9 days · Highlands + Southeast + Palenque

9 daysBalanced pacedistance-checked ✓ · updated Jul 3, 2026

1
San Cristóbal de las Casas
3 nights · Acclimatize, markets, Chamula day trip.
Days 1–3
🚌 1.5h — San Cristóbal down to Comitán.
2
Comitán de Domínguez
2 nights · Base for the Montebello lakes and El Chiflón.
Days 4–5
🚗 1.5h — Comitán out to the Montebello lakes.
3
Lagos de Montebello
0 nights · Full day among the colored lakes.
Day 6
🚗 6h — Back through San Cristóbal and down to Palenque — a full travel day.
4
Palenque
2 nights · Long haul north to the ruins and jungle.
Days 7–8
Reality check: The Montebello-to-Palenque leg is the longest in the region and mostly retraces your path — build in a full day for it and don't schedule anything the evening you arrive.
By Diego RamírezBased in San Cristóbal de las Casas, Chiapas · updated Jul 3, 2026

Is Chiapas safe to travel like this? Broadly yes, for the tourist route between San Cristóbal, Comitán, the lakes, and Palenque. The wrinkle is the roads. Some highways have community-run toll ropes, and occasional protests or blockades can stall traffic for hours with no warning. That’s not danger, it’s delay. Travel by day, keep your plans loose, and you’re fine.

Days 1–3: San Cristóbal de las Casas

Start here and let the altitude settle. San Cristóbal sits around 2,200 meters, so give yourself the first day to just walk the pedestrian streets, drink coffee, and not overdo it. The markets are the point. Take a day trip to San Juan Chamula and its church, where the ritual practice mixes Catholic and Maya elements. Go with a local guide who can explain the rules, and never photograph inside the church. People take that seriously and so should you.

Days 4–5: Comitán and the lakes

Drop down to Comitán by bus, an easy ride and a warmer, less touristed town that most people skip. Use it as your base. One day goes to the Lagos de Montebello, dozens of lakes in shifting greens and blues near the Guatemala border. Another can take in El Chiflón, a set of waterfalls with a turquoise pool at the bottom. Comitán itself deserves an evening walk around its plaza.

Days 6–9: the long haul to Palenque

Here’s what a friend who lives here would tell you: don’t book anything for the evening you reach Palenque. The drive north is about six hours, retraces much of your route through San Cristóbal, and winds through the mountains before dropping into humid jungle. Leave at dawn. Once you’re there, the ruins are the reward, best entered early when the howler monkeys are loud and the heat hasn’t peaked. Save Agua Azul or Misol-Ha for your second day, then fly out or push on rested rather than wrecked.