Chiapas Travel Route
8 Days Through Chiapas’ Mountains, Canyons and Colonial Towns
Days we travelled
8 days
SIM Card
eSIM from trip.com
Budget
$
Best for
Colonial Towns, rain forest & Canyons
Visited in
June
This page is everything we wish we had before travelling through Chiapas.
We spent 8 days travelling through Chiapas, visiting Palenque, San Cristóbal de las Casas & Chiapa de Corzo. We travelled from Bacalar by Tren Maya, then continued by bus and local colectivos, including an early morning journey through Ocosingo to reach San Cristóbal de las Casas.
Here you’ll find our exact route, transportation costs, useful tips, and links to each destination guide where we share everything we discovered along the way.
Our Itinerary
1. Palenque
- First taste of Chiapas
- Local food
- We skipped the ruins
2. San Cristóbal de las Casas
- Colonial Town
- Cheap tacos
- Mountain landscapes
3. Chiapa de Corzo
- Sumidero Canyon
- Day trip
- Incredible fauna
Transportation – Our route
We travelled through Chiapas entirely using public transport. We started by taking the Tren Maya from Bacalar to Escárcega, then continued by bus and local colectivos through Palenque and San Cristóbal de las Casas. It was an affordable way to travel without renting a car, although some journeys were long and required an early start.
1. Bacalar to Escárcega
CHECK OUT THE TREN MAYA
If you’re planning a long journey and you’re tired of colectivos or overnight buses, the Tren Maya can be a great alternative. It is generally more expensive than travelling by bus, but sometimes paying a little extra for a more comfortable journey is worth it.
The Tren Maya is a modern railway connecting destinations across southeastern Mexico. We recommend checking the website for current offers and promotions before booking. Depending on the route and fare, you might find a better price than expected. They also have different train models offering different levels of comfort and services.
2. Escárcega to Emiliano Zapata
CHECK OUT ADO 2nd CLASS. AU
AU is a local bus company connecting towns across the region. For this part of the journey, you can travel from Escárcega towards Palenque using two different routes: Crucero de Playa or Emiliano Zapata.
We chose to go through Emiliano Zapata because we thought it would be more convenient. It is the first stop along the route towards Palenque, so we figured it would make the connection easier.
We paid for the AU bus directly on the bus using our AhorroBus card, which made the process quick and easy.
3. Emiliano Zapata to Palenque
CHECK OUT LOCAL MINIBUS
This part of the journey it is a small local minibus connecting Emiliano Zapata with Palenque.
There are different services and departure times from the ADO station. We bought our ticket just 5 minutes before leaving and chose the local minibus (instead of ADO) because it was the cheaper option.
Don’t assume you need to take an ADO bus or minivan just because you arrive at an ADO station. We recommend asking about the next departures and prices, as the options can vary. So it’s worth checking all the options before buying your ticket.
4. Palenque to San Cristóbal de las Casas
CHECK OUT LOCAL COLECTIVO
This part of the journey is not ADO.
We took the first colectivo of the day, leaving very early in the morning at around 5:00 AM and passing through Ocosingo on the way to San Cristóbal de las Casas.
We recommend paying and reserving your seat in advance. The vans are very small and fill up quickly. If you arrive without a reservation, you may have to wait another 1–2 hours for the next colectivo, and there are only 4 services a day (with this company). The back seats are also incredibly tight, so we definitely wouldn’t recommend leaving it until the last minute.
SUMMARY TABLE & PRICES
| Route | Transport | Departure | Duration | Cost (MXN) | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bacalar → Escárcega | Tren Maya | Tren Maya station | 4h | 696 | Book in advance and check current offers |
| Escárcega → Emiliano Zapata | AU travel | Central del Sur | 3h | 200 | Pay onboard or at the ticket counter. AhorroBus accepted |
| Emiliano Zapata → Palenque | Colectivo local | Terminal De Autobuses | 1h 30min | 55 | Compare fares and options on arrival |
| Palenque → San Cristóbal de las Casas | Colectivo local | Brisas de Agua Azul | 5h 30min | 250 | Check departure times the day before. Book in advance |
📍 Click any departure location to open it in Google Maps. $ Prices shown are one way, per person.
Budget
* 7 Nights · 8 Days · 2 People
| Category | Total in AUD | Per Day (AUD) | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 🛏 Accommodation | 237 | 34 | Hotels |
| 🚌 Transport | 197 | 25 | Tren Maya, buses & colectivos |
| 🍽 Restaurants | 212 | 27 | Mostly local food |
| 🛒 Groceries | 30 | 4 | Varies |
| 🎟 Attractions | 70 | 9 | Sumidero Canyon |
| 🧺 Extras | 8 | 1 | Laundry, pharmacy & misc. |
| Total | 754 AUD | 94 AUD |
* Accommodation is calculated per night, while the other categories are calculated per day. All prices are approximate.
GO BACK TO
&
CONTINUE READING
PALENQUE
GUIDE
SAN CRISTÓBAL DE LAS CASAS
GUIDE
CHIAPA DE CORZO
GUIDE