On my one and only venture out of Oaxaca City before Day of the Dead, I went to Hierve El Agua, a set of petrified waterfalls.
I went with a friend from my hostel independently. We’d planned to be there before it got busy, but waiting around for buses meant it wasn’t to be! We arrived around 12.30pm and there were definitely lots of people who’d beaten us to it!
It was still a lovely place to spend the day and people did start leaving from 3pm onwards. I really loved the backdrop of mountains and greenery! Beautiful! And the ominous stormy clouds, we couldn’t work out if we were going to get caught! We didn’t until our final bus back to Oaxaca!
There’s more to Hierve El Agua than the main pool and viewpoint area. You can walk to a second viewpoint which is quieter and has a better view of the petrified waterfall from a side angle.
It’s around a 15/20minute walk and has lots of steps! Getting there is fine – on the way back you’ll have them to climb! It wasn’t that bad!
You can also follow a trail to the base of the falls. We didn’t do this, but it looks cool! There also won’t be many people there as it’s more of a hike, I think around an hour round loop.
We finished our visit there with a dip in the pools. Despite the name, “Hierve El Agua”, I can say the water is most definitely not boiling. It’s freezing, not even remotely warm! We were in and out pretty quickly!
How to get to Hierve El Agua
To reach Hierve el Agua you can either go independently using local transport or take a tour.
Going independently requires more effort on your part and more patience as you’ll most likely end up waiting around for transport to leave and the onward connection. That’s said, it’s more of an adventure and cheaper! I met a girl at my hostel and we decided to go ourselves.
Part 1: We went to the 2nd class bus station in Oaxaca (next to the Mercado de Abastos) and got a bus to Mitla for 20 pesos. You can also catch this bus from the baseball stadium if this is closer for you. In theory, these buses leave every 15mins but we waited 45mins for one to show! You can also take a colectivo taxi to Mitla (for 25 pesos) from outside the Mercado de Abastos which is probably quicker. The bus took around 1hr15 to get to Mitla.
Part 2: The bus dropped us off right next to the pick up trucks leaving for Hierve El Agua. They’re impossible to miss! It’s about a 50minute drive along bumpy roads to Hierve El Agua and costs 50 pesos. This is the part where you could be waiting a while as the trucks don’t leave till they’re full – 12/14 people. Our driver was a stickler and wouldn’t leave till the last two spaces were taken! Thankfully it was only 15mins!
Going with a tour is the easiest option, requires less effort and less waiting around time. As well as Hierve El Agua, tours also visit Tuele (the widest tree in the world), a Mezcal factory, a textile factory and the Mitla ruins. They cost around 250 pesos for transport and you need to cover the entrance costs for the multiple places separately.
Final thoughts
If you’re in Oaxaca, I’d recommend a trip to Hierve El Agua. It’s nice swapping city streets for nature and, as nature goes, Hierve El Agua is pretty unique with great mountain views.
Note: Don’t expect turquoise waters here – it’s more a greenish hue!
If I was to do it again, I reckon I’d still go independently as I enjoy the flexibility and freedom doing it yourself brings. That said, a tour is a solid option if you don’t fancy the waiting times and want to see more places in a day!
