Self-Guided Walking Tour
Pau’s dad has put together a special self-guided walking tour through Oaxaca Centro for our wedding guests. It’s an easy route you can enjoy at your own pace, featuring some of our favorite streets, plazas, churches, and markets. Use it to explore before or after the wedding events, stop for photos and treats along the way. We hope you fall in love with the city as we have.
Pau & Nic
Self-Guided Tour
Take a stroll through the heart of Oaxaca before the big day! This self-guided walking tour starts right at Quinta Real Oaxaca, and loops through nine of the city's most beautiful landmarks before bringing you right back, about 2 to 3 hours if you stop everywhere. Tap the map below to open it in Google My Maps for turn-by-turn walking directions.
Step by Step
1. Quinta Real Oaxaca — START
Address: Calle 5 de Mayo 300, Centro, 68000 Oaxaca de Juárez, Oax.
Category: Historic hotel / Starting point
The tour begins where the wedding reception will be held: a former 16th‑century Convento de Santa Catalina turned hotel, with stone arcades, courtyards, and quiet gardens. Starting here also means guests staying at nearby hotels get to know this one as a landmark, since the other guest hotels cluster close by.
Practical note: Non-guests are generally welcome to walk through the public courtyards. A good spot to gather the group before setting off.
2. Zócalo (Plaza de la Constitución)
Address: Zócalo, Centro, 68000 Oaxaca de Juárez, Oax.
Category: Plaza
A walk south from Quinta Real leads to Oaxaca's shaded main square: a kiosco bandstand, clipped laurel trees, and arcaded cafés on every side, the liveliest, easiest-to-find landmark in the city.
Practical note: Good rest stop for coffee or fresh juice; can get crowded in the evening.
3. Catedral de Oaxaca
Address: Av. Independencia 700, Centro, 68000 Oaxaca de Juárez, Oax.
Category: Church / Landmark
Right on the Zócalo's north side, the Catedral Metropolitana Nuestra Señora de la Asunción has a green cantera-stone facade rebuilt after earthquake damage in the 1600s and 1700s.
Practical note: Open daily, free to enter. Dress modestly and keep voices low if a service is in progress.
4. Mercado Benito Juárez
Address: Flores Magón s/n, Centro, 68000 Oaxaca de Juárez, Oax.
Category: Market
Just a block south of the Zócalo, this covered market has traded in produce, textiles, and prepared food for well over a century, a lively, fragrant detour into everyday Oaxaca before heading further into the historic quarter.
Practical note: Great spot for a quick snack (quesillo, hot chocolate, fresh juice); can be warm and crowded at midday. Watch belongings in the busier aisles.
5. Basílica de Nuestra Señora de la Soledad
Address: Av. Independencia 107, Centro, 68000 Oaxaca de Juárez, Oax.
Category: Church / Landmark
A longer walk west along Independencia leads to this 17th-century basilica, home to Oaxaca's patroness. Its elaborately carved stone facade, framed by twin towers, is one of the finest examples of Oaxacan Baroque in the city.
Practical note: Free entry; modest dress appreciated. A small museum of religious art and vestments is attached, if the group wants to linger.
6. Plaza de Las Nieves
Address: Calzada Madero s/n (Jardín Sócrates, beside the Basílica de la Soledad), Centro, 68000 Oaxaca de Juárez, Oax.
Category: Plaza
Right beside the basilica, this small shaded plaza (also known as Jardín Sócrates) is Oaxaca's classic spot for
nieves : hand-churned sorbets in flavors like tuna (prickly pear), rose petal, and sweet corn.
Practical note: A perfect rest stop: grab a nieve here before the tour's longest single leg, heading back east and north to Santo Domingo.
7. Museo de las Culturas de Oaxaca
Address: Macedonio Alcalá s/n (Centro Cultural Santo Domingo), Centro, 68000 Oaxaca de Juárez, Oax.
Category: Museum
From Plaza de las Nieves it's about 15–20 minutes crossing back through downtown to the Santo Domingo complex. Housed in the former Dominican convent, this is one of Mexico's finest regional museums: its highlight is the Mixtec treasure from Tomb 7 at Monte Albán.
Practical note: Allow 45–60 minutes if the group wants to see it properly; entrance fee is shared with the garden below.
8. Templo de Santo Domingo de Guzman
Address: Calle Macedonio Alcalá s/n, Centro, 68000 Oaxaca de Juárez, Oax.
Category: Church / Landmark
Right next door to the museum, this is Oaxaca's most spectacular church: a pink-stone Baroque facade with twin bell towers, opening onto a gilded, almost overwhelming interior.
Practical note: Free entry; open daily but closed to tourism during Mass. The plaza out front is a natural photo stop.
9. Jardin Etnobotanico de Oaxaca
Address: Reforma s/n (entrance beside Templo de Santo Domingo), Centro, 68000 Oaxaca de Juárez, Oax.
Category: Garden
Tucked behind the Santo Domingo complex, this walled botanical garden is planted almost entirely with regional species: towering columnar cacti, agave, and other high-desert plants.
Practical note: Entry is by guided tour only, at set times. Arrive a little early (tours can fill up) or reserve ahead for a large group.