Town San Pedro Cajonos, Oaxaca Sierra Norte of Oaxaca
Zapotec village in the Sierra Norte at about 1,850 m, one of Oaxaca's smallest municipalities, known for silk and ixtle weaving.
From Oaxaca: 1 h 55 min by car (90 km by road) How to get there ↓
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Where to stay near San Pedro Cajonos
Compare hotels, posadas and guest houses in San Pedro Cajonos.
Tours to San Pedro Cajonos
Day trips around Capulálpam de Méndez sometimes stop in San Pedro Cajonos; a tour is the easy way to see it without a car.
Tours from Oaxaca City
Hierve el Agua 2.5 hours, Mitla, Tule, Rugs and Mezcal for a Day
★ 4.9 (1,558) · From US$70
How to get to San Pedro Cajonos
- From Oaxaca: about 1 h 55 min by road (~90 km)
- Nearest airport: Oaxaca (OAX), 1 h 27 min by car to Capulálpam de Méndez
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Tours from Oaxaca City, near San Pedro Cajonos
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About San Pedro Cajonos
San Pedro Cajonos covers only about 2.5 km², which makes it the fourth smallest municipality in Oaxaca. It stands at about 1,850 metres in the Villa Alta district of the Sierra Norte and belongs to the Zapotec world: people speak Spanish and, less widely, Cajonos Zapotec. Sources give different founding dates (1560 and 1700). It had 1,081 residents in 2020, up to 1,346 in 1980 and down to 959 in 2005.
It is known for silk: silkworms are raised here, the cocoons spun and the thread woven on backstrap looms, and the state and federal governments backed a silk centre in the village. Ixtle, the agave fibre, is also woven, a technique at risk of disappearing. Other Cajonos villages are almost within sight: San Francisco Cajonos 1 km away, San Miguel Cajonos a little over a kilometre, Santo Domingo Xagacía 1.7 km and San Pablo Yaganiza 4 km.
The climate is cool, in pine and oak forest: 15.7 °C on average and about 286 rainy days a year, so bring a rain jacket. Nearly every home has electricity and piped water (99%), but only 42% have a mobile phone and 24% internet, so signal is patchy. No lodging is registered in the village; the nearest, Casa de Huéspedes Yalalag, is 13 km east, about 10 minutes by car on a map estimate.
How to get to San Pedro Cajonos
Drive from Oaxaca: 1 h 55 min, 90 km
San Pedro Cajonos is in the Sierra Norte, about 92 km (57 miles) northeast of the city of Oaxaca. The trip takes nearly three hours by van on mountain roads through pine and oak forest, passing Cuajimoloyas, which is itself about 56 km from Oaxaca. From Capulálpam de Méndez, the nearest pueblo in our guide, it is 25 km in a straight line (about an hour on mountain roads).
We found no published bus or colectivo timetable for San Pedro Cajonos. For Cuajimoloyas, on the same road, shared taxis and buses from Oaxaca run toward Villa Alta and Yalalag; ask whether they pass San Pedro Cajonos. You can also take a one-day tour from Oaxaca. Leave early and return in daylight, as the sierra gets rain on about 286 days a year.
Directions to San Pedro Cajonos on Google Maps
Distances are in a straight line; the road is usually longer.
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From the nearest cities to San Pedro Cajonos
- Oaxaca · 90 km by road, 1 h 55 min
- Tuxtepec · about 135 km by road, ~2 h
- Salina Cruz · 224 km by road, 3 h 20 min
Drive times by road from OpenStreetMap, without traffic or stops. Times marked ~ are estimated from the straight-line distance.
Before you go to San Pedro Cajonos: hours, prices and tips
- What to bring
- Rain jacket: about 286 rainy days a year and a mean of 15.7 °C. Pueblos de América · checked Oct 2026
Hours and prices change, especially around holidays. Each fact links to where we checked it.
Visiting San Pedro Cajonos: what to see and do
Ask about the silk centre and hand spinning.
Look for silk or ixtle textiles woven on backstrap looms.
Walk to San Francisco Cajonos, 1 km south.
Continue to San Miguel Cajonos, a little over 1 km north.
Look out at nearby peaks such as Cerro Trueno (2,247 m).
Plan your trip
Places to stay in San Pedro Cajonos
Compare hotels, posadas, and rentals in and around San Pedro Cajonos.
Tours & activities
Day trips around Capulálpam de Méndez sometimes stop in San Pedro Cajonos; a tour is the easy way to see it without a car.
Rental cars
Pick up a car at OAX (Oaxaca): about 1 h 27 min by road to Capulálpam de Méndez, then 25 km more to San Pedro Cajonos, on your own schedule.
Flights
The nearest airport with scheduled flights is Oaxaca (OAX), about 1 h 27 min by road from Capulálpam de Méndez, the base for San Pedro Cajonos.
Mobile data
Signal can drop away from Capulálpam de Méndez: download a map of the way to San Pedro Cajonos before you set out, or carry an eSIM with data.
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When to go to San Pedro Cajonos cool
San Pedro Cajonos shares the climate of Capulálpam de Méndez, 25 km away. The best months to visit are January, February, March, and December.
See the month-by-month climate of Capulálpam de Méndez
Weather in San Pedro Cajonos now and the next 7 days
Live forecast from Open-Meteo. Chance of rain is the day's highest.
The closest Pueblo Mágico: Capulálpam de Méndez
Capulálpam de Méndez is the Pueblo Mágico closest to San Pedro Cajonos, with places to stay, food, and more to see.
Also close to
- Mitla · Oaxaca · 30 km away
Closest to San Pedro Cajonos
-
Santa Catarina Albarradas · Town · 12 km away
-
Llano Grande · Village · 16 km away
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Pueblos Mancomunados · Nature reserve · 21 km away
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San Antonio Cuajimoloyas · Village · 21 km away
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Villa Talea de Castro · Town · 22 km away
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Santa María Tlahuitoltepec · Village · 23 km away
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San Miguel Yotao · Village · 24 km away
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Tamazulápam del Espíritu Santo · Town · 24 km away
Near San Pedro Cajonos
Drive times by road from OpenStreetMap, without traffic. Times marked ~ are estimated from the straight-line distance.
Location from OpenStreetMap. Written by Puebloteca.