The fascinating city of San Cristobal de las Casas joins Mexico City and Oaxaca as one of my three favourite cities in the whole of Mexico!
During my five days in San Cristobal de las Casas, I swam under waterfalls, learnt about the Mayan culture, visited majestic canyons, tried locally made chocolate, and witnessed the most unique religious ceremony I’ve ever seen. All within, or close to, a city full of cute cafes, cool vintage stores and fun bars!
So, keep reading this guide to find out my top 7 experiences in the city of San Cristobal de las Casas.
Where is San Cristobal de las Casas?
San Cristobal is a pretty city in the South of Mexico, located in the highlands close to the Guatemalan border. Like most other colonial cities in the country, you are treated with cobbled streets, colourful buildings, and lively squares with impressive churches and cathedrals.
This charming city is one of the largest in the state of Chiapas. This region of Mexico has the highest percentage of indigenous people and was once part of Guatemala. The Mayan culture is obvious as you are walking the delightful streets, with many women wearing the traditional black, woolen skirts, and handwoven textiles being sold in all the markets.
Due to the city’s location in the highlands, the temperature is cooler than many other tourist destinations in Mexico. This was a very welcome relief for me, coming from the unbearable heat of Puerto Escondido!
How to get to San Cristobal de las Casas
I arrived into San Cristobal on a night bus from Puerto Escondido, waking up in the morning to a completely different landscape to what I had left. This was the longest and most expensive bus that I took during my time in Mexico, taking 15 hours and costing over £60. However, it is easy, with ADO/OCC buses being safe, comfy and reliable all across Mexico. I used the BusBud app to book all of my buses in Mexico.
This is the route that most backpackers travelling south through Mexico will probably take, but there is also an airport close to San Cristobal in Tuxtla. It is worth looking at flight prices as sometimes they can be cheaper than the bus.
Some backpackers may be travelling north, with the city close to the border to Guatemala. Shuttles from major cities in Guatemala to San Cristobal will be easy to find in hostels and travel agencies, as well as online. For example, a shuttle from Antigua to San Cristobal takes about 14 hours and costs about £50.
Where to stay in San Cristobal de las Casas
I stayed in Puerto Viejo Hostel for 5 nights and paid £11.50 a night. There are cheaper options, but this did include breakfast and dinner.
I found the dinners to be very hit or miss, sometimes the portions were delicious and huge, other days we got a small bowl of soup and I had to go out to find a second dinner. However, everyone having dinner together meant it was very social and the dorm rooms were nice. I give it an 8/10!
Important information
It is a well-known fact that the water around San Cristobal is severely polluted. Take extra care here with water and food as a lot of backpackers do seem to get sick. This was the one place on my trip where I made sure to brush my teeth with bottled water and avoided things like fruit and salad. The hostel even advised us to sanitise our hands after washing them in the bathrooms.
Make sure you stay fit and healthy so you can enjoy all that this magical city has to offer! Here are my …
Top 7 things to do in San Cristobal
1. Free walking tour
You will struggle to find a city where I don’t recommend a free walking tour, but the one I did in San Cristobal was one of the most informative I did in Mexico. The city is full of things to see and has many interesting topics to talk about.
During the walking tour we visited multiple markets, squares and churches, and some art galleries and murals. We spoke about many important subjects such as the Zapatista movement and the controversy surrounding Coca Cola, water issues and diabetes in the region.
Coca-Cola has a large bottling factory outside the city, which has intensified the water quality issue by taking out huge amounts of water from the river each day. Coke is cheaper than water here, so the average local drinks 2L of the fizzy drink each day. Sadly, this has caused a huge diabetes crisis in the area, with Chiapas being named the ‘diabetes capital of the world’. As a result, there has been backlash against Coke, and you can see art and graffiti mentioning the issue around the city.
I really enjoyed this walking tour, we even had a free coffee and went to a Pox tasting. This is a liquor made of corn and is used by Mayans during religious ceremonies. I booked my tour here: https://www.freewalkingsancristobal.com/
2. Iglesia de San Juan Chamula
This church is more commonly known amongst backpackers as ‘the chicken church’. This mysterious building is located half an hour outside of San Cristobal and is an absolute must-do.
