If you're planning a trip to Mexico and want to experience it at its purest, don't overlook the Southern state of Chiapas.
It's a wonderful and vast region. Nature-wise, it hosts the legendary Canyon del Sumidero, breathtaking mountainous highlands and dense rainforest. Chiapas also has a handful of interesting towns to explore, like magical Cristobal de las Casas, historical Chiapa de Corzo and infamous San Juan Chamula, all with an incredibly rich indigenous heritage.
It's fair to say we hardly knew anything about the area before going. However, our time in Chiapas ended up being the most memorable experience from our travels. We had so much fun and learned so much.
We found Chiapas to be unlike the rest of the places we visited in Mexico. it felt more authentic and with a distinct culture. We also noticed it to be considerably cheaper too - such as with the accommodation, eating out, taxis...
We took advantage of the lower prices and stayed like Mayan royalty in a lovely hotel, right in the heart of San Cristobal's historic centre. It included amazing daily breakfast and was certainly great value for money. Scroll down to the bottom for the accommodation info.
We also ate out for every meal, trying the region's unique local food - which ranges from street food to gourmet, and includes certain ingredients like black corn which isn't seen commonly in other areas.
Chiapas was the third destination of our 3-week trip around Mexico. For more info about the rest of our Mexico trip, click here.
Indigenous heritage
Chiapas has one of the largest indigenous populations in the country: a quarter of all inhabitants identify with one of 12 recognised groups. The state's biggest indigenous groups are the Tzotzil and the Tzeltal.
It's common to see the locals dressed in traditional clothing and speaking their different languages. However, nowadays their lifestyle, beliefs and traditions mix the ancient, with the hispanic, as well as with the modern. The result of 500 years of cultural competition leads to something totally unique.
In Chiapas you can visit modern day indigenous communities like San Juan Chamula, famous for its church, which encapsulates this fascinating mix of cultures, histories and religions. As while it is a Catholic institution, the local practices are a blend of pre-Hispanic
Getting to Chiapas
Chiapas is a southern inland Mexican state bordering Guatemala.
There are a few options to get to Chiapas and San Cristobal de las Casas, depending on where you are coming from.
If you are travelling from another state, the easiest way is to fly to Chiapas' capital city, Tuxtla Gutiérrez airport.
We used Skyscanner to find the flights and then booked them on the airlines' websites, such as Volaris. The flights tend to be affordable.
Tuxtla Gutiérrez airport is modern and easy to navigate. I was surprised that it was way even more modern than Mexico City's airport! From the airport there are buses and taxis that go to San Cristobal de las Casas.
The most affordable way - and a very easy and comfortable option - is to take a "colectivo" from just outside the airport exit. Colectivos are mini-buses and run the hour-and-a-half journey from the airport directly to San Cristobal de las Casas. They charged us around 300 Mexican pesos each. But if you take a taxi it costs around 1200 Mexican pesos each - a pretty hefty price difference!
Recommendations for exploring Chiapas
Visit the Canyon del Sumidero
If you are in Chiapas you must make the expedition to the Canyon del Sumidero and the river Grijalva. It is as epic and Jurassic-Park-like as a jungle canyon can get. Visiting the Canyon was one of our top highlights of the whole trip, and a day I will remember forever.
Located a few hour's drives from the main city of Chiapas, Tuxtla Gutierrez, the canyon is thought to have formed 35 million years ago, similar to that of the Grand Canyon. It was declared a National Park in 1980 and is rightfully the top tourist attraction in Chiapas.
We booked a full-day excursion through Viator. It was around £46 each (approx $1000 Mex). I thought it was an exceptional day and worth every penny as the price included:
- Hotel pickup from San Cristobal de las Casas.
- Transport to the breathtaking viewing points over the Sumidero Canyon.
- The 2 hours boat ride down the canyon and ending in Chiapa de Corzo.
- Transport back to San Cristobal de las Casas.
