In November, Oaxaca and the Yucatán Peninsula made it to two of the most important must-see travel destination lists in the editorial world — The New York Times “25 Travel Experiences You Must Have,” and “The 23 Best Places to Go in 2023” from Condé Nast.

First The New York Times published a list of the most extraordinary adventures a person should have in their lifetime in mid-November. The 25 experiences line-up, which is not a ranking and is grouped geographically, was selected by two writers, a chef, an architect, and a landscape photographer.

The list covers experiences related to food, history, religion, art, and architecture. However, it excludes hotels, because as participating writer Pico Iyer said, “hotels offer luxury and comfort, but they rarely touch my soul.” As such, a culinary experience in Oaxaca was ranked as part of the exclusive list.

Recommending readers to “Feast on the Cuisines of Oaxaca City,” the list says that thanks to the “growing awareness of Oaxaca’s cultural wealth and diversity […] it is possible for chefs with local roots to open revelatory new businesses in spaces as simple as they are unforgettable.” From fine dining restaurants to market stalls and relaxed mezcalerías, the list highlights that both the city and its countryside are filled with “culinary jewels.”

In Condé Nast’s annual ranking of the best places to visit, the Yucatán Peninsula was picked as a favorite by the magazine’s worldwide network of editors and writers, sharing the list with places like Marrakech in Morocco and Queensland in Australia.

The “23 Best Places to Go in 2023” recommends places that share new kinds of offerings. Yucatán was recognized for its “design-forward boutique hotels amid the region’s jungle and waterways.”

Unlike The New York Time’s list, Condé Nast does name a variety of exclusive hotels in the Peninsula that are worthy of a visit in one of the world’s most “enticing areas to visit next year.”

Oaxaca and Yucatán aren’t the only places that made it to a ‘hot travel list.’ According to Forward Keys, a specialized firm on data analytics, three Mexican beach towns were among the top 10 global destinations with the highest growth: San José del Cabo, Puerto Vallarta and Cancún.

These results are thanks to less strict health controls post-pandemic as well as to the proximity to the United States, with travelers from that country preferring closer destinations with fewer restrictions.

According to data from Mexico’s statistics and geography institute, INEGI, tourism in Mexico was up in September compared to 2021, with the country receiving 2.77 million international tourists that month.

With reports from The New York Times, Condé Nast and El Economista