for dinner elsewhere in Oaxaca the same evening, or for another activity before or after. The small-group format and the sommelier's teaching mean you learn the logic behind the pairings rather than simply tasting through a list, which is what makes this version worth the time if you want to understand mezcal and mole, not just try them.
