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Mexico solo trip improved itinerary

Posted by (Detroit, MI) on

I have another thread about this trip but I wrote another supposed improved itinerary and I don't want confusion from you re-reading my other itinerary. I added Puebla city and deleted Tula. My preference would be to avoid driving. I am open to renting a car if public transportation and taxis won't do the job good enough. Times in parenthesis are just opening and closing times, not that I know that I would spend that much time there. I don't plan how much time I will spend at places.

Saturday, May 20th: Flights to Oaxaca City arrive 4:39pm. 1st night in Oaxaca city.

Sunday: Day trip to Mitla (open 10am-12:30pm, closed Mondays and Tuesdays); Herve el Agua (open until 5). 2nd night
Monday: Day trip to Monte Alban (open 9-3:30); Árbol del Tule (until 8pm). Back to Oaxaca city. 3rd night.

Tuesday: Museo de las Culturas Oaxaca; if time the churches Santo Domingo de Guzmán (7-1 & 4-8); if open, Museo Rufino Tamayo; if time, Museo Casa de Juárez, Centro Fotográfico Alvarez Bravo; Museo Belber Jiménez; Museo del Palacio; Templo de San Felipe Neri, and/or others. 4th night

Wednesday: Bus to Puebla. 5th night. 1st night in Puebla
Thursday, 25th: Museo Amparo (archaeology, 10-6); Biblioteca Palafoxiana (library built in 1646, 10-5), Catedral de Puebla (9-1 & 4-8); possibly Puenta de Bubas, Pasaje Histórico 5 de Mayo (tunnels, archaeology, 10-4); Museo Casa de Alfeñique (old house museum, 10-5), Museo Regional De La Revolución Mexicana (10-6). 6th night, 2nd night in Puebla
Friday: Fundación José Luis Bello y Zetina y Museo (old house, 10-4), Museo "José Luis Bello y González" (separate location); Zona Histórica de los Fuentes (museo del Fuerto de Loreto, mirador, Museo Fuerte de Guadalupe), possibly museo Regional de Puebla (9-6), above sites if not seen yet. 7th night, 3rd night in Puebla

Saturday: bus to Mexico City. find a market or grocery store, and so on. If time, various monuments or Monumento a la Revolución (until 7), possibly Palacio Postal (until 7:30). 8th night, 1st night in CDMX
Sunday: possibly a guided tour; Zócalo, Templo Mayor, Museo del Templo Mayor, Palacio Nacional (Diego Rivera murals), various monuments. 9th night, 2nd night in CDMX
Monday: Day trip to Teotihuacán. 10th night, 3nd night in CDMX
Tuesday: Museo Firda Khalo. Possibly Mercado de Coyoacán or Antojitos Mexicanos Market Juanita. Back to Centro Historico. If time, if not seen yet, Palacio de Bellas Artes, Alameda Central park, various monuments. 11th night, 4th night in CDMX
Wednesday: Museo Nacional de Antropología. If time, Chpultepec park, El Ángel de la Independencia, and/or possibly one of the markets. 12th night, 5th night in CDMX
Thursday: Museo Soumaya (Carlos Slim's art museum), if time Palacio Bellas Artes, various monuments. 13th night, 6th night in CDMX
Friday: Tlatelolco (Zona arqueológica, Plaza), if time museo Franz Mayer. 14th night, 7th night in CDMX
Saturday: Museo Nacional De Arte; possibly Museo Nacional De San Carlos, Museo Mural Diego Rivera, above sights not seen yet. 15th night, 8th night in CDMX
Sunday: Flights back to Detroit leave 2:05 pm

Posted by
2980 posts

Looks good to me.
I wouldn't think you'd need to rent a car for any portion of your itinerary - the long distance buses in Mexico are excellent, and are probably one of the best bargains in the country.

Posted by
6713 posts

Looks good to me also. I don't know Puebla, but I have taken the bus both ways between Oaxaca and Mexico City, stopping at Puebla. It's a good way to make this trip. The autoroutes are fast and there's always something beautiful and/or interesting out the window. The buses are comfortable, like flying business class, only slower.

Your days would exhaust me, but I know you're a high-energy traveler. I hope you can slow down a little to enjoy the cities. Oaxaca especially lends itself to pleasant afternoons and evenings in the Zocalo (the most beautiful one in Mexico).

May is probably the driest month of the year, and it will be hot. That probably means fewer tourists sharing your space. Stay hydrated and bring or buy a hat for the sun. Have a wonderful time.

Posted by
1036 posts

Dick (and others): For each day, I listed museums in approximate order from most to least important, with the few sites open after 5 listed last on certain days. I suppose it is possible that I won't make it to some of the museums, and/or maybe if I don't see something the day I listed it, I could see it on the next day or the day after.

I hope May won't be dangerously hot. Hopefully the high elevation will moderate the temperature. I could have traveled sooner or later but I decided to turn this into a birthday solo trip and traveling on (United States) memorial day on my trip means a day I don't have to ask for off of work because it is a paid holiday.

Posted by
293 posts

It generally seems well planned. The tule tree is on the road to Mitla, but not near Monte Alban, so make that part of your Sunday trip rather than a separate one Monday. It's just one tree (although an impressive one), so it only takes a few minutes to see it en route. On our visit to Oaxaca a few years ago we signed on to a convenient half day tour with a local operator that combined Mitla, the tree, and a visit to a village specializing in rug weaving (of course they were very happy if people bought rugs but there was no heavy sales pressure). There was a regular bus service from a place in Oaxaca city (not the main station) to Monte Alban and back, about a 20 minute or half hour ride.
With two full days in Puebla consider taking a couple hours to visit nearby Cholula. You have many sights listed in Puebla, but most of them are fairly small so you will likely have time.

Posted by
1036 posts

Slate (and others): Perhaps you are right and I should go to Cholula and acquiesce to skipping the some of the small museums. Tentatively I am revising my itinerary to delete some museums unless I really find myself with extra time.

Wednesday: Bus to Puebla. If time, Mirador de los Fuertes or various monuments. 5th night. 1st night in Puebla.

Thursday, 25th: Cholula (zona arqueológia, 10-5:30), Museo Regional de Cholula (10-5); if time Mercado municipal San Pedro Cholula. 6th night, 2nd night in Puebla.
Friday: Museo Amparo (archaeology, 10-6); Biblioteca Palafoxiana (library built in 1646, 10-5), Catedral de Puebla (9-1 & 4-8); if extra time, if not seen yet, Museo Casa de Alfeñique (old house, 10-5), Museo Regional De La Revolución Mexicana (10-6). 7th night, 3rd night in Puebla

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