Trip Description

With its mountain ranges intercut with narrow valleys, steep canyons, and ravines descending into sandy beaches, Oaxaca’s terrain is as rugged as Mexico gets. There are just as many textures to the southern Mexican state’s rich craft traditions of natural clay pottery, Aztec ceramics, colorful wood-carved alebrijes and woven tapestries.

Our curated journey through Oaxaca’s handicraft havens will take guests on trips to artisan Pueblos Mágicos in the mountains outside the capital city, such as Teotitlán del Valle, an ancient Zapotec village; and Santa María Atzompa, a town in the Valley of Etla where wood-fired pottery kilns have been producing intricate "sgraffito" pottery for centuries.

Responsible for roughly 90 percent of the country’s total mezcal production, the region is essentially the planet's largest mezcalería. There is no better place to taste the Oaxacan menu than the cobblestoned courtyard dining room of Criollo, a colonial mansion turned tasting-menu destination. Chef Enrique Olvera — of Pujol in Mexico City and Cosme in New York — serves family-style plates of tamales filled with huitlacoche, a corn “truffle” that is a delicacy in Mexican cuisine, and pineapple and coconut granizada. Over glasses of small-batch mezcal artesanal or tejate, a regional non-alcoholic drink made from cacao seeds, at a traditional “smoke kitchen: in the capital city, regional chefs from San Mateo Yucutindoó will demonstrate ancestral cooking techniques behind the seven types of regional mole in Oaxaca: amarillito, negro, coloradito, verde, chichilo, manchamanteles and rojo.

For the four-night trip, PRIOR has reserved rooms at Escondido Oaxaca, a colonial hotel in the heart of the city’s downtown designed by the Mexico City-based architect Alberto Kalach that marries Indigenous architecture with Mexican-modern design, such as traditional Sabino-wood furniture and handwoven linens by local artisans. A dense assortment of native cacti and tropical plants on the rooftop pool and patio offers quiet refuge from the Southern Mexican sun.

PRICING DETAILS

In order to confirm your reservation, full payment is required at the time of the booking.

• Double Occupancy Room (2 people in 1 room): $4,985 per person
• Single Occupancy Room (1 person in 1 room): $5,950 per person

Inclusions:

• Accommodations at Escondido Hotel Oaxaca
• All tours and admission costs throughout the itinerary
• All meals throughout the itinerary
• All transportation throughout the itinerary
• Arrival and departure airport transfers from Oaxaca airport
• Gratuities

Exclusions:

• Airfare
• Portage at airports
• Any visa or travel requirements for entry into Mexico
• Travel Insurance
• Personal expenses

TERMS AND CONDITIONS:

Please note, for this trip to proceed, a certain minimum number of people must reserve a place. We will provide confirmation once this number has been reached, so you may proceed with booking airfare and other forms of transportation.

If you choose to book airfare in advance of final confirmation, please book refundable fares or obtain travel insurance to protect yourself against additional charges should final dates change or cancelation occurs. (Please note, in the instance of an unforeseen date change or cancelation, your 50% deposit is refundable.)

PRIOR strongly recommends that each member purchase travel and cancelation insurance. In addition, we recommend purchasing a policy that covers loss of luggage, accidents, sickness, and emergency medical evacuation.

Please note, all efforts are made to provide the itinerary as presented, PRIOR reserves the right to make any changes to the final itinerary deemed necessary or due to reasons beyond our control (change in flights, cancelations, political disturbances, natural disasters/phenomena, etc).

Photographs or video recordings of members may be used for educational and promotional purposes by PRIOR or a host group/organization.