The tour will begin in the main square or Zocalo, exploring the modern foundations of the city, the cathedral and its colonial past. From here we will move onto the markets before they get too busy. An integral part of life in Mexico, we will explore both the Benito Juarez food market and the Mercado 20 de Noviembre craft market, where you can find all manner of produce and wares. We will sample some typical food & drinks, have a look at how chocolate is made, visit a Mezcal superstore, checkout the world famous ‘pasillo de humo’ (corridor of smoke) as well as help you understand the layout of the markets for future reference and shopping. Believe us, you can get lost among the plethora of textiles, leather goods, shoemakers, ceramics, fried crickets & foodstalls! A tour of the market is a must on any trip to Mexico for both the local insight and tips on where to eat & acquire interesting local crafts & souvenirs.
After the bustle of the market you will be delighted to enter the oasis of calm and biodiversity that is the Ethnobotanical Garden of Oaxaca. Considered a gem among botanical gardens, although relatively small in size it houses a huge variety of cacti & agave, amny among them endemic to the region. This is an eye opening walk among the representative vegetation of the state and an amazing spot for photo opportunities.
Next up, a welcome break for refreshments and light lunch at La Cosecha Market. This market is relatively small, open air and very clean and as opposed to the main city markets and was setup to showcase the food from different regions of the state, which you can choose from the different vendors that surround a common eating area. A very pleasant & necessary break en route to our next stop.
We finish our afternoon by heading down to Santo Domingo Church and then the Textile museum, a beautifully restored colonial mansion that houses a fascinating collection of Textiles from around the state. Oaxaca is known specifically for its textiles and this museum is a hidden gem
My tour with Jorge was perfection! We explored a couple of markets, museums and restaurant areas, and I felt like a local moving through the city with just enough context to provide perspective on everything I was experiencing. 10/10 would recommend!!
Our tour guide Jorge was so great. He is originally from Oaxaca city and had lots of history to share. He had many ‘life changing’ flavors and ingredients to show us, and by the end of the tour we realized he was right. We did the shorter, 2 hour tour and it was a good length. 3 hours would be even more fun to maybe taste more items and squeeze in more stories, but the city is small and walkable so we covered a lot of ground. Bring money to purchase snacks at the places you stop, cash is best because they are small purchases.
My guide was wonderful, taking my me to some interesting places and great food. I learned so much ch about the city
Fabulous tour with Bruno. He is kind, friendly and very knowledgeable. I learned a lot about Oaxaca, it's people and culture. We hit all the highpoints of the central district. And he shared his recommendations for additional must see spots outside of the city.
Pablo was an excellent tour guide very knowledgeable about the history of the city and was very lively. Had great knowledge of food and places and recommendations for places for later in our trip.
I had a wonderful tour with Jorge. His knowledge of the city coupled with his warm personality made the walk of Central Oaxaca City really come alive. Jorge tailor made the walk specific to my wishes (I wanted to visit and photograph the cathedrals) and was knowledgeable about each church - the history, the architecture and the politics. We also visited several markets and museums and took the time to really explore each of them. Again, I can highly recommend the tour and if you’re interested in really learning about the unique character and culture of Oaxaca City, this is definitely the tour to take - I can recommend it emphatically.
Jorge was an excellent guide, with tremendous knowledge of Oaxaca and the surrounding areas. I learned a lot talking with him and really appreciated his to me as much as he could in a short time. The textile museum was amazing and a note to be missed visit.
Excellent personalized tour of the city center. It happened that it was just my spouse and I so our guide, Jorge, was able to adjust our activities. He was incredibly knowledgeable and shared his love of the city, the history, and area. We were able to shift our schedule and were able to see a neighborhood we would have otherwise missed. Jorge let us know when the English tour of the Botanical Garden was so we could work that into our schedule.
Great tour. Jorge was great. Be prepared to eat…there is a good sampling of foods. The garden portion of the tour is 2 hours so be prepared for that part.
Very nice walking through Oaxaca for the “dia de muertos”. Carlos was our guide - passionate, very sympathetic and interesting! Highly recommended.
Review: This tour was worth it getting up pretty early for! The sun wasn’t burning and we got to explore the city in peace. As a mezcal enthusiast and super foodie I couldn’t have chosen a better tour to start my day. They even have a tour to a mezcal distillery which I will be going on next!
Loved loved the tour. We met up early with our guide thus avoiding the big crowds. Highlights for me were definitely the textile museum and the incredible food that Oaxaca of course is known for. I really enjoyed the botanical garden as well and wished I could've brought some plants home with me!
We met our guide Neo at the Zocalo main square at around 8 AM and got to explore from there on. Neo was very funny, considerate and an overall hands-on guide. He managed to captivate everyone with his knowledge about the city and kept our small group together for the entire walk. After exploring the city for a while we visited the mercados and got to enjoy chocolate and the chocolate making process. The food at the corridor of smoke did not disappoint and the presentation was stunning. We totally get the name now! The botanical garden was a relaxing breather as we observed the many varieties of cacti and agave before lunch. A warning to not fill yourself up with food at the first markets, because you definitely don’t want to miss out on lunch at the organic market. There were plenty of vendors to choose from and everything was delicious! After lunch we visited the beautiful church of Santo Domingo and finished this incredible walk at the famous textile museum at around 3 PM. The entire walk was as educational as it was entertaining and at a nice pace. A total dream and would totally recommend!
This tour was such a great introduction to Oaxaca City. We plan to stay for a week and feel like we can find our way through the city more easily now! Our guide Niko was funny and very knowledgeable. You could really feel the passion he has for his craft as we made our way through the markets. He gave us great recommendations and tips! This was the perfect beginning of our Oaxaca trip. When exploring Oaxaca I would really recommend booking with Mexico Kan Tours first!
My friend and I wanted to explore Oaxaca in an efficient and pleasant way, we are delighted because we were able to take advantage of the good addresses from our first visit with Mexico Kan Tours! We had the opportunity to visit a good part of the city, essential addresses, the markets, the botanical garden and the Santo Domingo church while walking and listening to the in-depth explanations and anecdotes from Axel who told us about them. learned more about the history of the city. The route chosen was relevant; we felt like we discovered a good part of Oaxaca in less than a day and the meal was absolutely delicious! Thank you for everything :)
This tour was a beautiful experience in the city of Oaxaca. In a very short time, we were able to explore the immense cultural heritage of the city, starting with a visit to the typical Oaxacan markets, overflowing with flavors and crafts. After this, we enjoyed a delicious typical lunch before continuing our visit to the Ethnobotanical Garden, which I loved. The tour continued with an impressive visit to the Santo Domingo church and finally, the Oaxaca textile museum. I learned a lot about the culture and history of the city during the excursion, thanks to the kindness and vast knowledge of our guide.
We loved the guided tour of the city of Oaxaca. We started in the Zócalo, where we could admire its beauty and culture. Afterwards we went to the typical markets of the city: the Benito Juárez market and the 20 deNovember crafts market, where it was very interesting to be able to see in person all the variety of art that the people of Oaxaca have to share with the world, in addition to the immense diversity of foods that you can find in this unique region of the country. Our favorite moment was the visit to the magnificent Ethnobotanical Garden of Oaxaca, with its cacti and agaves as far as the eye can see. Culture, crafts, biodiversity and delicious food in all its splendor!
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