Must-see attractions in Chiapas

Ancient Palenque stands at the precise point where the first hills rise out of the Gulf coast plain, and the dense jungle covering these hills forms an…

Jungle-shrouded Yaxchilán has a wonderfully atmospheric setting above a horseshoe loop in the Río Usumacinta. The control this location gave it over river…

As you walk in from the entrance the vegetation suddenly peels away to reveal many of Palenque’s most magnificent buildings in one sublime vista. A line…

Perhaps the most celebrated burial monument in the Americas, this is the tallest and most stately of Palenque’s buildings. Constructed on eight levels,…

The towering ceremonial core of Toniná, overlooking a pastoral valley 14km east of Ocosingo, is one of the most spectacular archaeological sites in…

With a dearth of other tourists, this is one of those magical archaeological sites where the sense of wild atmosphere is as enthralling as the stories…

Believed to be the regional capital of the Zoque during the Classic period, these ruins were inhabited between AD 250 and AD 400. The site's most…

An atmospheric museum-research center, Na Bolom for many years was the home of Swiss anthropologist and photographer Gertrude Duby-Blom (Trudy Blom; 1901…

To take your evening paseo (stroll) with the locals, stop by this leafy plaza, just eight blocks west of Plaza Cívica. The whole city seems to turn out…

Standing beside the main plaza, Chamula’s main church is a ghostly white, with a vividly painted arch of green and blue. Inside the darkened sanctuary,…

Chiapas, with its huge range of natural environments, has the highest concentration of animal species in North America, including several varieties of big…

The lush oasis of the Jardín Botánico Dr Faustino Miranda is a gorgeous place to visit, as well as being a nice respite from the city heat. The collection…

These mighty waterfalls tumble 120m off the edge of an escarpment 20km southwest of Comitán. In a region with a surfeit of impressive waterfalls, these…

Located just north of the center of town, the imposing 16th-century Templo de Santo Domingo is San Cristóbal’s most beautiful church, especially when its…

A lovely water feature tucked 10km off the highway, where two rivers cascade dramatically from a high point of 35m and you can swim in clear blue water…

These sprawling Maya ruins feature three ball courts, a 20m tiered pyramid and other structures rising from a wooded hillside. Tenam Puente was one of a…

Thirty kilometers from Palenque, these 25m-high curtains of water aren't the most dramatic water features in the area, but the turquoise river pools make…

Although this excellent museum is very small it's crammed with treasures from the area’s many archaeological sites (Spanish signage only). It's arranged…

The story behind this extraordinary collection – that's overseen by an even more extraordinary person, Don Sergio – is as interesting as the museum itself…

The remote Maya jungle ruins of Bonampak are spread over 2.4 sq km, but all the main ruins stand around the rectangular Gran Plaza. Never a major city,…