It's a Wrap!! San Cristobal de Las Casas

There is truly something extraordinary about this country, especially when you duck into the interior, far away from the tourist meccas and beaches….

It doesn’t matter how many pages turn on the calendar, or the allure of the freshly stamped countries on our passport we visit, the hypnotic magic of Mexico will continue to seduce us back, and forever be Greg’s first true love at age 14.

…The sweet sounds of mariachi music drifting lazily through the landscape

…the countless cobblestones of so many different varieties

…the kind smiles of patience when you obviously look bewildered trying to keep up with their Spanish

…the infinite parade of mouth-watering dishes

…the bright bursts of street art at every turn

…and the fiestas; the ever present fiestas and celebrations adding ribbons of life and energy. 

La vida. Yes…Mexico is simply alive. 

Maybe more than any other country we’ve ever visited. 

We were here last during the COVID years, 2020-2021, and it was during that time, we vowed to come back and next tackle Chiapas, so Greg could take me to the Mayan ruins of Palenque.

Little did we know we’d be on a seriously slower travel plan and committing ourselves to a one month base…but turns out, San Cristobal de las Casas, in the country’s most southern state, is absolutely perfect for just this. 

That said, below is our personal list of stats, money saving tips, and personal upsides and downsides. 

Time Spent: 29 nights 

Money Spent: $1667 or $57.48/day* (in USD/two people):

  • $769 (Accommodation) 
  • $412 (Groceries) 
  • $230 (General) 
  • $152 (Restaurants
  • $104 (Transport) 

Our Itinerary

  • (x28) Nights (San Cristobal de las Casas)
  • (x1) Villahermosa (Tabasco)
  • (x1) Palenque (double paid accommodation these two nights)
  • (x1) Mexico City 

Would we return? Yes. Probably to the exact same apartment! 

Which did we like more?! Antigua or San Cris? San Cris by a nose, because there are much fewer tourists, but overall they have some similarities.

Best Budget Saving Tips

  • Don’t eat out regularly; and if you do, avoid tourist restaurants, international cuisine, vegan joints, or chains.  
  • Walk…everywhere if able. There’s no reason not to. It’s utterly charming, especially close to the historic center
  • Shop at the Centro Mercado, or local vendors, for all fruits, vegetables, eggs, etc. They will be half the price of the supermarkets and better quality 
  • Shop around for the best laundry prices. We paid a ridiculous $9 the first week and $2 each week after. 
  • Purchase water by the garrafon (large jug); not the bottle ($20 pesos or $1.10 for a week)
  • Know ahead of time whether or not the tourist/DNR taxes are included in your tickets. You will likely get hit with these at the border if crossing by land which was an icky $114 shock for us
  • To get to the Tuxtla Gutiérrez Airport, take the colectivo to Tuxtla, and then transfer to the airport colectivo rather than using ADO to go direct from San Cristobal. You’ll save about $10/person.

Our Upsides

  • Idyllic and predictably sunny and springlike (22C/70F) weather almost every single day (February/March, does not apply to the rest of the year, necessarily) 
  • Therefore, you don’t need heat or air conditioning here. 
  • Access to a giant fitness park where we could run, walk and even swim for free
  • There is a plastic bag ban at all markets and shops! Bring your own!
  • The walkability of San Cris is fantastic.
  • Very few street dogs, at least in the historic core. 
  • Also, few barking dogs overall, which is quite unusual in Mexican culture 
  • The city has done a remarkable job preventing modern development in historic center, or even allow it to encroach the city’s boundaries. It’s very well preserved.
  • We felt completely safe everywhere we went, including when I was on my own,  (Mandy)
  • The ability to buy almost all groceries we needed though we definitely had to hunt, or pay a premium, for many things. 
  • No mosquitoes or bugs 
  • Pox, the Mayan traditional spirit, is unique and delicious 
  • Fast/stable internet
  • Avocados for $.10, blackberries for $1 and strawberries for $2.50. The fruit was some of the sweetest we’ve had in awhile. As is should be 🙂
  • Very few tourists. The ones there mostly congregated on the pedestrian streets
  • It’s simply a pleasant place to live and be.

Our Downsides

  • The long distance buses are quite expensive. We paid a whopping $166 for both of us to get to Palenque and back. 
  • We got food poisoning, our first time in more than 7 months of Mexican travel. We believe from tacos at a sit-down restaurant 
  • The air quality can be poor on some days, though generally it was good and fresh
  • Having to always carry change for the public bathrooms.
  • Just a small thing, but it was impossible to find walnuts, a staple in our diet. We settled for pecans.
  • Difficult to find good tea 
  • Despite its beautiful natural setting, there aren’t a lot of immediate hiking options available in the vicinity. We tried two and both failed. Also some have reviews that they may not be safe to occurrences that happened long ago. 
  • No city parks, only plazas. Nature is definitely lacking.
  • The firecrackers…what’s new?! Viva Mexico! 

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