Oaxaca Unique Expeditions

  Let me take you to Oaxaca, where is often considered the culinary and cultural center of Mexico. We will begin each day with a nice breakfast then a quick informational meeting to go over the details of that day’s exciting activities and tour stops. From the hotel, we will be transported by our own private van to each stop. We will visit the best of what Oaxaca has to offer from the valleys surrounded by the rugged Sierra Madre mountains to the cities well known center of art, food, and indigenous culture. So much to explore, including colonial period churches, handicraft studios,  

There is not a better way to introduce you to Oaxaca, other than through the Mezcal route, we will visit our friends in Mezcal Son de la Luna, Palenque Artesanal is an agave plantation to learn about the farmers who cultivate the agaves, In Santiago Matatlán, the landscape is horizontal. Along the small valleys, it is possible to observe maguey espadín plantations arranged in an orderly row, without slopes, well cleaned and systematically worked. You will enjoy tasting this Mezcal right out of the of distillation copper pot! Our route then continues, to the colourful Teotitlán del Valle, where the local artisans make and paint different kinds of textiles in the same way as their ancestors have for generations. You'll get first-hand tales of the Zapotec culture, a way of life that has been diligently conserved in this village throughout the years. 

When visiting a traditional weaving village we will learn about using natural dyes and the fibers of sheep wool, weaving is a traditional craft of the Oaxacan people and they will share their anciant tecniques with us. The town of Teotitlan del Valle is just 28 kilometers from Oaxaca City and is home to a community of people who have been weaving their whole lives, often starting at the age of five. They will explain the process to you and show you how they dye the wool different colors using things found in nature, like bugs, flowers and moss.

Upon your arrival at the Alebrijes workshop, we will introduce you to our world, where our “tonas and nahuales” live, our animals with spirit, carved and decorated with pre-hispanic motifs, represented in our Zapotec calendar. We will guide you from start to finish, through a tour that covers each of the stages of making our pieces, explaining in detail how a piece of wood can become a work of art, giving you the opportunity to witness very close, the intervention that the people who make up our different areas, have in the pieces. At first, we will tell you about our origins and the way in which the Workshop was developed, followed by an explanation about our sacred copal tree, from whose wood we start to create our pieces. We will also give you a demonstration on how we obtain natural dyes, with the use of different elements of the earth, and you will be able to know your protective and spiritual animal respectively.

Your experience of Monte Alban should start at La Gran Plaza(Great Plaza), which is about 60,000 square meters in size and marks the center of Monte Alban. one of the oldest cities in the Americas, Monte Albán—an ancient Zapotec capital—is perhaps the most important archaeological site in Oaxaca and among the largest in Mexico. Head to Monte Albán’s flat mountain top for views of the city, then explore the vast site’s temples, tombs, underground tunnels, and ball court.  We will travel in a very safe manner, observing new regulations for traveling industry, always Your Safety is Sandys Travels priority!   

· Round Trip Airfare from Tijuana to Oaxaca, on Volaris Airline.

· Private Ground Transportation to and from airport, hotels all tour spot and includes Riders Insurance while in the private.

· 6 nights’ accommodations in Oaxaca in a single, private room.

· Breakfast buffet  each morning at our hotels each day.

· 2 Lunches.

· 1 Dinner.

· Mezcal Testing.

· Horseback ride.

· 7 Day Guided Oaxaca Expedition with more than 12 stops and many historical sites.

· ALL DAYTIME Entry Fees to planned activities and destinations.

TWO private, trilingual (English, Spanish and Nahuatl) tour guides 

• Alcoholic beverages, personal snacks, cosmetics and anything NOT specifically listed above.

• 4 Lunches and 5 Dinner.

• Any optional Night Time Activities you choose to participate in.

• Tips that are not specifically listed (such as the meals purchased above)

• Any personal items needed/wanted such as souvenirs, medicine, alcohol, etc.

• Any transportation that is not listed above. All group activities are by private van at very specific times, if you miss the scheduled departure time or meeting location, YOU ARE RESPONSIBLE FOR YOUR OWN transportation to and from hotel.

• Sandys Tip NOT included.

