My time in San Miguel and Guanajuato happened to be my last week in Mexico after 4.5 months. I didn’t plan to say goodbye so soon or so suddenly. But, the luxury of my current nomadic lifestyle is being able to go where ever, at the drop of a hat.

While I was sad to leave Mexico after a better 20 weeks than I could ever have imagined, the last week was as action-packed as the last 19! Seeing Mexico off in style…

San Miguel de Allende

The journey to San Miguel was a luxurious albeit slow one. Apparently, we had discovered the business class of buses – reclining seats, leg supports, individual TVs, chunky dividing armrests – the works. Which was nice since the journey ended up taking over 6 hours due to an overturned concrete lorry.

San Miguel de Allende is a city strangely popular with North American ex-pats. This is, even though it’s in the middle of nowhere – hours from both Mexico City and Guadalajara. As a result, there’s a much more western feel to the town. Along with a large collection of bars, restaurants and cafes to suit the demographic.

My two full days in San Miguel were spent exploring the city from the botanical gardens – home to the largest collection of cacti I’ve ever seen – to taking lots of photos of the cinderella-esque church in the centre. But, largely there isn’t much to do unless you want to take a costly taxi out to some hot springs or ruins.

To be honest, I don’t get the hype about San Miguel. Sure, it’s pretty. But, it feels very superficial – almost as if it’s been made to look rustic and colonial, like a film set. San Miguel isn’t anything special. There’s plenty of other pretty towns. There’s also plenty more towns with lots of activities to do too. Spend a day, two at max, then move on.

DETAILED POST > > > Visit the Mirador of San Miguel de Allende for City Views

Guanajuato City

After San Miguel, I travelled a couple of hours further northwest to the capital of the state of Guanajuato – Guanajuato City. A town that, in my opinion, is prettier and cooler than San Miguel. With its colourful buildings climbing the sides of the hills, Guanajuato is just beautiful.

The first day was spent exploring the city, visiting rooftop bars and being mesmerised by the colours all around! For just a few pesos you can ride the funicular up to the city’s best viewpoint.

DETAILED POST > > > Ride the Guanajuato Funicular for the City’s Best Views

Climbing Cerro de la Bufa – a nearby rock formation – with panoramic views of Guanajuato was next up on the agenda. The information I’d gathered online was that this was about a one-hour walk from the centre of the city. But, it soon became clear that instead, it was a one-hour walk to the start of the trail.

The route up was mostly flat until the last section, which required the use of all 4 limbs to lift myself up rocks that were quickly increasing in size. Fortunately, the view from the top was more than worth it! Despite being early October, the temperature was still in the mid-twenties. And you could sit for hours enjoying the view of the city. Especially, since this seems to be very off-the-beaten tourist path and the whole time we were the only people at the top!

The way back down should have been quick and simple. Once we were down the near-vertical rocky section, it’s pretty much a flat path all the way back to the road. But, Adam had other ideas and wanted us to take a shortcut – we’d not taken this route up as reviews had said it was steeper. And, steeper it was indeed – as well as being very loose gravel-like rock. The kind that I hate walking down.

It was a disaster. Aside from walking very cautiously and slowly, I also went flying 3 times. Which, resulted in my hands and bum being cut to pieces and full of dirt and rock. After a lot of tears, the day ended with me having to perform minor surgery on myself with tweezers, a safety pin and an antiseptic wipe to remove the debris implanted in the palms of my hands!

Goodbye Mexico!

After Cerro de la Bufa, we had one more full day in Guanajuato. A day of rest and recovery – and to cement our plan to travel to Guadalajara by booking travel and accommodation. At this point, we planned to spend roughly one more week in Mexico and then fly to the USA.

As we sat down to book the next leg of our journey, it was quickly clear that neither of us were that excited for Guadalajara. We were ready for something entirely new. Plus, when we looked at flights to the USA – the cheapest ones were either the next day or in a weeks’ time. And, considering we spend about £70 a day (£350 a week) in Mexico the cost of staying adds up pretty quickly.

So, by cutting our time in Mexico short by one week we were effectively saving money. Our next issue was whether it would even be possible to get to Mexico City – and get a COVID test – in the next 27 hours. Guanajuato is at least 5 hours by road, and after our delays reaching San Miguel, we were apprehensive about missing our flight due to traffic. Unsure what to do, we took the decision out of our hands and used a random answer generator.

Guadalajara or the USA. The app said the USA.

