San Cristobal de las Casas was my favourite place to visit in Mexico! Make sure to make space for a few days here on your Mexico trip. We hadn’t even heard of it before we got to Mexico, but so many people told us we HAVE to visit that we changed around some plans, and ended up staying a week. San Cristobal is a colonial city in the mountains of Chiapas, a few hours north of the Guatemalan border. It is about 2,200m (7,200 feet) above sea level You can definitely notice how high up you are from both the altitude and also how COLD it gets at night (make sure you have a coat!). San Cristobal is a magical city with cobbled streets and a beautiful, creative, welcoming energy. It also doesn’t feel too overrun by tourists yet, which is rare in post-pandemic Mexico!
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How to Get to San Cristobal de Las Casas
FLY:
The nearest airport to San Cristobal de Las Casas is Tuxtla Gutiérrez International Airport (27.8 miles / 44.8 km). There are ADO busses going from Tuxtla to San Cristobal a few times a day and they cost about 250 pesos (€11). Check out the best deals on flights on KIWI.COM.
RENT A CAR
If the idea of windy mountainous roads doesn’t scare you too much, you can also rent a car, which many people we met around Mexico did. Check out the best car rental deals at Rentacar.com
BUS
You can get a bus to San Cristobal from pretty much every direction. A lot of the busses there are night busses (it takes at least 10 hours to get there from Oaxaca, 12 from Puerto Escondido, 10 from Palenque), and the roads can be pretty windy so don’t expect a good night’s sleep. I always recommend getting an ADO bus.
Where to stay in San Cristobal de Las Casas
No matter where you stay in San Cristobal, I always recommend booking through Booking.com.
Booking.com allows you to book with free cancellation and no deposit, for more flexibility. However, Hostelworld is also great and gives you lots of reviews to compare. It’s best to check both as they both offer different places too.
PUERTA VIEJA HOSTEL: € This is one of the most highly recommended hostels in Mexico. For about 170 pesos (€8) a night you get a room plus free breakfast and dinner, and even a few nights with free cocktails. That being said, around the time we were there, lots of people reported getting sick there, and there were even signs in the bathrooms that you should sanitize your hands after washing them. However, San Cristobal is known for having dirty water so you should probably do that everywhere. More of a young/party crowd.
POSADA DEL ABUELITO: € Really cheap, nice, and the most highly rated on Hostelworld! Clean, comfortable and not a party hostel.
KUKUL’IK STUDIOS: This is where we stayed when we were in San Cristobal. It was a gorgeous double private room with a smart TV and amazing views of the city for €18 (450 pesos) a night.
How to get around San Cristobal de Las Casas
TAXI
Taxis all around San Cristobal are super cheap. It should only cost about 30 pesos (€1.2) to get across the town.
WALK
San Cristobal is really small, so we actually didn’t even get any taxis while we were there, except from the bus station to the hostel with our big bags.
Where to eat in San Cristobal de Las Casas
TE QUIERO VERDE: Delicious Vegan Restaurant!
MI CASA COMIDA TAIWANESA: This was the best Asian Food we ate in Mexico. HUGE portions for 100 Pesos (€4).
KUKULPAN: Another yummy vegan place. We heard some bad reviews on service but great reviews on the food.
LA FRONTERA: Amazing locally sourced coffee in the most gorgeous courtyard (ask to sit outside.)
XUT: We didn’t get to eat here but we heard its amazing, a little on the pricier side but apparently worth it.
Where to drink in San Cristobal de Las Casas
GINGER BAR: An amazing little bar we discovered on our walking tour. Makes amazing cocktails based on a few questions you answer about your tastes, and they are absolutely stunning. All of them cost between 100-150 pesos (€4-6).
LA VIÑA DE BACCA: One of my favourite bars from all my travels! A wine bar that does glasses of wine from 25 pesos (€1). Every drink you order also comes with a free tapa (piece of bread with cheese or with hummus etc.) and you get free popcorn when you arrive!
CAFE BAR REVOLUCIÓN: A really fun bar with live music that gets super busy every night.
Things to do in San Cristobal de Las Casas
FREE WALKING TOUR:
One of the best things we did in San Cristobal. We met in the square at 5pm and our guide had a yellow umbrella. The tour was really different to other walking tours we’ve done, and our guide even brought us to a bar (ginger bar mentioned above) where we all got a free drink and even free food! The tour is donation based so you pay what you can.
EXPLORE THE STREET ART:
One of the coolest things about San Cristobal is how artsy it is. It’s a bit of a haven for creatives and artists, and the streets are covered in incredible art.
DAY TRIP TO CHAMULA:
One of the best things we did in Mexico. The church there (Iglesia San Juan) is a place where Mayan culture meets Catholicism, and you are able to respectfully observe rituals involving candles, eggs and even chickens (not for the faint hearted). Also, if you’re lucky, they’ll invite you for a shot of pox after the ritual is over (a sort of alcohol that is over 40% and is made from corn.) You can get there via collectivo which costs 18 pesos each way (80c) found at the intersection of Calle Honduras and Avenida 16 de Septiembre. You cannot take any pictures inside the church or you face a big fine, out of respect for the locals. We spent about 4 hours in here just watching all the rituals. It was a truly incredible experience.
DAY TRIP TO SUMIDERO CANYON:
The Grijalva River cuts through the 3,300 feet (1,000 m) high walls of the Sumidero Canyon (Cañon del Sumidero), which is only about an hour east of San Cristobal. While normally we prefer to do things DIY but we actually got a tour to this one because we heard its a bit of a nuisance to get to on collectivos. We did the tour through Puerta Vieja Hostel and it cost 400 pesos per person (€17). This included our transport to 3 viewpoints, to the canyon, a bout tour around the canyon and a trip to Chiapa de Corzo.
VISIT THE MARKETS:
The markets in San Cristobal are so beautiful and colourful and so cheap. It’s also close to amber mines so it’s a really great place to stock up on some amber jewellery for cheap!
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