The boat ride down the 100-meter-wide river Grijalva is surreal. We were lucky and were able to spot a variety of wildlife, such as crocodiles, monkeys and birds.
I recommend taking a hat, glasses and sunscreen as there is no shade on the boat. However, saying that the weather started with blue skies and a burning sun, then quickly changed to torrential downpours. Then, as suddenly as the rain had begun, it stopped and switched back to sunshine, drying up any sign of rain. And then 5 minutes later, it would rain again. But this all just added to the fun.
The boat trip ended at the Magic Town (Pueblo Magico) Chiapa de Corzo. From there we were given some time to explore the town and grab lunch.
We wandered the busy streets, admiring the city's colourful decorations and central fountain. It's a historic town and one of the first towns the Spanish conquered and established under their control.
Visit San Cristobal de las Casas
San Cristobal de las Casas is a beautiful and fun city in Chiapas. It's set in a valley surrounded by pine forest.
The city was founded in 1528, and still breathes the air of the ancient, with cobbled streets, traditional markets and Hispanic architecture. However, there is certainly a modern element to it nowadays, with young backpackers sitting at trendy cafes, and bars offering jazz nights.
San Cris has become a popular traveller’s destination due to its beautiful and colourful historic centre. But, there's so much more to it.
Many visitors will come for a day trip, but I urge you to give it more time. We stayed in a hotel in the historic centre for 4 nights. We found it to be an ideal amount of time to enjoy the city and explore Chiapas.
This was our 4-day itinerary:
- Soaking up the historic centre of San Cristóbal de las Casas, such as walking its cobbled streets, visiting its many markets, and trying the local cuisine
- Taking a day trip to the epic Canyon del Sumidero and the town of Chiapa de Corzo
- Visiting indigenous communities outside San Cristobal de las Casas
- Exploring the outside areas of San Cristóbal de las Casas, such as hidden mountain caves, horse riding and seeing the city from a viewing point
For a guide on why and how to explore Chiapas from San Cristobal de las Casas, click here.
Visit the unique church at San Juan Chamula
A day I will never forget, ever, was visiting the modern-day indigenous communities of San Juan Chamula and Zinacantan. We learnt first-hand about how they live, intertwining ancient Tzotzil and Tzeltal Mayan culture and traditions with catholicism and modernity. At church worshipers engage in rituals like no other, involving Catholic saints, moonshine, outpourings of emotion, mariachis, and animal sacrifice.
San Juan Chamula is especially known as Chiapas’ most authentic Maya town with 50,000 Tzotzil Maya inhabitants. They enjoy the unique position of being autonomous thanks to the Mexican government granting indigenous towns the to function independently. Consequently local and national police seem to have no authority due to this reason, which sparks debate among the indigenous Mexican population. But that's another story.
The communities are tight-knit and distrustfully closed to the outside world, which makes it only really possible to visit alongside a local guide. We found one through Viator. We met our guide and a handful of other curious travellers in San Cristobal de las Casas and jumped into a minibus. A short ride out of the city took us to a very different world.
When we disembarked at San Juan Chamula we quickly realised we would never have been able to come without our guide. He explained to us the “rules” we must follow:
- Visitors must pay an entrance fee to the communities.
- Photos are strictly forbidden inside churches.
- No photos are to be taken of the locals.
- Stay close to the guide.
- Be respectful of the locals and the ceremonies taking place.
The hostile atmosphere around the Iglesia de San Juan de Bautista keeps you on edge. But the church sure is impressive. It's colourful and lushly decorated. A multitude of bright flowers overwhelmingly cover the outside and the inside walls of the church.
The locals mostly wear traditional clothing, for women this means ornately embroidered black sheepskin skirts and sashes and blouses. It's a reminder of Chamula's status as a stronghold of ancient Tzotzil and Tzeltal Mayan culture—and the resilience of its native communities, which were exploited and displaced after the arrival of the Spanish in the 16th century. For men, it means a sheepskin jacket with a sturdy belt and straw hat.
