Eastern Valley

Eastern Valley

Heading east from Oaxaca city, we’ll visit a few villages in the Tlacolula valley. Santa Maria el Tule is home to a huge tree which is over 2000 years old – it’s one of the oldest trees in the world, and is the tree with the greatest girth. Teotitlan del Valle, a weaving village, is world-renowned for the use of natural dyes, especially the cochineal (a parasite of the prickly pear plant).  You’ll meet a family of weavers and learn about the traditional dyeing and weaving processes. We will also visit Oaxaca’s second most important archaeological site, Mitla, which is well-known for its mosaic fretworks composed of thousands of individual pieces of stone to create geometrical patterns without the use of mortar. We’ll stop at a mezcal distillery where you can learn about the process for making this local beverage, and sample some.

We can recommend a restaurant along the way for lunch.

Santa Maria el Tule

Tour includes: Stops at Santa Maria el Tule, Teotitlan del Valle, Mitla, and a mezcal distillery. This tour includes transportation in a comfortable, air-conditioned vehicle and guide service with a knowledgeable, bilingual guide.

Duration: up to 7 hours

Recommendations and tips: Wear comfortable shoes. It’s a good idea to bring sunglasses and a hat, sun block, and extra cash in case you want to purchase souvenirs and food. Take this tour on a Sunday to visit the market in Tlacolula.

Cost:  for one to three people: $275 USD. For more than three people, contact us for pricing.

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Our clients say...

There are endless guides that will offer to take one to the usual sites (Mitla, Monte Alban, the Hierve el Agua), but even at those locations, Benito and Suzanne’s knowledge of history and fauna makes them come alive in ways unexpected. I don’t have much interest in birds, but Benito almost converted me. And Suzanne’s ability to bring history to life adds a wonderful dimension. In addition to those standard tours, however, they can bring one to places few tourists think to go, like the spectacular colonial churches in Coixtlahuaca and Yanhuitlán. We cannot recommend Discover Oaxaca highly enough.
We booked three tours through Discover Oaxaca Tours and each one surpassed our expectations. We had two days with Benito (Eastern Valley, Sunday market, Mitla, Hierve el Agua, and el Tule, then Monte Alban and surrounding area) and one day with Suzanne (street food and walking tour of Oaxaca). They were flexible in helping us build an itinerary that suited our interests. They were both gracious, friendly, and full of information. Both Benito and Suzanne are passionate about the region, its history and culture, and especially its people. Wherever we went, they were greeted with a warm welcome, which made it seem less like a tour and more like visiting the area with friends - friends who just happen to know the places, craftsmen, and artisans, whether that's Mezcal, pottery, or food. We really can't say enough good things about our experience with Suzanne and Benito and can recommend Discover Oaxaca with absolutely no reservations.
Benito Hernandez of Discover Oaxaca is the perfect guide. He is very experienced and very knowledgeable about all things Oaxacan. My husband and I went on two different customized day tours with Benito. First tour was on a Sunday so he drove us to the Tlacolula market where he walked us around to help us get a feel for the place and then gave us time to shop. He joined us and guided us thru the purchasing process. Then he took us into the food part of the market and helped us pick out and prepare/cook our meal on the little bbqs provided in the market. Then he took us out east to the Mitla archeological site, where he demonstrated his deep interest/knowledge of the ruins and pre-Colombian history. He let us wander around to our heart’s content. On our way home, we swung by El Tule, which is definitely worth seeing.

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