Oaxaca Culinary Tour

Arrive in Oaxaca and transfer to your charming colonial hotel, Casa Oaxaca Boutique, for the next 7 nights. Relax and dine tonight on your own at one of Oaxaca's fine restaurants as you settle in and prepare for your Mexico trip.

After breakfast this morning, meet in the hotel lobby for a privately guided day trip to Monte Alban and the Atzompa archaeological zone and pottery village (20-minute drive, 10 km). Your expert guide will lead you through Monte Alban, once inhabited by three indigenous Mexican tribes. At Atzompa, explore the three ball courts and admire the local green-glazed pottery.

Please note: meals focus on introducing local, clean cuisine but do not include fine dining or alcoholic beverages. Options may feature vetted local restaurants, family meals, or market food, ensuring quality and cleanliness.

Return to your hotel and enjoy a free evening in Oaxaca at your chosen local restaurant.

Chef Alejandro Ruiz’s restaurant Casa Oaxaca is listed among the Pellegrino Top 50 Restaurants of Latin America. His contemporary take on traditional Oaxaca food has made him nationally and internationally renowned. Today attend a 4-hour class led by Alejandro Ruiz or a long-standing member of his team. Start with a local market experience at the Sanchez Pascua market, where you will meet Alejandro’s favorite merchants and learn about the local ingredients, spices, and seasonings while discovering how to source the best and freshest ingredients. Returning to the kitchen, you will be guided step by step in preparing a range of traditional dishes, salsas, and tortillas. Once the meal is prepared and ready to eat, you will sit down to enjoy your creation, while sampling artisanal mezcals and learning all about the variety of flavors of this important Oaxacan spirit.

This class is available only on Tuesdays and Fridays.

After spending the morning preparing your fabulous lunch, enjoy a walking city tour of World Heritage properties in central Oaxaca this afternoon. Start with your local expert guide on the main plaza, or zocalo, visiting the historic murals in Oaxaca's Palacio. Continue onward to the great chocolate mills to see (and taste!) this Oaxacan specialty. Walk to the Museo de Pintores Oaxaquenos to see masterpieces by world-renowned local artists Rufino Tamayo and Francisco Toledo, among others. Visit the Alvarez Bravo Photography Museum and then, the most breathtaking colonial monument of the city, Santo Domingo, where you can relish the cultural and natural ambiance of the Museum of the Oaxacan Cultures and Botanical Garden.

Enjoy dinner on your own in Oaxaca before returning to your hotel for the evening.

On this full-day shared experience in Oaxaca City, you'll visit a local market and learn to prepare a 5-course meal. After meeting your guide, head to the market to sample Oaxacan flavors and meet the vendors who make it special. Explore the vibrant Mercado as you taste fresh local produce.

Next, travel to a ranch about 30 minutes outside the city to a cooking school focused on traditional Oaxacan cuisine. After a brief introduction to Oaxacan ingredients, put on your apron and start cooking. Guided by an expert, you'll create a 5-course meal including an appetizer, soup, salad, main course, and dessert. Finally, enjoy the dishes you’ve prepared.

This class is available only on Wednesdays.

After breakfast, journey 17 miles from Oaxaca to explore artisanal communities showcasing authentic regional craftsmanship. Each town specializes in a unique craft, offering a broad perspective of Oaxaca's artisanal diversity. In San Bartolo Coyotepec, meet masters of black clay, whose pieces are fired in specialized subterranean furnaces, and enjoy a traditional lunch at an artisan's home. In San Martin Tilcajete, discover whimsical, hand-carved mythical creatures rooted in ancient Mexican beliefs. Your final stop is Santo Tomas Jalieza, where skilled artists craft rugs, belts, and bags with intricate local patterns.

Return to Oaxaca in the afternoon for some free time to explore the city’s vibrant streets, colorful markets, or historic sites at your own pace. Later, meet your guide for an authentic Oaxaca night-out experience. Discover hidden local spots where locals gather to enjoy some of the best Mezcales and the region’s iconic grilled Tlayuda. Begin your evening at a small, off-the-beaten-path Mezcaleria to sample between 4-8 varieties of Mezcal, each offering a distinctive taste of Oaxaca's endemic agave plants. Then, visit a popular local eatery for a delicious grilled Oaxacan Tlayuda, topped with your choice of ingredients, accompanied by a cold drink. Enjoy live music while you dine on Fridays and Saturdays, adding a lively atmosphere to your evening.

xperience the flavors of Oaxaca with this half-day private cooking class. Begin with a visit to a traditional market in Oaxaca City before heading to a local cooking school to create your meal.

Meet your guide, Oscar Carrizosa, who has studied traditional Oaxacan cuisine by learning directly from local communities. After choosing your menu, walk 10 minutes to the market to explore the ingredients essential to Mexican cooking, including vibrant dried chilies.

Back at the kitchen, your ingredients will be prepped and ready. Under Oscar’s guidance, you’ll prepare three salsas, tortillas, an appetizer, soup, Oaxacan mole, and dessert. Finally, enjoy your meal with wine, beer, or a shot of mezcal.

Today, you will explore the Zapotec archaeological site of Mitla, one of Mesoamerica's oldest markets at Tlacolula, the weaving town of Teotitlan del Valle, and the renowned Tule Tree.

Mitla is a significant ceremonial center that was controlled by Zapotec priests at the time of the Spanish arrival. The site is filled with remnants of tombs, forts, and stone mosaics, which are believed to depict sacred beings like the feathered serpent. Known as "Lyobaa" in the Zapotec language, it means "Burial Place," and the Great House of Pezeleo is regarded as one of the most beautiful structures in the Americas. In Santa Maria del Tule, the legendary Tule Tree stands with a base circumference of over 160 feet and an estimated age of 2000 to 3000 years, making it one of the oldest living things on the planet. Teotitlán del Valle, just 28 kilometers from Oaxaca City, is famous for its hand-woven woolen rugs, naturally dyed textiles, and intricately decorated beeswax candles adorned with metallic paper and paper flowers.

Return to your hotel and enjoy a free evening in Oaxaca at your chosen local restaurant.

After breakfast, a private transfer takes you from your hotel to the airport for onward travel.