Blending arresting views of the Sierra Madre mountains, indigenous history, and natural wonders among Mexico’s greatest, Hierve el Agua packs a punch. Easily accessible as a day trip from Oaxaca (about 1.5 hr drive), this unique site will bewitch you with otherworldly appearances and nature’s trickeries. 

Natural springs and rock formations first appear as you arrive at the top of the cliffs.

The views are unmatched from where you stand on one of the highest elevation points in Oaxaca County, over 5,000 feet above sea level, nestled in the heart of the Sierra Madre Mountains.

Mineral pools of changing shades of deep turquoise and green draw you closer to the edge.

Yes, you’ve arrived at one of the most photographed spots in the entire region and can fully grasp the meaning of the name Hierve el Agua which literally means ‘boiling water’. Time to take off your shoes and perhaps more and enjoy an invigorating dip. Admire the valley in the distance as you soak, be grateful for the undoubtedly medicinal waters curing your body, and picture the ancestors doing the very same thousands of years ago. What a stunning show.

Rich in calcium carbonate and magnesium, the springs have formed interesting deposits.

Look to the right to get your first glimpse of the wondrous phenomenon of Cascada Grande (large waterfall), an enormous rock formation that looks exactly like a frozen waterfall from a distance. Formed over thousands of years by the water cascading from the carbonated springs at the top of the cliffs, the side of the mountain began to calcify from the excess minerals deposited, resulting in a stunning petrified waterfall effect. What you don’t know yet is that you’re actually standing right on top of another albeit smaller rock waterfall which you’ll soon be able to admire.

Start walking towards Cascada Grande to reach its top and the start of the trail that goes down to the base.

As you get closer, you can start seeing the trickery as the stalactite columns take shape.

A stunning beauty 100-feet high best appreciated from below.

It is believed the Zapotecs and other indigenous communities revered the pools and redirected water from the springs for agricultural purposes. The canals they created have also petrified and formed an unusual landscape at the base of the falls you can walk around.

Reach the second, smaller waterfall (Cascada Chica) right underneath where you were just bathing.

For most people this would conclude their visit but know there’s a hidden treasure if you keep on hiking…

The rocky trail that leaves the second waterfall leads you through a semi-desert vegetation under a bright blue sky (and no shade – bring sunscreen and plenty of water!), passing some giant agaves, cacti, yucca, and an infinite sea of dried grasses.

Follow the trail for about two hours, turning back occasionally to catch the diminishing waterfalls, no less spectacular from a greater distance.

At last, you arrive at Las Salinas, a secret oasis in a small community some 5km away from Hierve el Agua.

Cross the bridge and you’ll immediate see the small canyon snaking its way on either side.

Take off your shoes and climb down the ladder to reach the bottom and freshen up after a hot walk.

Follow the water upstream, weaving your way between tall rock walls and noticing some familiar yet unique formations. Clearly the waters running through here contain many minerals that have carved and painted the rocks over time.

Streams of white, green, yellow, and rust curve like melted ice cream on a hot summer day, dripping to the ground below.

You’re surrounded by stalactites, cave alcoves, and water oozing down walls in what can only be described as an alien landscape.

Natural dipping pools start appearing as you near the source.

The piece de resistance is right there as you reach the end of the canyon, a deeper pool fed by a small waterfall where you can properly cool off and gaze at the art show. There’s just no better end to a day at Hierve el Agua than bathing in this hidden gem. You can do it on your own or join a guided hike with a local agency like Coyote Aventuras.

The capital of Oaxaca is already filled to the brim with art from its colorful street murals to the innumerable shops selling exquisite handicrafts throughout the town. What most people don’t know though is that these creations are all made in one of the many villages radiating out from the city center. Each village seems to specialize in a particular craft and one can visit artisans’ homes and workshops to learn about the craft, ask questions, and of course purchase unique souvenirs. With most of them all within 30 miles of the city, it’s entirely possible to combine a few into an art filled day trip. Here are a few of my favorites:

San Martín Tilcajete

Entering San Martin Tilcajete, you would think this village’s specialty is gorgeous wall art as there’s nary an empty wall in sight.

The details and colors are simply stunning and rival many of the greatest murals in the capital.

It’s true that you’ve entered an extremely creative and talented village, but not in the art form that has greeted you from the road. This village is THE capital of alebrijes, the wood carved figures omnipresent all around Oaxaca.

A couple from the town, Jacobo and Maria Angeles, became famous for their alebrijes and especially their painting of fine, very intricate designs. Their home and workshop is now a full production and tourist attraction to see the process of making these whimsical creatures.

