Yagul is a hilltop Zapotec and later Mixtec site built as a fortified palace complex, with a warren of residential patios, a large ballcourt, and tombs cut into the hillside above the main structures - climbing up to them gives a wide view over the valley. Dainzú is an earlier and much less restored Zapotec site nearby, notable for carved stone reliefs of ballplayers that predate and resemble the more famous Danzantes at Monte Albán. Both sites see far fewer visitors than Monte Albán or Mitla, so you'll often have the ruins largely to yourself.
| Distance | 35 km / 45-60 min from Oaxaca city |
|---|---|
| Travel time | 45-60 minutes one way |
| Getting there | Mode: Colectivo toward Mitla, or rental car; Notes: Both sites sit just off Highway 190 within 15 km of each other, making them easy to combine in one car trip |
| Address | Zona Arqueológica de Yagul, Carretera Internacional 190 Km 35, 70400 Oaxaca, Mexico |
How to get there
- Colectivo toward Mitla with a request stop at the highway turnoff
- Rental car
- Guided van tour
Location
Zona Arqueológica de Yagul, Carretera Internacional 190 Km 35, 70400 Oaxaca, Mexico
16.9975, -96.3311 View on map
Highlights
- Yagul's ballcourt - one of the largest in the Oaxaca valley, sitting below the hillside tombs
- The hillside tombs above Yagul's main plaza, reached by a short climb that also gives the site's best valley view
- Dainzú's carved ballplayer reliefs - stone panels showing figures in helmets and padding, among the earliest ballgame imagery in the valley
- The unexcavated mound areas at Dainzú, which give a sense of how much of the site has not been restored