Spring break is a nice part of the year to travel, explore new towns, cities and meet people, you can find inner peace and try to find out what’s going on with your life. Oaxaca is a paradise for all kind of travelers. If you don’t have much money that’s not a problem. If you want to know about culture, you won’t find a better place. Do you want to visit pyramids?, great Oaxaca has some, or is it escaping to nature your thing, awesome, it is also possible. Whatever you choose, here I will show you the best spring break activities in Oaxaca.
MENU
- SPRING BREAK ACTIVITIES IN OAXACA CITY
- BEST SPRING BREAK TOURS IN OAXACA
- BEST SPRING BREAK BEACHES IN OAXACA
- SPRING BRAKE ACTIVITIES IN OAXACA’S MOUNTAINS
SPRING BREAK ACTIVITIES IN OAXACA CITY
Oaxaca City is full of stuff to do, visit, enjoy and learn. Specially if you like art, great architecture, colorful streets full of history, amazing food, and instagrammable places, this is for you.
WALK IN THE TOURIST WALKER
Oaxaca city has a tourist walker that passes by the most important places of the city. It’s a long street that goes through iconic places such as the Santo Domingo Church, the Museum of Contemporary Art, Labastida Park that showcases art of local artists and ends in the Central Park of the city.
If you are hosted in a hotel in the Historical Center, you’ll probably be passing in this street very frequently. And you could enjoy some food in a terrace to see the Santo Domingo Church, you won’t regret the views. And if you like awesome handcrafts with a lot of stories behind you can find stores so you take a little piece of Oaxaca in your backpack.
Know about the Alebrijes in this post. A great handcraft from Oaxaca with a beautiful story behind it: THE ALEBRIJES, DREAMS COME TRUE
VISIT SANTO DOMINGO CHURCH
As a mentioned this church is located in the tourist walker. It is probably (I’ll leave it to you yo choose) the most beautiful church in the Central Valleys. It showcases a baroque style and it was a really big complex. This church used to be also a convent, a huge one, the museum next to it, and the ethnobotanical park were part of it. On the inside you will be even more amazed with the fine art and woodwork. Its golden interior and the beautiful sculptures of saints make it a must visit. Even if you’re not a religious person.
Know more about this church in my post about it: CHURCH OF SANTO DOMINGO DE GUZMÁN, OAXACA
ENJOY AN AFTERNOON IN THE JALATLACO DISTRICT
Jalatlaco District was recently declared a magical district. This is because this district has been remodeling itself into a more touristic place without leaving its essence. Jalatlaco is certainly a very peaceful and colorful place, with a lot of cafe’s to enjoy a nice and calm afternoon. During your visit you’ll see the cobbled streets and artistic murals, make it a mix between antique and modern. If you go here, get lost in the streets of this district admiring the art, and enjoying the calm atmosphere.
VISIT MUSEUMS
Art, history, archaeology, textiles and even philately! Oaxaca has it all, don’t put this museums in your spring break activities in Oaxaca list if you don’t want to be amazed.
MUSEUM OF THE CULTURES OF OAXACA
Oaxaca is and has been a multicultural place. And this is one of the reasons why people come here, to connect with the cultures and to learn about them. One of the most relevant cultures of Oaxaca is the zapotecs. Moreover they inhabited the Central Valleys and built Monte Albán, a huge archaeological site in the mountains. In Monte Albán the archaeologist Alfonso Caso, found one of the biggest treasures of Latin America. And indeed you can see it in this museum.
This Museum is next to the Santo Domingo Church, so you can get there easily if you are staying in the City Center.
Know more at: CULTURAL CENTER OF SANTO DOMINGO, EX-CONVENT OF SANTO DOMINGO DE GUZMÁN
TEXTILE MUSEUM
All the historical center is full of history, every rock in every building has a ton of stories to tell, but they are getting lost. Visiting these places with passionate guides helps the stories be alive. Well, one of the buildings with a lot of history is the Textile Museum. Located very close to the Central Park in what it was a convent of the dominicans, but not just another convent, it was the second dominican convent in all the American continent. Due to earthquakes the building was damaged and had to be sold. A spanish businessman bought it and built his house, known for a long time as “Casa Antelo” (Antelo House).
The building was later restored and started showcasing the traditional textiles, materials and their evolution to contemporary art. This is a small museum so you can put it as a bonus in an afternoon if you have some free time.
