The Best Oaxaca Luxury Hotels

Oaxaca City is fast becoming one of the most popular destinations in Mexico for visitors from all over the world. The exquisite regional food, folklore, and artisanal crafts that have always existed here now sit alongside luxury lodging, cutting-edge restaurants, and a mezcal explosion — Mexico’s iconic spirit is now being “discovered” by alcohol connoisseurs everywhere.

There is also a growing population of expats that have been flocking to Oaxaca City for the past 5 years in search of an authenticity that some find lacking in more touristy destinations like San Miguel de Allende and Puerto Vallarta.

For a city its size there is a healthy selection of luxury Oaxaca hotels in the capital city to choose from. While each is a little different from the next, most have an independent boutique feel that speaks to travelers looking for art and decadence, not large-scale, business-oriented chains. We ourselves find that we’re drawn back again and again to this cultural mecca, that despite its ancient and stoic appearance is alive with culture and art for international guests. If you are wondering where to stay in Oaxaca, here is our list of the best 5-star hotels in Oaxaca City.

Best Large Oaxaca Hotel With a Sense of Place

The Quinta Real Oaxaca is the hotel that shows up in every magazine article about the city, and for good reasons. Parts of the historic structure date back to the 1500s and many of the rooms are as evocative as the public spaces and flower-filled courtyards. The best and most luxurious rooms surround the hotel’s inner courtyard with its family-friendly pool — all the interior rooms are worth a few more dollars to avoid the street noise of the exterior ones.

While this hotel’s historic status means some modern amenities are unavailable, its richly furnished rooms, deep sense of place, and expansive grounds make Quinta Real one of the most memorable stays in Oaxaca City.

Best Boutique Hotel with a Sense of Place

Nearby Boutique Hotel Casa Cid de Leon is a former mansion that has been transformed into an inviting boutique hotel with very personalized service. The best room in the hotel is la Bella Epoca. The home’s original architects took full advantage of the sweeping suite’s second-floor location with three delightful balconies, perfect for enjoying the street scene below. Light streams through large windows across the unabashedly opulent furnishings, all designed to recreate the turn of the 19th century.

Casa Cid has a privileged location in the heart of the city and makes for a great base to explore. Space is limited and the old-fashioned romantic decor of the place is not for everyone, but the hotel’s owner makes everyone feel like they are her very own special house guest and you can’t help but be charmed by the home-style rooftop breakfast with stunning views of the city below.

The Best Intimate Boutique Hotel in Oaxaca City

Casa Oaxaca is one of the best Oaxaca luxury hotels in the city, with one of the best locations if you want to be within walking distance to everything. Small, intimate, and tucked away from the street’s hustle and bustle, Casa Oaxaca is a delight to return to at the end of the day for a decadent night’s sleep. All of the hotel’s nine rooms overlook the central patio, some more grandiose than others, as well as some with their own private patios. The furnishings are warm and sturdy without feeling too heavily Colonial, and the hotel’s common spaces are most often decorated by plants and sunshine.

But by far the most standout feature at Casa Oaxaca is the food. Their restaurant, bearing the same name, has for over a decade been one of the city’s best places to eat modern Oaxacan cuisine and even breakfast on the patio is deliciously rich with local Oaxacan coffee and regional specialties.

Best Luxury Hotel Outside of Oaxaca City limits

Another hotel of note, Hacienda Los Laureles Hotel & Petit Spa, is situated outside the city. It takes you out of the thick of things into a peaceful restored hacienda with 23 rooms. Los Laureles was painstakingly remodeled to preserve its colonial flavor, all high ceilings and huge shuttered windows, and the estate was transformed into an Oaxacan Eden. Undulating expanses of manicured lawn are shaded with trees as old as the original building and accented with fluttering rainbows of tropical blossoms and the butterflies that enjoy them.

All five categories of rooms, some in an original, older portion of the hacienda and others in a newer, more modern wing, are excellent. Nice views, one of the best restaurants in town, well-tended gardens, and a pool make this  retreat one of the top luxury hotels in Oaxaca City.

Hippest Boutique Hotel in Oaxaca City

If you want to be in the center of the city’s chicest crowd, stay at Hotel Sin Nombre, with its sensual common spaces and excellent vegan restaurant. Sin Nombre combines a modern aesthetic and high-end amenities within the walls of a 1920s mansion that’s a mix of Colonial and North African architecture. The small square footage of most of the hotel’s rooms is made up for with soaring, open-beam ceilings and a simplicity in decor that gives you lots of breathing room.

Don’t be afraid to get a room with a street-facing balcony to enjoy the cityscape — the hotel’s double-paned glass and blackout curtains will allow you to get some rest whenever you are ready. Located slightly outside the downtown tourist circuit, Sin Nombre gives guests a chance to get to know another part of the city while still being close to its main attractions.