Qué onda! My name’s Johnny, I’m Australian, and I arrived in Oaxaca over a decade ago with a backpack and no particular plan to stay.
I was traveling through Central America at the time, loosely heading back toward South America, when I passed through Chiapas, came up via Puerto Escondido and San José del Pacífico, and rolled into Oaxaca City around Day of the Dead. The streets were full of marigolds, the air smelled of copal, brass bands were playing, and families were sitting in candlelit cemeteries celebrating their family. I didn’t leave.
That was 2014. These days I split my time between Oaxaca and Australia — I work as a plumber back home for a couple months each year to fund the lifestyle — and I’m raising my son here in one of Mexico’s most extraordinary cities.
Why This Blog Exists
After enough years in one place, you become the person friends message before they visit. Where should I eat? Is it safe? What’s the Guelaguetza actually like?
Go Oaxaca started as a way to answer those questions at scale — but it’s grown into something I genuinely care about. There are a lot of Oaxaca blog posts out there written by people who spent a long weekend here. This one is written by someone who lives here, raises a kid here, eats at the same market stalls every week, and has watched the city change over more than a decade.
The goal is simple: real, useful information about Oaxaca — no fluff, no recycled listicles, no opinions formed from a four-day visit.
What You’ll Find Here
The blog covers everything from the big stuff — Monte Albán, Guelaguetza, Day of the Dead — to the things most travel sites don’t bother with: where to find an apartment at local prices, what the water situation actually is, and how to eat extraordinarily well for almost nothing.
A few good places to start:
👉 50 Best Things to See, Do and Eat in Oaxaca City
👉 Is Oaxaca Safe? 10 Years Living Here — Honest 2026 Guide
👉 When to Visit Oaxaca: The Honest Month-by-Month Guide
Get in Touch
If you have a question about Oaxaca I haven’t answered somewhere on the blog, reach out — I genuinely enjoy helping people plan their trips.
📸 Instagram: @johnny_gooaxaca
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