We arrived in Oaxaca on a night bus from Palenque (via Villahermosa) after 5 awesome days in Chiapas. The ride was super long (about 13 hours, instead of 10) and extra bumpy. Really not pleasant.

What to do in Oaxaca?

• Go on a free walking tour around the lovely city (meeting point in front of Teatro Macedonio Alcala). You’ll also get a chance to taste the famous Oaxacan cholocate!

• Visit the Museum of Cultures of Oaxaca (but be ready to queue, and arrive early)

• Find the moment when the Templo de Santo Domingo de Guzmán is open and run before it closes again!

• Take the time to go on an excursion to Hierve El Agua. I booked mine with Oaxaca by locals for $40 pp, it included a stop in a bakery on the way there, and a tasting in a mezcaleria on the way back. We also had ample time to do the long walk around the petrified waterfalls. Other tours have more stops but the time is Hierve El Agua is limited, which I did not want.

• Take a bus to Monte Alban to visit the large zapotec site (in front of Hotel Rivera del Ángel)

Where to eat in Oaxaca?

• Have a breakfast or a brunch at Cafe Café La Oaxaca 
• Take a croissant to-go from Pan:am Abasolo (you can also sit there, if you have the energy to queue)
• Go to El Sol y La Luna for original and delicious empanadas
• Get an ice-cream from Museo de Las Nieves
• Enjoy the view from La Azotea for a reasonable price
• Taste all the mezcals from the Archivo Maguey’s detailed menu

What to do in Puerto Escondido?

• Fight the giant waves in Playa Carrizalillo. You can either sit (mostly in the sun) freely on the beach or rent sunbeds (around 20$) where you can order food and drinks.

• Take a boat to go dolphin and whale watching. I booked my excursion on the Puerto Escondido website and paid 800 MXN (easy booking via Whatsapp). We saw several turtles, a couple of manta rays, many jumping dolphins and a whale family. Awesome! But there were many many boats around the whales, which made me a bit uncomfortable for the animals.

• Look at the surfers’ crazy moves on Playa Zicatela

• Release cute baby turtles at sunset on Playa Bacocho. They do it everyday from 5 to 7PM. You only need to pay 150 MXN. You can book excursions but they are much more expensive (600 MXN on the Puerto Escondido website). Just beware: you will fall in love with your turtle, and the reality of the release can be a bit… let’s say … traumatic.

Where to eat and drink in Puerto Escondido?

• Get breakfast from Selina’s bakery
• Eat a good lunch from El Cafecito
• Taste a nice fish dish from La Red
• Enjoy a piña colada from La Playita
• Go play snooker (cocktails are good too!) from Esmeralda bar

We slept at Hotel Santa Fe. The hotel has a nice restaurant, two swimming pools (one only for adults, thank god!), as well as a very large terrace with a view on the beach and the sea. The bedroom was large and included a dressing room, we loved it! To be completely honest, it was not cheap, but this was New Year’s time. 

Useful info:

• At the time of writing this blog post, there are several ways to go from from Oaxaca to Puerto Escondido:
  • A 7-hour journey in collectivo (about 250 MXN)
  • An expensive, but short, flight (about 1 450 MXN)
  • (our option) a 11-hour night bus (about 700 MXN)
• This should however change soon as a motorway is being constructed between both cities, and should cut down the time by several hours.
• Taxis are cheap in Puerto Escondido. But there’s also an even cheaper collectivo along the Carrera Costera.

We then took a flight back to Mexico city from Puerto Escondido’s small airport. See you next time Mexico, I still need to visit the area around Mexico city, Guadalajara, and Puerto Vallarta!

All recommendations are mine, no ads. Prices from December 2022/January 2023.