OAXACA · MEXICO · MARCH
Oaxaca in March runs hot in the afternoon and cool at dawn. Mexico’s national weather service puts the March average high at 91.9°F and the average low at 56.5°F, with 4.1 days of measurable rain. The valley’s ruins open at 8 a.m., and the morning hours are the cool ones.
Move the trip one month either way and the picture changes. February averages 88.0°F and 1.1 rain days. April averages 94.8°F and 7.6 rain days. Other months and other destinations are laid out in our month-by-month guides.
OAXACA IN MARCH · AT A GLANCE
March in Oaxaca is warm and mostly dry, with 91.9°F afternoons and 56.5°F nights: put the ruins in the morning and the shade and the museums after lunch.
AVG HIGH 91.9°F · AVG LOW 56.5°F · 4.1 RAIN DAYS · 12 H 05 MIN OF DAYLIGHT
Go for: dry mornings at Monte Alban, Mitla and Yagul (all open at 8 a.m.), a Sunday market at Tlacolula, and far fewer rain days than April.
Think twice if: you dislike heat. Afternoons already average 91.9°F in the city, and April climbs to 94.8°F.
Climate: Servicio Meteorologico Nacional (CONAGUA) · Sites: INAH · Daylight: sunrise-sunset.org · full sources below
On this page
- Oaxaca weather in MarchHighs of 91.9°F, lows of 56.5°F and 4.1 rain days
- How warm is Oaxaca in March?Day and night temperatures, frost and the cooler Sierra villages
- Is Oaxaca crowded in March?Prices, booking and lodging tax: what we could and could not verify
- Things to do in Oaxaca in MarchMonte Alban, Mitla, Yagul and the Santo Domingo museum, with hours and 210-peso tickets
- Oaxaca itinerary for MarchTwo days hour by hour, with a rain swap
- Oaxaca in March vs February and AprilHighs, lows and rain days for the three months
- Is March a good time to visit Oaxaca?The verdict, and the month to pick instead
One condition sits outside the weather. The U.S. State Department’s Mexico travel advisory, issued May 29, 2026, rates the state of Oaxaca at Level 2, Exercise Increased Caution, the same baseline level as most of the country. Read the current text on travel.state.gov before you book flights.
Oaxaca weather in March: average highs, lows and rain days
| Measure | March normal, 1991-2020 |
|---|---|
| Average high | 91.9°F |
| Average low | 56.5°F |
| Precipitation | 0.69 inches |
| Days with measurable rain | 4.1 |
| Daylight on March 15 | 12 h 05 min |
| Sunrise · sunset on March 15 | 6:33 a.m. · 6:38 p.m. |
Every figure here comes from Mexico’s national weather service, the Servicio Meteorologico Nacional (CONAGUA), and its 1991-2020 normals for station 20079 in Oaxaca de Juárez, at 1,594 meters. That is a real station thermometer in the valley city, not a satellite-grid reanalysis. Sierra villages sit higher and run cooler than these readings.
March brings 0.69 inches of precipitation over 4.1 days of measurable rain, roughly one day in eight. The SMN does not publish the rain-day threshold on its station sheet, so read that count as a rough one. Spread over four days, the average is a passing shower more often than a washed-out afternoon, though averages hide the odd heavy one.
That wide day-to-night swing means packing for two climates in one suitcase: a light sweater or jacket for the early gate and the evening terrace, a wide-brimmed hat, sunscreen, and closed shoes for uneven ruin paths. Rain gear can stay small, a packable shell at most.
On March 15 the sun rises at 6:33 a.m. and sets at 6:38 p.m., Oaxaca local time, for 12 hours 05 minutes of daylight. Monte Alban, Mitla and Yagul all close at 5 p.m., so none of them gives you the sunset. Watch it from the Zocalo or a rooftop instead.
How warm is Oaxaca in March?
Oaxaca city sits inland at 1,594 meters, so there is no sea temperature to quote, only valley air. March averages a high of 91.9°F and a low of 56.5°F, a gap of 35.4 degrees. Each figure is a mean of daily readings, so single days land on both sides of it.
At the 8 a.m. gate a light layer is welcome, and it comes off well before midday. From noon to late afternoon the outfit is linen, a hat and a water bottle. Put the long outdoor walks before lunch, and spend the hottest hours in the shade of the Zocalo or inside a museum.
We read no count of frost nights for March in the SMN normals, so we cannot say how often the valley dips near freezing. The 56.5°F average low sits well above freezing, though an average is not the coldest night on record. For Sierra villages, which sit higher, bring more layers than the city needs.
How busy is Oaxaca in March? Crowds and prices
We found no occupancy series and no monthly hotel-rate series for Oaxaca, so we crown no month busy or cheap, and March gets no rank. What the sources do give is a weather run: rain days climb from 1.1 in February to 4.1 in March and 7.6 in April.
We have no verified lead time for Oaxaca lodging in March, so no number of weeks appears. The INAH listings for Monte Alban, Mitla, Yagul and the Santo Domingo museum give admission and hours, and we found no booking step in them. Fixed dates and a specific room justify booking ahead as they would anywhere, and general planning basics live in Travel 101.
We could not verify Oaxaca’s lodging-tax rate, so we give no percentage. Ask the property whether taxes are already inside the quoted rate before you compare two prices.
