Oaxaca events & things to do in October 2026
Start with Mercado Benito Juárez and 20 de Noviembre, Templo de Santo Domingo de Guzmán and the Cultural Museum, plus Monte Albán. October in Oaxaca averages 27°C / 80°F highs, 16°C / 60°F nights, and about 14 rainy days.
Expect 27°C/80°F days and about 14 rainy ones in October. Start with these:
- Mercado Benito Juárez and 20 de NoviembreThe twin central markets — chapulines, quesillo ropes, and mole pastes in Benito Juárez; the smoke-filled Pasillo de Humo grill alley for lunch in 20…
- Templo de Santo Domingo de Guzmán and the Cultural MuseumThe gilt Baroque church whose interior drips gold leaf, joined to the ex-convent museum holding Tomb 7's Mixtec gold treasure from Monte Albán — with…
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By TripSapien Research · Updated June 3, 2026
Oaxaca in October 2026
Weather
TempTemperature
80°F / 60°F
26.8°C / 15.5°C
RainPrecipitation
14d
2.8in · 69.9mm
LightDaylight
12h
Rains taper; cempasúchil fields orange up for Day of the Dead.
Events & festivals
Event calendar- Oct 1 – Oct 31
Día de Muertos
A Mexican holiday that traditionally takes place in candle-lit city cemeteries, but today takes place in front of almost every church in the historic city center.
Planning lead · dates set closer in · Source: Month Signals
- Oct 31 – Nov 2
Associated occasion: Day of the Dead.
Planning lead · dates set closer in · Source: festival calendar
- Oct 31 – Nov 2
Planning lead · dates set closer in · Source: festival calendar
Show all 4 events for October
- Oct 31 – Nov 2
Día de Muertos Celebrations in Oaxaca
Traditional Día de Muertos festivities including candle-lit altars, face painting, parades, and parties throughout the historic city center and cemeteries of Oaxaca.
Planning lead · dates set closer in · Source: festival research
About Oaxaca
City overview
Oaxaca is Mexico's food and craft capital — a UNESCO grid of green-stone colonial blocks in a 1,550-metre valley ringed by Zapotec ruins, where seven legendary moles simmer in market fondas and mezcal is still roasted in village palenques. Day of the Dead here, and the July Guelaguetza dance festival, are the country's most intense expressions of living indigenous culture.
Food & drink
The seven moles are the canon — negro over chicken, coloradito, amarillo in empanadas — beside tlayudas seared over coals, quesillo, chapulines, and tejate whisked in clay bowls. Levadura de Olla and Los Danzantes lead the new wave; the Pasillo de Humo grill alley is the old one. Mezcal is drunk seated, sipped, with orange and worm salt.
Top sights
- 1
Monte Albán
outdoorThe mountaintop Zapotec capital flattened by hand 2,500 years ago — pyramids, ballcourts, and the carved Danzantes around a Grand Plaza with a 360° valley view. Go early; the site is shadeless.
WikipediaFirst entry (8am) beats both heat and buses; taxis wait at the gate for the return.
- 2
Hierve el Agua
outdoorPetrified mineral "waterfalls" frozen down a cliff edge, with spring-fed infinity pools you can swim in facing the Sierra — 70km east past Mitla, and worth the rough last stretch.
Wikipedia - 3
Zona Arqueológica de Mitla
outdoorThe Zapotec "place of the dead" — palace walls covered in thousands of hand-cut geometric fretwork stones, unique in Mesoamerica, under a colonial church built into the ruins.
Show 2 more sights
- 4Árbol del Tule
- 5Zócalo and the Cathedral
Neighborhoods
1Centro Histórico
The UNESCO grid — cochineal-colored façades, courtyard mezcalerías, and gallery blocks between the Zócalo and Santo Domingo.
- 2
Jalatlaco
Cobbled former tannery barrio east of the center — muraled walls, coffee roasters, and the prettiest evening streets in town.
- 3
Xochimilco
The weavers' quarter climbing north — aqueduct arches, quiet lanes, and family textile workshops.
Day trips
30km / 40min by car
Teotitlán del Valle and the Sunday Tlacolula market
The rug-weaving village of natural cochineal dyes, paired with the valley's biggest indigenous market every Sunday in Tlacolula.
18km / 30min by car
San Agustín Etla arts center
Francisco Toledo's hydro-powered former textile mill turned world-class arts center (CaSa), with paper workshops in the hills above.
Getting around
The centro is entirely walkable. Colectivos and cheap taxis run the valley routes east (Tule, Mitla, Hierve el Agua) and to Monte Albán; day-trip drivers bundle the eastern sites into one loop.
Planning a Oaxaca trip?
Add your dates and we'll check every place for closures, limited hours, and booking needs in October.
Common questions about Oaxaca in October
- Best photo spots in Oaxaca in October
These stops give you the clearest landmarks, viewpoints, or street scenes in Oaxaca.
- Mercado Benito Juárez and 20 de Noviembre — The twin central markets — chapulines, quesillo ropes, and mole pastes in Benito Juárez; the smoke-filled Pasillo de Humo grill alley for lunch in 20 de Noviembre next door.
- Monte Albán — The mountaintop Zapotec capital flattened by hand 2,500 years ago — pyramids, ballcourts, and the carved Danzantes around a Grand Plaza with a 360° valley view. Go early; the site is shadeless.
- Hierve el Agua — Petrified mineral "waterfalls" frozen down a cliff edge, with spring-fed infinity pools you can swim in facing the Sierra — 70km east past Mitla, and worth the rough last stretch.
- Zona Arqueológica de Mitla — The Zapotec "place of the dead" — palace walls covered in thousands of hand-cut geometric fretwork stones, unique in Mesoamerica, under a colonial church built into the ruins.
- Árbol del Tule — A 2,000-year-old Montezuma cypress with the stoutest trunk on Earth — 14 metres across, dwarfing the church beside it in Santa María del Tule, 12km east.
- What to pack for Oaxaca in October
Pack for October's weather, not a generic Oaxaca checklist.
- Layerable daytime clothes for average highs around 27°C / 80°F.
- A light evening layer because nights average 16°C / 60°F.
- Compact rain gear and shoes that handle wet pavement across about 14 rainy days.
- How many days do you need in Oaxaca
- 3 days covers the main Oaxaca highlights at a realistic pace. Add 2 extra days if you want the listed day trips.
Ready to plan Oaxaca?
You've seen what's on — now get a day-by-day Oaxaca plan for October 2026, every place checked for your exact dates.