With our chill day now aborted, we had a lot to do. To make it to Mexico City with a good cushion, we were getting a night bus at midnight. We needed to pack up our bags ready to fly – liquids organised, electricals charged, and everything we needed in the next 24 hours easily accessible.

We arrived in Mexico City at just after 5am. I’ve never got the first tube of the day before but I came here for new experiences right?! With our bags in storage lockers in the airport, we set out in search of a cheap COVID test. Which, was more difficult than expected! But, finally at 9am we had an appointment – my first ever COVID test – and someone else would be doing the swab holding, unlike in the UK. Luckily, it was negative – I was so relieved! All that stood between us and the USA now was several hours of waiting and a 5-hour flight!

Fresh off of my 7-hour overnight bus ride from Chetumal, I arrived in the Jungle town of Palenque at 9am. With just 36 hours until I got my next night bus to San Cristobal de las Casas, I knew it would be a busy couple of days.

Palenque

Palenque is a small city in the southern state of Chiapas. The city is most famous for being home to the ruins of the ancient Mayan city. Additionally, with the surrounding jungle, there are many day trips you can take to explore waterfalls and nature. And, this is exactly what I did.

Day 1: Waterfalls

After arriving in Palenque at 9am, I’d booked a tour to visit two waterfalls by 10am, and was picked up and out for the day by midday. On very little sleep, I should add. The first waterfall I visited was called Misol-Ha and it was definitely one of the most impressive I’ve seen.

You could view the waterfall from across the plunge pool but there was also a path taking you behind the waterfall. And, in the midday heat of the jungle, the mist from the waterfall was glorious! After spending about 40 minutes enjoying the view and taking lots of photographs, I headed off to the next waterfall of the day – Agua Azul.

Unfortunately, the road from Misol-Ha to Agua Azul was brutal. The narrow road snaked its way into higher and higher altitudes and round lots of bends. But, the worst part was the constant speed bumps! Mexico has so many and they’re everywhere. Not only that but they aren’t smooth half-cylinder shapes. Some are literal metal spheres stuck in the road, but most commonly they are just uneven mounds of concrete. Even on windy, uphill, jungle roads. Even on motorways. EVERYWHERE. They’re so rough that vehicles have to come to pretty much a complete stop, but being sat in the back of a people carrier, I still had my head smacked into the roof on more than one occasion!

Luckily, the waterfalls at Agua Azul were worth the journey! Although the rainy season had discoloured the usually bright blue water, the waterfalls seemed to go on forever. There were so many levels and eventually I made it to the highest lookout point for amazing views over the falls and the jungle. An exhausting but wonderful day!

Day 2: Ruins + Football

The ruins in Palenque date back to between 226 BC and 799 AD. In the 1200 years or so since the dense jungle has completely overgrown the buildings. But, in recent years, excavation has started to expose and preserve these. It is estimated that just 10% of the total Mayan site has been excavated!

I was up bright and early to catch the collectivo to the ruins. Not just to beat the crowds but to ensure I was back in time to watch England-Ukraine at 2pm. Most of the ruins I had visited in Mexico so far were well-excavated and the sites were flat and generally had all trees around the ruins removed. But, Palenque was a much more rustic site, with steep jungle-covered hills rising high behind the ruins. While I definitely preferred the ruins at Uxmal that I’d visited whilst in Merida, there’s a charm to the almost hidden ruins at Palenque.

The final order of business before leaving for San Cristobal was to find somewhere to watch England vs Ukraine in the Euros quarter-finals. As luck would have it, the place I had stopped for lunchtime pizza also had a big screen and were showing the game. Albeit, with Spanish commentary. The bar was, however, the hottest place I have been to in Mexico! The outside real-feel temperature was 41 Celsius and this bar had about 2 wall fans. Nevertheless, by the time the 4th goal went in we (me, Adam and 3 other English people we met) were ordering celebratory tequila shots! A successful 36 hours in the jungle!

San Cristobal de las Casas

Arriving in San Cristobal was a shock to the system. The 10-hour night bus had been stopped three times. First by immigration officers wanting to see passports and visas for anyone foreign-looking. And then twice by police searching the luggage compartment. Plus, at 7am it was just 11 Celsius – I quickly put on as many clothes as possible!

The city of San Cristobal sits at 2200 metres above sea level. And, in summer, the climate is perfect for a pale-skinned girl like me! Every day the high temperature was around 25 Celsius, although at night it does get cold. I spent the second day battling an altitude headache. A headache which the NHS website kindly told me people don’t get below 2500 metres. I’ve spent my whole life at sea level, ok, give a girl a break!