Paying more changes one thing in March: the room. With afternoon highs at 91.9°F, a room that stays cool through mid-afternoon is a better use of money than a view. No source we read prices that difference, so we quote no figure.
Things to do in Oaxaca in March
March suits the open-air side of the valley: the ruins, the Sunday market at Tlacolula and the mezcal palenques, small distilleries that open their stills to visitors. Rain risk stays modest at 4.1 rain days against April’s 7.6, and afternoons stay under April’s 94.8°F average high. Expect long stretches in full sun.
Monte Alban, Mitla and Yagul each charge 210 pesos general admission, and Mexican nationals and foreign residents in Mexico pay 105 pesos. All three open daily at 8 a.m. and close at 5 p.m., with last entry at 4 p.m. for Monte Alban and Yagul and 4:30 p.m. for Mitla. Monte Alban has been a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1987. Yagul sits just past the town of Tlacolula on the Panamerican Highway.
The Museo de las Culturas de Oaxaca, in the former Santo Domingo convent, charges the same 210 pesos and opens Tuesday to Sunday, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., so a Monday needs another plan. It is also the indoor answer to a wet afternoon. Hierve el Agua’s petrified waterfalls and mineral pools, east of the city near San Lorenzo Albarradas, are run by the local community, which collects its own fee at the site. We could not verify that amount.
We read no free-admission days for March in the INAH listings, so none are named here. The Zocalo, shaded by laurel trees and framed by the cathedral and the state government palace, is a public square. Tlacolula’s Sunday market, in the valley near Mitla and Yagul, is a weekly market for local food and crafts.
Oaxaca itinerary for March
Day one is Monte Alban and the city. Be at the gate for the 8 a.m. opening, while the air is still near the morning low, and come down before noon. After lunch the Museo de las Culturas de Oaxaca is open until 5 p.m. (Tuesday to Sunday only), and the Zocalo takes the evening, with sunset at 6:38 p.m.
Day two runs east along the Mitla road. Start at Mitla when it opens at 8 a.m. (last entry 4:30 p.m.), work back through Teotitlan del Valle for wool rugs woven and dyed by hand, and finish at Yagul, where last entry is 4 p.m. On a Sunday, add Tlacolula’s market on the way. If the sky turns, and March averages 4.1 rain days, swap the open-air stops for a mezcal palenque visit and the museum, then try the ruins on the next dry morning.
Oaxaca in March vs February and April
| Measure | February | March | April |
|---|---|---|---|
| Average high | 88.0°F | 91.9°F | 94.8°F |
| Average low | 52.9°F | 56.5°F | 60.4°F |
| Precipitation | 0.18 inches | 0.69 inches | 1.86 inches |
| Days with measurable rain | 1.1 | 4.1 | 7.6 |
Highs step up from 88.0°F in February to 91.9°F in March and 94.8°F in April. Lows climb from 52.9°F to 56.5°F to 60.4°F. Precipitation runs 0.18 inches, then 0.69, then 1.86, and measurable rain days go from 1.1 to 4.1 to 7.6. All three months come from the same SMN station and the same 1991-2020 period.
Shifting four weeks earlier buys the driest stretch of the three, at 1.1 rain days, and costs you the warmer evenings: the average low drops to 52.9°F. Shifting four weeks later adds heat and rain, with 94.8°F highs and 7.6 rain days, in exchange for 60.4°F nights. We have no daylight or price data for the neighboring months, so those stay out of the comparison.
Is March a good time to visit Oaxaca?
Yes for anyone who wants ruins, markets and outdoor days with a low chance of rain: 4.1 rain days and 0.69 inches for the whole month. No for anyone who dislikes heat, since afternoons average 91.9°F in the city.
If heat is the problem, February is the month to prefer: 88.0°F on average, 1.1 rain days, and a 52.9°F low that calls for a sweater at dawn. April moves the wrong way for that reader, at 94.8°F and 7.6 rain days.
March sits in the middle on every measure we have: overnight lows 3.6 degrees warmer than February’s, and 3.5 rain days fewer than April’s. The ruins are open every day of the week.
The last word
The Zapotecs kept a capital on the Cerro del Jaguar for some 1,500 years, and in March you can walk it at 8 a.m., well before the valley reaches its 91.9°F afternoon. If the sky turns, the Santo Domingo museum is open until 5 p.m., Tuesday to Sunday.
Sources & data for this guide
- March, February and April normals (highs, lows, precipitation, rain days) · Servicio Meteorologico Nacional (CONAGUA), 1991-2020 normals, station 20079, Oaxaca de Juárez · checked Sep 29, 2026
- Daylight, sunrise and sunset on March 15 · sunrise-sunset.org, converted to Mexico City time · checked Sep 29, 2026
- Admission and hours for Monte Alban, Mitla, Yagul and the Museo de las Culturas de Oaxaca · INAH · checked Sep 29, 2026
- Monte Alban heritage status and history · INAH, Lugares INAH · checked Sep 29, 2026
- Travel advisory, issued May 29, 2026 · US Department of State, Mexico Travel Advisory · checked Sep 29, 2026
- We found no occupancy or hotel-rate series, no lodging-tax rate, no verified March event dates, no frost-night count and no Hierve el Agua fee. Descriptions of the market, the rugs, the palenques and the Zocalo are editorial; hours and fees change, so check with the operator when you book.