 TRIP INSURANCE NOT PROVIDED 

• Oaxaca: https://theculturetrip.com/north-america/mexico/articles/the-best-things-to-see-do-in-oaxaca-city/

• Día de Muertos Celebrations:  https://theculturetrip.com/north-america/mexico/articles/how-locals-celebrate-day-of-the-dead-in-oaxaca/

• El Tule: https://www.planeta.com/tule-tree/

• Mezcal Route: https://www.oaxacalife.com/oaxaca-mezcal-tour/

• San Martin Tilcajete: https://www.atlasobscura.com/places/alebrijes-in-san-martin-tilcajete

• Textiles and handcrafts Route: http://www.oaxaca.travel/index.php/en/oaxaca-routes/item/145-magic-route-of-handicrafts

• Jacobo y Maria de Los Angeles workshop: https://jacoboymariaangeles.com/?lang=en

• Dominica Route: https://undiscoveredoaxaca.wordpress.com/2019/04/20/la-ruta-dominica-the-dominican-route/

•Monte Alban: https://www.lonelyplanet.com/mexico/oaxaca-state/monte-alban

• Oaxacas Centro Historico: https://www.lonelyplanet.com/search?q=Andador%20Tur%C3%ADstico%20Macedonio%20Alcal%C3%A1

• Oaxaca: Holds a unique blend of traditional and modern influences, with crumbling colonial architecture alongside art, cuisine, and archeological ruins that pay homage to the city’s pre-Hispanic past. It’s these curious contradictions that make Oaxaca stand out as a favorite destination in Mexico.

• Dia de Muertos Celebrations: Day of the Dead is one of Mexico’s most magical holidays. It’s a time when family and friends come together to remember their dead loved ones through food, music, prayer and colorful altars. Oaxaca, Mexico’s southern cultural gem, is a unique place to experience Dia de Muertos.

• El Tule: The town boasts several extremely large and ancient Montezuma Cypress trees. The largest – THE Tule Tree – dwarfs the town’s church and is more than 2,000 years old. This tree has a circumference of 54 meters (164 feet) — the largest girth of any tree on the planet. Imagine … this tree was a sapling at the time when the Zapotec civilization at Monte Albán was flourishing!

• Santiago Matatlan: In this magic place, the landscape is horizontal. Along the small valleys, it is possible to observe maguey espadín plantations arranged in an orderly row, without slopes, well cleaned and systematically worked. Everything changes when visiting productive areas nestled in the mountains, such as San Luís del Río, the mezcal community of Tlacolula de Matamoros.

• Magic Route of Handcrafts:  Witness the craft processes of great Oaxacan masters, who conserve and transmit techniques learned from generation to generation, and whose skill and talent have made shine the popular art of these localities in the Central Valleys, placing the name of Oaxaca very high and carrying the magic of our culture beyond time and borders. These communities belonging to the route, in which the different crafts -the green glazed ceramic clay or black, alebrijes, silk textiles and cotton or pieces of cutlery- utilitarian or ornamental, are a fundamental motor in the family and community economy.

• Jacobo y Maria Angeles Work shop: Proud Oaxaqueños artisans, Creator of the Zapotec Figures carved in wood called Tonas and Nahuales known worldwide as Alebrijes. They use the Mixtec-Zapotec iconography in their master pieces, creating a unique style that they have developed over more than 25 years. 

• Alebrijes: Are usually a blend of different animals: they may have a lion´s head and the body of crocodile, or the body of a fish with dragon wings to name a few. Though they were originally made from cardboard, artisans in Oaxaca make alebrijes carved of copal wood, which are then painted with bright colors and all sorts of tiny patterns and details on their bodies. Each one of them is believed to have a soul protector. Find yours!

• Dominica Route: In 1529, Dominican monks arrived in what is today the state of Oaxaca. Here they found large populations of indigenous peoples with a wealth of natural resources which they used to construct massive temples and convents to aid in the conversion of the local populations. Their goal was to establish a convent at intervals of a day’s ride all the way from what is now Mexico City to Guatemala. What is known as the Ruta Dominica in Oaxaca.

• Monte Alban: The city from which the ancient Zapotecs once ruled Oaxaca's Valles Centrals, Monte Albán towers 400m above the valley floor from a hilltop a few kilometers west of Oaxaca. This is one of Mexico's most culturally rich archaeological sites, with the remains of temples, palaces, tall stepped platforms, an observatory and a ball court all arranged in orderly fashion, with wonderful 360-degree views over the city, valleys and distant mountains. 

• Oaxaca Historical Downtown: A beautiful colonial destination in downtown Oaxaca states can admire impressive historic monuments to a rich Indian tradition that is maintained through the years. Visit the Zocalo, the Cathedral, Museo de Pintores Oaxaqueños, Cultural Center San Pablo, Voces de Copal Gallery, Mercado 20 de Noviembre and more..