I’m a bit confused why more people aren’t adding the city of Comitan to their Mexico itinerary – but their loss is my gain!
Comitan is a Pueblo Magico city located around 2 hours South of the very popular San Cristobal de las Casas in Chiapas. It’s within a 1 hour drive of both the popular sites of El Chiflon waterfalls and Lagunas de Montebello but yet it’s somehow stayed off of the backpacker trail – I saw zero other tourists during my 2 night stay in the city!
Most travellers tend to visit the waterfalls and the lakes on a longgggg (but cheap) day trip from San Cristobal. However, the idea of sitting on a bus for longer than exploring the sites didn’t float my boat so I looked for an alternative. A couple of nights stay in Comitan seemed like the perfect solution!
If you’d also like to visit these spots without a tour, keep reading! I’ve included everything you need to know about how to get to each place and how much it’ll cost.
How to get to Comitan from San Cristobal de las Casas?
You can get an ADO or OCC bus from San Cristobal de las Casas bus station to Comitan. Buses run roughly every hour (check the ADO website or App to confirm times), take around 2 – 2 1/2 hours and cost 72 MXN (approx ยฃ3.30) each way.
Where to stay in Comitan?
As I mentioned, Comitan isn’t built up for tourism at all, so there are no hostels. Nonetheless, there are lots of different hotels to choose from for varying budgets – I managed to bag myself a private room in a hotel for less than any hostel I’d stayed at in Mexico!
I stayed at Hotel Clasico Colonial for 211 MXN (ยฃ9.80) per night. It was very basic but it’s in an excellent location (1 block from the main square) and my room had an en suite. There’s no kitchen or drinking water available but it did the job for a couple of nights!
Where to eat in Comitan?
If you’re looking for a cheap bite to eat, there are loads of street stall stands scattered around the main square of the city offering up Mexican classics as well as, a few local Comitan dishes. One of these is cascara preparada (pictured above) – a giant wheat puff topped with corn, shredded carrot, cucumber, sour cream, cheese and salsa.
Alternatively, if you’d rather a sit down restaurant experience, try Ta Bonita (there’s also a cheaper taqueria attached to this restaurant), Tatalampo or Restaurante Doรฑa Chelo.
How to get to the El Chiflon waterfalls from Comitan?
Getting to El Chiflon waterfalls is super easy. Head to the main road where the ADO/OCC bus stop is and you’ll find loads of tour agencies offering collectivos to El Chiflon. When I went (Marchย 2023) a ticket was 40 MXN each way and the journey took around 1 hour.
The collectivo will drop you off on the main road, so you’ll need to walk for 10/15 minutes to the main entrance or take a tuk tuk. On the way, you’ll come across the main entrance where you need to buy your ticket (80 MXN) and then a further 5 minutes walk you’ll spot the museum, toilets and shops.
The entrance to the waterfalls feels a bit like a theme park but once you’re in and lay your eyes on the silky turquoise water of the waterfalls, you will not regret your visit. There’s a very clear path from the entrance, which leads you to alongside all of the waterfalls until you reach the big finale – Cascada Velo de Novia. There are a couple of more viewpoints you can go to from here but I personally didn’t think they were worth the extra incline and sweat.
Instead, head back down to your favourite waterfall, whack out your book and a picnic lunch and just relax and soak up the oasis of El Chiflon. There are also a few spots where you can swim a bit closer to the entrance.
To return to Comitan, you will need to go back to where you were dropped off and stand on the other side of the road to flag a collectivo. I only had to wait 10/15ย mins until one arrived.
How to get to Lagunas de Montebello from Comitan?
Getting to Lagunas de Montobello is just as simple as it is to get to El Chiflon.
You can get a 1 hour collectivo from here and just let them know which lake you’d like to be dropped off at. I opted for Laguna Pojoj as I wanted to do the Sendero El Perol hike, which takes you through the forest to a number of INCREDIBLE viewpoints of the lakes. You have to pay 30 MXN to enter the area and it takes around 1 1/2 hours each way to complete the walk with stops.
I honestly can’t recommend this hike enough. I didn’t see a single other person during, which meant I had each viewpoint and the end point (a lil patch of grass by the river) all to myself and it’s not too hard considering how high up you go.
After I finished the hike I went to view Laguna Pojoj from the main entrance. This is where the tour buses tend to go so it is a lot more commercialised and I couldn’t help but feel a lil’ bit smug about the incredible experience and views I’d just experienced on my own.
When you’re ready to head home, go back to the road and flag a collectivo going to Comitan. I only had to wait 5 minutes until one went by. I paid 70 MXN to get to the lagoon but 55 MXN to get back. I’m not sure whether this was to do with the quality of bus or where I was picked up/dropped off but it’s worth noting the price may vary.
Taking a long weekend trip to visit the El Chiflon Waterfalls and Lagunas de Montebello from San Cristobal de las Casas was definitely a highlight of my time in Mexico and I would 100% recommend visiting them from Comitan rather than on a long day trip.