Know more about the textiles of Oaxaca at: TEXTILES FROM OAXACA, TEOTITLÁN DEL VALLE
PAINTERS OF OAXACA MUSEUM
This museum showcases the art of various artists from Oaxaca, their unique art blended with history will make you feel amazed, and surprised. The museum was house of the Anthropology Museum before so you can see a column that came from the archaeological site of Mitla.
Other museums: Philately museum and the Contemporary Art Museum of Oaxaca (MACO). Also must visit for history and art lovers.
Note: All museums have a cost, but is very low. Respect the rules of the museums, and enjoy.
GO FOR A NIEVE IN JARDIN SÓCRATES
You may be asking, What is a nieve? Well in simple terms is flavored scraped ice. The flavors can be very different. From common ones in Oaxaca like lemon, “burnt milk”, tuna, and others to exotic flavors such as grasshopper, corn and others. Now let me take you to Jardín Sócrates, located next to the church of “La Soledad”, where you can find a lot of businesses that have years making these delicious iced desserts for years. The amazing amount of flavors you’ll find here will just make you want to try them all. A must visit for all foodies.
VISIT THE MARKETS
The markets in México are the perfect place to know about delicious local food, traditional clothing, and even habits of the locals. It’s like a hidden gem, a little bit less urbanized, more authentic than the rest of the city, you enter another universe, a universe that is getting lost.
HANDCRAFTS MARKET
Handcrafts are the artistic expressions of a culture, Oaxaca has a great diversity of them, some were everyday objects that took an artistic approach as black clay. Others were creations from dreams, like alebrijes. And others are clothing, that reflect the biodiversity of a region. You can get to see them all in the handcrafts market. If you decide to buy something don’t bargain, know the process of making this stuff and you’ll see the worth.
Handcrafts market, click here for location.
BENITO JUÁREZ MARKET
Benito Juárez market is like the main market in Oaxaca, and it has a lot of things that you could have seen in the past or traditional stuff, and it also has modern stuff, so it is really a mix between past and present.
The things you could find interesting in this market is the food, clothing and things made out of leather. First, the food, gastronomical delicacies such as the oaxacan chocolate, empanadas, grasshoppers, quesillo, nieves, oaxacan candy, and more that you should find out when you come to Oaxaca.
20th OF NOVEMBER MARKET
This market is mostly known because of a hallway inside it, called the smoke hallway. Why is this hallway called like that? Well, it’s because the hallway is full of smoke, the smoke comes from the grills that cook the delicious meat and local sausages accompanied with tlayudas, tortillas and more! Undeniably it is something that you don’t see anywhere else in the world (at least I don’t know about other place like this).
The market doesn’t have just that. It offers mezcal, bread and other food. But as I said, that’s the main attraction.
*If you are reading this in 2024, the famous part of this market (the smoke hallway) is being remodeled.
GO TO THE ETHNOBOTANICAL GARDEN
Oaxaca is the most biodiverse state, so if you are a nature lover, this is one of the best spring break activities in Oaxaca for you. Oaxacans respect nature a lot, specially certain cultures. The ethnobotanical garden is a space to maintain and show the plant diversity of Oaxaca and how it relates to the cultures in the 8 regions of this beautiful state.
This place was the garden of the Santo Domingo’s church and convent, so you can see remains of wells, ovens and more from the dominicans, while you visit and get to know about the variety of plants from the 8 regions of Oaxaca.
The visits to this garden are limited and guided to preserve the place. For english visits you can go from monday to saturday at 11:00 hrs. It lasts 2 hours and it has a price of 100 mexican pesos. (Around 6 dollars per person).
Know more about the ethnobotanical garden in this post: THE ETHNOBOTANICAL GARDEN
BEST SPRING BREAK TOURS
Make this spring break full of amazing activities to unique marvels that will amaze you. A guided tour is a very good option to know a place better. And a guided tour to the perfect place is a dream come true. These are the best spring break tours in Oaxaca, so you enjoy the places to the maximum.
HIERVE EL AGUA
Hierve el Agua is a beautiful place with petrified waterfalls and sulfated medicinal water. There’s just one more place like this in the whole planet so enjoy it a lot if you go. The petrified waterfalls and the landscape form a perfect place to relax and take awesome pictures. It is definitely a one in a lifetime experience and one of the best spring break activities in Oaxaca, so you refresh yourself.
Activities that you can do here are: hiking, biking, swimming and more.