Young people from the village, mostly family relatives, are busy at various stations. Here is the first step of carving the wood (soft copal) using only hand tools to shape it into whatever figure the carver feels like. While their pieces won’t fetch the high prices as the ones done by the master, they are very similar in style and quality.

You’ll also attend a short lesson on the art of making the different paint colors from natural elements, a fascinating workshop where insects turn purple and lime magically transforms just about everything.

Inside the building you’ll find the painters in full concentration, delicately applying layers upon layers of bright and unnatural colors characteristic of the Angeles’ style.

The entire process of making one alebrije, including carving, drying, submersion in gasoline and other chemical to kill insect eggs in the wood and painting averages about a month and up to several months for larger pieces.

Get up close to see the minuscule and exquisite designs, usually representing flowers, plants, geometric designs and indigenous symbols. My shaky hands could never achieve such mastery!

A small shop at the back let’s you peruse a small sample of art available for sale. While you can get a tiny hanging ornament for about $50, the average piece on this table retails in the hundreds…

…and the larger ones in the thousands. You can find even more stunning specimens in the center of Oaxaca at Voces de Copal which I highly recommend you visit also.

San Bartolo Coyotepec

A visit to San Bartolo Coyotepec, known for its unique black pottery, gives you intimate access to witnessing live how all the black vases, glasses, cups, etc. seen in so many shops in Oaxaca are truly made. Step into the workshop of one of the many families passing down the craft from generation to generation and appreciate the craftmanship from up close.

The nearly finished product isn’t black yet – the color comes from the firing process.

Teotitlan del Valle

World-renowned for its high quality woven rugs, Teotitlan del Valle knows how to put on a show and you’ll have a wonderful time immersing yourself in the craft.

Visits are usually focused on one family of weavers who will host you and show you their entire rug-making process, from wool spinning and dyeing (with all natural dyes coming from plants, insects, fruits, etc.) to weaving.

A few families also offer home cooked lunch as part of an organized visit which you won’t want to miss.

Santo Tomás Jalieza

Although the weavers in Teotitlan del Valle are more famous, those from Santo Tomás Jalieza are still practicing a very ancient form of weaving which you can see in action by visiting the local market set up in the main square.

You can browse and purchase ponchos, purses, table runners, belts and placemats at really good prices before heading back to town, less than 15 miles away.

One simply cannot come to this part of Mexico without noticing that mezcal flows here more freely than water. The bold spirit is king in the state of Oaxaca and you don’t have to go very far away from the capital to find yourself in agave country. Rows upon rows of spiky succulents cover undulating hills as far as the eye can see like a southern Napa Valley for the connoisseurs of this beautifully complex spirit.

Best enjoyed on an organized tour (you can’t possibly explore agave country without copious amount of tasting!), visiting for a day the nearby town of Santiago Matatlán is a must for anyone serious about getting to know this liquid gold. Although a small community, the town is considered the “world’s capital of mezcal” and seems to contain more distilleries than anything else! Our tour took us to a local distillery, Ilegal Mezcal, where we learned the basis of mezcal production which has barely changed over the past centuries.

The most significant factor influencing the taste of a mezcal is the type of agave from which it is made. With over fifty different varieties of agave, the range of flavors is substantial (contrary to tequila which is only made from one type of agave – the Blue Agave). Harvesting the agave starts first with chopping off the long spiky leaves to uproot the piña which can weight anywhere between ten to several hundreds pounds and carrying them back to the palenque (mezcal distillery).

Artisanal mezcal is a labor-intensive process which is why it isn’t cheap. Piñas are cooked in an earthen oven which is little more than a hole dug in the ground like it has been done for hundreds of years. Size of the oven, use of volcanic rocks to intensify the heat, and type and amount of wood used all influence the flavor profile. Here the piñas are buried under a tarp, covered in soil and left to cook for three to five days typically.

Once the piñas are cooked, they are crushed with a tahona, a large stone wheel attached to a central axle which is pulled around a circular stone cylinder by a horse, mule or donkey.

The resulting mash is then loaded into fermentation vats with water.

The period of fermentation will vary based on season, temperature, geography, etc. and another actor at play here are the wild yeasts in the open air of the palenque which are anything but controlled.

At the end of fermentation the mixture of water and crushed agave is called tepache, and is about 8% alcohol by volume. The tepache is loaded into small clay or copper pot stills to start the distillation process. Mezcal must be distilled at least twice to be exported (and to taste great as the 20 to 30% ABV of the first distillation isn’t really that palatable). To be certified, a mezcal must be at least 36% ABV and as high as 55% (most of the ones found in the US range between 40% to 50%).

