Monte Albán, Oaxaca City: How to Visit and What to Do Nearby

Monte Albán sits on a flattened mountaintop 400 meters above the Valley of Oaxaca in southern Mexico, a pre-Columbian archaeological site occupied from roughly 500 BC to 850 AD. The Zapotec capital at its peak housed an estimated 25,000 people across terraced residential areas ringing the 300-meter-long Great Plaza. The Danzantes gallery on the west side of the plaza displays carved stone slabs depicting contorted human figures, among the oldest monumental carvings in Mesoamerica. UNESCO designated Monte Albán a World Heritage Site in 1987. is just one of many options in Oaxaca City. Major attractions worth considering include Hierve el Agua, 20 de Noviembre Market (Mercado 20 de Noviembre), and Abastos Market (Central de Abastos).