From the outside, Chamula Church is pretty, but inside is the most unique church I have ever seen. The ceremonies that take place inside are like nothing else I have experienced around the world. Visiting this church gives you a special insight into the Mayan culture in Chiapas.
It is easy to get to Chamula using a colectivo, and I have a blog post here explaining how to visit without a tour: https://onheradventures.com/2024/03/11/mini-guide-how-to-visit-chamula-church-without-a-tour/
3. Visit a market
Even if you visit a market during a walking tour, it is worth going back again with more time to explore on your own. The Santa Domingo market was my favourite market that I visited in the whole of Mexico.
After my walking tour I revisited this huge artisanal market, to wonder around the maze of textiles and souvenirs. There is one product that completely fills this market, and that is amber.
Chiapas is known for mining jade and amber, and this means the market is full of jewellery made of these gemstones. The Mayans believe that amber has healing properties, removing heat and inflammation from the body. I bought a couple of amber bracelets in the market but judging by the price I paid, I doubt they were real!
If you have time, you can also visit the amber museum which tells you more about this jewel and its history in Chiapas.
4. A day trip to Sumidero Canyon
If you do one day-trip from San Cristobal, make it be this one! Sumidero Canyon was one of the most incredible places that I visited in Mexico and is located just over an hour away from San Cristobal. I didn’t even know it existed before arriving in the city and I was absolutely blown away by its beauty and size.
I am normally an advocate for exploring as much as you can without a tour. However, this is a daytrip that does need to be done as a tour unless you have your own car. Luckily, the trip is extremely affordable, I paid £20 to go with Puerto Viejo Hostel and had an amazing day!
The tour starts with visiting 3 different viewpoints to get an aerial view of the canyon. I can honestly say that this was one of the few times in my life when a view actually took my breath away. I hadn’t done any research so didn’t know what to expect, but this canyon is AMAZING!
The view was beautiful, you could see the bright green river meandering below, with tiny boats that looked like specks travelling along it. One guy in my group said he had visited the Grand Canyon earlier in the year and this was prettier!
We then travelled down to the bottom of the canyon to go on a boat trip along the river. Travelling through in a speedboat, with the walls towering above us was incredible. The walls of the canyon are 1km high at some points!
The guide showed us a few different rock features along the canyon and also pointed out wildlife such as monkeys and crocodiles. This is an absolute must-do if you are in Chiapas!
5. Kakaw Chocolate Museum
I have the biggest sweet tooth so I couldn’t miss the opportunity to visit a chocolate museum and tasting shop! Kakaw is a small museum but I really enjoyed the hour I spent here.
First you are taken around the museum, it doesn’t look like much on its own but a short tour of the museum was really interesting. I learnt so much about my favourite food and what it meant to the Mayans.
We were shown the stone tablets that were used to grind cacao beans on, and the actual pots that were used by the Mayans to drink chocolate from.
Then came the best part, we were able to try at least 12 different types of chocolate! Ranging from 100% cacao, to sweet cherry and cinnamon bars.
6. El Chiflon Waterfalls
The state of Chiapas has so much natural beauty to explore. As well as Sumidero Canyon, you can also take a daytrip to the mesmerizing El Chiflon Waterfalls.
Located just a few hours outside of San Cristobal, this is the perfect day trip to escape the hustle and bustle of the city. As you walk along the San Vicente river, the falls just keep getting more powerful and beautiful. The Gatorade blue pools are perfect for a refreshing swim and the waterfalls were some of the prettiest I saw in my whole Mexico and Central America trip.
The best thing about Chiapas is that it isn’t as popular as the Yucatan region, so we had the falls almost to ourselves!
I have a blog post here that goes into much more detail and explains how to visit El Chiflon without a tour: https://onheradventures.com/2024/04/18/how-to-visit-the-stunning-el-chiflon-waterfalls-without-a-tour/
7. Iglesia de San Cristobalito
There are multiple cute churches at the top of staircases in San Cristobal, however the one most worth visiting is Iglesia de San Cristobalito.
This is another attraction that I first saw on BBC’s Race Across the World! A decorated staircase of 250 steps leads you up to a pretty, white church and even prettier views of the city!
San Cristobal de las Casas is a truly unique city with enough to keep you occupied for at least 4 days! Give yourself plenty of time to explore both the city and the natural wonders close-by.