They are so strict with photography that if you are caught taking a photo you can be fined a large sum or even put in prison. The photos below from the church are not mine as it is extremely forbidden to take photos inside the church. These are photos from the internet, but I can confirm it is just like these in reality.
The ambience inside the church is dream / nightmare-ish. It feels tense and airless. Locals approach us threateningly to make sure we aren't trying to take a sneaky photo. I would not use the word welcoming to describe this town, intriguing might be a good fit though.
Some families are joined by a curandero who lay their hands upon the afflicted, absorb the evil spirits which are causing the diseases, into a chicken egg or cure them by waving a live hen overhead. And some chickens cluck their final cluck, their necks are twisted, taking away the pain or diseases of their sacrificer's loved ones.
A sea of burning candles streams down the church. A young boy throws and then spreads pine needles across the bare stone floor. I smile at him and we ended up having a chat, I ask him if today is a special day and he nods, today is June 13th and they celebrate San Antonio, Saint Anthony of Padua, Doctor of the Church and patron of the poor.
A mariachi band sing drunkenly to San Antonio while other fellow drunk men dance around. Nobody seems to pay any attention to them.
Women in sheepskin skirts cry and plead to their God. There are coca cola bottles everywhere. The air is thick and heavy. It's a lot to take in.
"The first thing the Spanish did when they conquered the area was to kill the spiritual leaders. But the old Tzotzil religion lived on, and each of the saints came to symbolise a different god," our guide whispered to us. He also went on to explain why there were so many coca-cola bottles around the church, "we just love the stuff, it's the lack of knowledge that it's unhealthy, you know?". I nodded, caught up in this very surreal reality.
In Chiapas, Mayan culture isn't just for archaeologists. Nor is it something far away, to be discovered only in history books. It exists today - filtered by time and outside influence — in the modern customs of indigenous Mexico. And it's fascinating to experience.
I highly recommend taking a guided excursion to the indigenous communities and especially a visit to the Iglesia de San Juan de Bautista. It is a once-in-a-lifetime experience to step into the modern world of the Tzotzil and Tzeltal Mayan people.
Accommodation - San Cristobal de las Casas 📍
We stayed in the hotel Casa Santa Lucia, a beautiful colonial-style building in the heart of the Historic Centre - the safest area to stay in San Cris.
We had a lovely and large ensuite, with the biggest and most comfortable bed we had ever slept in! We felt like Mayan royalty.
Breakfast was included in the price, and the options to choose from were vast and generous. It was hands down the best hotel breakfast we had in Mexico, and perhaps even ever on our travels. The staff we so kind and accommodating, chatting with us and always offering help and assistance.
I can't recommend the hotel enough.
Total price for 4 nights for 2 people: MXN 6,860.52. Approx £296.
Address: Avenida Josefa Ortiz de Dominguez # 13, Barrio Santa Lucia, 29250 San Cristóbal de Las Casas, Mexico
Other Travel details
Our Mexico Trip Itinerary
We travelled around Mexico for nearly 3 weeks. We divided the trip into 4 parts, with 4 nights in each location, to explore the different sides of the country:
- Mexico City (Central Zone)
- Puerto Escondido (Pacific coast)
- Chiapas - San Cristobal de las Casas (Central South)
- Tulum (Caribbean coast)
International Flights ✈️
How to get to Mexico
We booked our flights to Mexico from Europe in February 2022 to fly on the 2nd of June 2022, so we didn’t book too far in advance.
I flew with British Airways, directly from Heathrow to Mexico City, and on the way back I flew directly from Cancun to Heathrow. The flights were about 10 hours each way, and in total were around £900.
My partner Danny flew directly from Amsterdam to Mexico City. On the way, he had a layover in Mexico City from Cancun, and then he flew back to Amsterdam from Mexico City. His flights were around £800 in total.
Read next: A guide to magical San Cristobal de las Casas, Chiapas - Mexico
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