NEW!! Journeys in OAXACA CITY

Journeys Beyond the Surface now offers inexpensive private custom tours for one or more people, in the Oaxaca city area. As in Mexico City, we can give you tours that go off the beaten track, or arrange for an excellent guide for the important historical sights, get you transport, organize a class, and can also give you recommendations for hotels, restaurants and things to do.

Just contact us directly at journeysoax@yahoo.com or journeys@prodigy.net.mx and we will work out the details of your custom tour...

Oaxaca City tours are conceived as 6-hour days, to take into account the afternoon heat and our experience that most travellers enjoy a 6-hour tour most.. Here are a few possible options:

CITY WALKING TOUR - Oaxaca city center: can include the Zócalo, Cathedral, markets, handicraft markets, tianguis (temporary street markets), museums, galleries and parks, neighborhoods, depending on each person's interest.

FOOD AND MARKETS

Markets - Tour and taste your way through one or more food markets; can include the Central de Abastos (Oaxaca's largest market), and/or other smaller neighborhood markets.

Cooking classes: We arrange inexpensive classes to cook (and eat!) different Oaxacan dishes, including going to the market to learn how to choose the fresh supplies.

HANDICRAFTS AND ARTISANS: There are many small villages near Oaxaca City, many specializing in particular handicrafts. In each case, we would visit and talk with artisans, take a look at how the handicraft is made, and visit the local market. Some of the villages we could visit are:

Teotitlan del Valle: Weavers
San Bartolo Coyotepec: Black Pottery
San Martin Tilcajete: Alebrijes, the fantastical hand-painted animals carved out of copal wood

CONTEMPORARY ART: Visits to galleries or interviews with local visual artists. Oaxaca has a very rich art scene including both established and emerging artists. Visit an artist, get to know his/her workshop, interview them (we translate for you). NOTE that if you ask us to set up a meeting with an artist, you will be asked to provide a donation to the artist (see explanation of Educational Tours), in addition to the regular tour fee.

HISTORY AND ARCHEOLOGY - We will ensure that you have an excellent guide; knowledgeable, with a gift for sharing that knowledge, and speaking good English. Particularly for Monte Alban.

ALTERNATIVE HEALING - Visit a healer or have a temazcal bath (traditional sweat lodge), a limpia (spiritual cleansing), or go to public baths where you can sauna, sweat and receive incredible massages. We accompany and translate to make sure you get the most out of the experience.

MUSIC A listening tour of the great variety of Mexican music, including rock, rap, reggae, fusion, and the popular norteño, corrido and brass band "banda", as well as folk music from different parts of Oaxaca. Please note that this is not a live tour, that is, you would not be hearing all this music live.

DANCE We can arrange for you to visit or have a class in Mexican and Oaxacan folk dance, salsa, Danzon and other styles