After being lab-tested and certified (to ensure a quality and nonlethal product), the mezcal is bottled as joven (young), or put into barrels for aging. Voila! This was an oversimplified explanation of a primitive and fascinating process that differentiates mezcal from every other spirit on the planet. I’ve left out the hundreds of factors left in the hands of the expert mezcaleros to shape the final taste of their mezcal. If you’re curious and want to know more, I highly recommend you read “Holy Smoke! It’s Mezcal!” by John McEvoy – an excellent and detailed introduction I really enjoyed geeking out on.

Of course, the tour ends with a tasting (unlimited I must say!) to get a taste of what we had just learned.

Some fresh air was required afterwards to clear our spirits and our lungs of all the smoke (as lovely as it smelled) and no better ways here than to wander among the infinite rows of agave.

Rolling hills of spiky heads sparsely dotted with distilleries are reminiscent of wine country landscapes albeit with an attractive blueish tint closer to Provence than California.

A last stop at a local restaurant to help soak up the alcohol (with more mezcal to wash it all down) completed a wonderfully informative tour unique to the region. Salud!

An easy and absolute must-do day trip from Oaxaca City, the archaeological site of Monte Albán is one of Mexico’s most spectacular. For someone who has climbed the steep pyramids of Teotihuacan and explored the coastal ruins of Tulum, I must say my jaw dropped even lower when I reached Monte Albán’s Great Plaza.

The mountaintop location alone is what truly differentiates it – on top of a hill with stunning 360° views of the surrounding valleys and mountains. Just 5 miles outside of the city, you only need a half-day to take in what was once the capital of the Zapotec civilization although you might want to linger a while to make the most of the impressive setting and bring a picnic.

Getting a guide is a good idea as there aren’t many (if any) descriptive signs around the site. A quick history lesson gives a better appreciation of the impressive ruins and what were their main uses.

For starters, the Zapotec civilization predates Aztec and Mayan so we’re talking old, very very old. Monte Albán was built by the Zapotecs around 600 B.C. as their capital atop a mountain summit that was deliberately flattened. The site is huge, a 4-mile spread of ruins that used to support 40,000 inhabitants at its height around A.D. 300.

The city was an important center for trade, business,  culture and politics for over a thousand years before witnessing the fall of the Zapotec culture over time. Monte Albán was eventually left empty before being discovered and used in the 10th century by the Mixtec people as a sacred burial site. The Mixtecs were in turn conquered by the Aztecs, and Monte Albán fell into ruin around the time of the Spanish conquest (1520s). The site lay forgotten for centuries until Mexican archaeologists rediscovered it in the late 19th century.

While not fully excavated, there are plenty of vast plazas and palaces to explore, and a bright sun beating down on you with practically no shade to speak of so come prepared with water and snacks!

The Great Plaza is everyone’s main destination and the backdrop to your best photo ops from both its North and South sides.

About  60,000 square meters in size (300m long and 200m wide), it marks the center of Monte Albán.

Once down at ‘ground level’, you can get a closer look at the buildings, their particular architecture, and some of the carvings that were discovered.

 The most famous ones are the Los Danzantes (which means dancers). Despite their playful sounding name, they represent tortured sacrificed prisoners of war, some clearly disemboweled or castrated…

Other carvings, much less gruesome, were instead adorning tombs found all over the site.

Make your way to the South Platform with its wide staircase and start climbing…

The 40m-high platform is the tallest in Monte Albán and is great for a panorama of the plaza and the surrounding mountains.

It was the administrative center of the city while the North Platform across was the political and religious center. This expansive perspective, my favorite I must say, gives the most commanding view of this UNESCO World Heritage site (Monte Albán received this honor in 1987).

As you exit the plaza, there’s one more structure to admire that was surely as popular as the rest: the Ball Court. Do not mistake the stone terraces on each side for spectator seats. They were used in the famous “Juego de Pelota” game to bounce off a ball and try to pass it through stone rings on either side of the court. You can still see versions of this game played around Mexico, noticeable as players can use any part of their body except their hands to hit the ball. Back in Monte Albán days (this ball court is thought to be from around 100 BC) it is even said the losing team was served as sacrifice…

Head back to Oaxaca and have a scrumptious meal at the modern Los Danzantes in memory of those carved castrated enemies made famous on this ancient site.