Here’s my guide to Hierve el Agua, check it out and save it for your trip: HIERVE EL AGUA, A NATURAL WONDER OF OAXACA
MONTE ALBÁN
Imagine this: Visiting an ancient city in the mountains of Oaxaca, this place has big pyramids built thousands of years ago, detailed sculptures made in rock and a museum full of the things that people used in their daily lives. This ancient city in Oaxaca, was also were one of the biggest treasures of gold of the american continent has been found. Don’t miss the opportunity to live this great adventure and know about the cultures that inhabited Monte Albán.
BEST SPRING BREAK BEACHES IN OAXACA
Spring is a hot season in Oaxaca, and the sun can be burning your skin, so refresh yourself in some of the most beautiful and calm beaches, get to know locals, and enjoy watching dolphins, turtles and even whales. Oaxaca is the best place for this spring break, so enjoy the best of spring break beaches in Oaxaca.
If you want to enjoy both the city and the beaches, contact me and let me plan the best trip for you.
PUERTO ÁNGEL / PLAYA PANTEÓN
Puerto Angelito is a not so known beach, so perfect if you want a calm place, with a nice view and a pretty calm beach. Is mostly know by locals so the prices are cheaper, but still beautiful and I’m sure you can have a great time. This bay has 2 beaches, Puerto Ángel and Playa Panteón, my recommendation is Playa Panteón that has less people. I’ll leave you the location down here.
Click here for location in google maps.
HUATULCO BAYS
Imagine a place known nationally and internationally for its bays with low waves, soft and white sand and luxury resorts. This is Huatulco, it has 9 bays, one of them is Santa Cruz that is a scale of cruise ships, and one of the nicest of this complex.
This place is like a city created for tourists, beaches with tours to other bays, and to see whales, dolphins and more, restaurants and hotels just some meters away from the beach, and nature does her part by making beautiful beaches, sunsets and coral reefs.
If what you’re looking for is swimming, go to this post: THE 3 BEST BEACHES IN HUATULCO FOR SWIMMING
MAZUNTE
Imagine walking in the sand in the night, seeing a fire in the distance with the sound of the waves breaking in the beach, and a street with a bohemian vibe. Well, this is Mazunte, a Pueblo Mágico in the Oaxacan coast with the turtle museum and conservatorium and more things that you should find. This is a short description, you will love it when you live it.
Also, Mazunte has a place nearby called Punta Cometa where you can admire some of the best sunsets. Definitely one of the best spring break activities in Oaxaca.
SPRING BREAK ACTIVITIES IN OAXACA’S MOUNTAINS
As high as 3 thousand meters and with incredible views, you can feel the love of mother nature in Oaxaca. Connect with local communities and involve yourself in the magic of nature, and peace.
Let me give you a little bit of context so you don’t mix this places the wrong way. Oaxaca has two mountain ranges, one called Sierra Norte or Sierra Juárez and the other one Sierra Sur, they are the opposite ways so if you are short of time don’t mix them, you will lose a lot of time. If you are going to the beach, you will pass through the Sierra Sur so if you want to enjoy this part, make a little stop there.
To have the perfect trip planned for you, contact me and don’t miss out on anything of Oaxaca.
CRYSTAL LOOKOUT
Located in the town of Ixtlán de Juárez, the crystal lookout is a 18 meter long, lookout to the the mountains. This is one of the highest lookouts in Latin America and a very instagrammable places for your trip. In this place you can enjoy also a cafeteria with a crystal floor.
While you’re here you may consider staying the night in a cabin in the forest, going on a zipline, or going on a guided adventure in to a cave with subterranean rivers. Be adventurous or just relax in this beautiful place.
SAN JOSÉ DEL PACÍFICO
What about a stop in the way to the beach? Well, San José del Pacífico should be that stop, this town is famous specially on the winter season because of its decorations, but on spring is also a great option and an awesome stop if you are on your way to the beach.
What to do here? Well, let’s imagine you get there in the morning and you get a warm cup of coffee, and a delicious breakfast, you rest a bit and admire the views, and when you’re ready you go hiking to find wildlife and the variety of hallucinogenic mushrooms that they have in this region. After that you can visit a temazcal and if you want to take the risk, you try one of these fungus. There are also other activities like zipline, and don’t miss a sunset or sunrise in the right cabins.
CUAJIMOLOYAS
Another town in the Sierra Norte is Cuajimoloyas. This town is famous because it has a huge zip line that goes all the way across the town. There are other activities you can do like visit caves, the canyon, camp, go on a bike ride and more. Definitely a great option for people who love ecotourism.
If this post was useful please share it with the people you are coming with to Oaxaca in this spring break, and follow on social media.