What I did in San Cristobal

I ended up spending nearly a month in San Cristobal. This was in part due to the milder climate and low cost of living, as well as the many activities available. I could write a whole blog post on each of the things I did. But, to not bore you all, here they are in summary form.

Spanish School

I did two weeks’ worth of Spanish lessons while in San Cristobal. These were 3 hours a day (half conversation, half grammar), for 5 days a week. Not only is learning Spanish essential for the rest of my time in Central and South America, but the lessons were just £5 an hour each, with just Adam and me in the class.

Over the two weeks, I learnt several tenses and lots of vocabulary. I’ll definitely be stopping for more Spanish lessons in future. It’s already made a difference to being able to order things and get by.

Explore the City

The city sprawls across a valley floor, with the edges of the town climbing up the mountainsides. There’s a lot of variety in what you can do in San Cristobal, from museums to eco-parks, wine drinking to hiking.

My first highlight was visiting El Arcotete Ecopark. Here, I was able to explore caves and walk along rivers and up to viewpoints. Entry was just 10 pesos (about £0.35), so for that entry price alone, it was worth having a few hours out of the city.

My second highlight was exploring the streets of the city, these are lined with bars, restaurants and shops providing everything you need. Plus, there are two churches you can climb up (many) steps to, for epic viewpoints over the city. A notable mention must also go to the wine bar that had £1 glasses of wine that each came with a free plate of tapas!

Saving the best to last, my final highlight of the city was the mountainside viewpoint about 300 metres higher elevation above the city. The walk to get there is strenuous – it’s about an hour across the flat of the city before spending another hour climbing very steeply uphill. But, oh my was it worth it!

Sumidero Canyon

This was high on my must-visit list and it did not disappoint! By going with a tour, the day included a 2-hour boat ride through the magnificent canyon, followed by visiting 3 viewpoints at the top of the canyon and finishing with a visit to a nearby town for food.

The canyon was incredibly beautiful and no photo can do it justice. The canyon walls are up to 1 kilometre high in places, plus, there are waterfalls and wildlife to enjoy! The viewpoints were equally as stunning. The boats in the canyon looked as small as aeroplanes at 38,000 feet do from the Earth! If you’re ever in this part of the world, this is an absolute must.

San Juan Chamula

Just outside of San Cristobal is the autonomous town of San Juan Chamula. The town is famous for just one thing – a Catholic-Indigenous mix church, where people sacrifice chickens.

It is a church unlike any other you have seen. Inside, there are no rows of seats, there’s no resident priest, no aisle. Rather, around the outside are statues of many Catholic saints. In front of them, people light candles to the saint of what they are praying for. The floor is covered in pine leaves with people kneeling, lighting rows of candles, performing rituals and praying to their God. Inside, there are 1000s of candles alight at any one time. The place has a total magical charm and no religious beliefs are needed to appreciate the wonder of that.

El Chiflon

One of my last day trips in San Cristobal was to the truly magnificent El Chiflon waterfalls. Requiring a two-hour bus ride to Comitan and then a 45-minute collectivo to the entrance, this was a marathon of a day. The park has five waterfalls and you walk gradually uphill past the different waterfalls. The first couple of waterfalls were nice, but nothing could have prepared me for the size and majesty of the main waterfall – Cascada Velo de Novia. Can you spot me in the photo? I was busy getting a shower from the waterfall spray!

> > > RELATED POST: EPIC WATERFALLS AT CASCADAS EL CHIFLON

Cost of living in San Cristobal

In total, Adam and I spent 26 days in San Cristobal. Our average daily spend was just £62.70 (so £31.35 each) for everything. Travel & gadget insurance, Netflix, Spotify, Audible, food, drink, tours, laundry, phone data, Spanish school and accommodation. As well as a few new items of clothing for the cooler climate in San Cristobal.

We mostly stayed in a private room in a hostel (470 to 590 pesos [£17-£21.50] a night) but also treated ourselves to two slightly more expensive stays in an Airbnb (£40 a night) and hotel (£28 a night). One of the best perks of the hostel was that it included breakfast AND dinner in the price, so we only had to buy lunch and snacks each day.

San Cristobal is such a cheap place to live and is great for budget backpackers. It’s easy to see now why so many people come planning on staying a few days and are still here a few weeks later!

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After San Cristobal, it was another night bus, this time to the town of Puerto Escondido on the Pacific coast. Stay tuned for how that turns out!