How to Choose the Right Oaxaca Wedding Venue for Your Guest List
Most couples planning a Oaxaca wedding start with a list of beautiful venues and no idea how to narrow it down. I’ve photographed weddings at most of the places on my list of the 10 best Oaxaca wedding venues, and they’re all beautiful. So the first question I’d ask is how many guests you’re expecting, and the second is what kind of day you want.
Here’s how I’d sort them.
Just the two of you, or fewer than 20 guests
For a small group, pick a place that looks good without much decoration. Loma Noble’s hilltop maguey fields are like that. Downtown, the lower room at La Fábrica Patio is small and a little hidden, which suits a short guest list. My top 5 intimate venues has more ideas.
Somewhere in the middle, 50 to 150 guests
Oaxaca’s colonial buildings work well for this size. The Hotel Quinta Real and its lavaderos, El Cardenal on Alcalá, and Proyecto Murguía’s old textured walls all hold a mid-sized group comfortably. They’re all in or near the Centro Histórico, so your guests spend less time in shuttles and more time walking the city, or on one of the day trips nearby. See Anneka and Alejandro at El Cardenal and Sylvana and Felipe at the Quinta Real.
Something big, 150 guests and up
For a large wedding, you need a lot of space. The Jardín Etnobotánico is the classic choice. Its cactus wall and reflection pool are famous, and the patio holds several hundred guests with the garden right beside it. Casa Dos Lagos, Jardín Don Luis, and Hacienda Piedra Azul work at this size too. They’re outside the Centro, so you give up some convenience and get more room.
One more filter: rainy season
If your date is between July and October, ask about covered space first. Some of these venues, like Casa Dos Lagos and the open area at El Cardenal, need a tent over their main space that time of year. It’s easy to solve if you plan for it.
Nothing replaces walking the space yourself, and every couple weighs these things differently. If you’d like my take on a specific venue for your guest count, get in touch and I’ll tell you what I’ve seen work there.