# San Cristobal - wondering



## ElPocho (Aug 25, 2017)

Our dear member Citalis has really got me thinking about San Cristobal. I heard really nice things about the area about 40 years ago. I did briefly look into it before considering the Merida area. Anyway it might work for me if it's accessible for visitors (my sons and friends) from the USA. 

How does someone fly in from the USA? How expensive are the flights? 

thanks!


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## AnneLM (Aug 16, 2016)

It is not very accessible compared to many other points in Mexico. We flew from Chicago to Mexico City on United, stayed overnight with a friend in Mexico City, then flew to Tuxtla Gutierrez on Interjet the next day, then took a taxi to SCLC. We did it like this as two separate itineraries because connecting flights all theway to Tuxtla are not conveniently timed. Our daughter did do the trip all in one very long day, not getting into Tuxtla until late at night. Fortunately she had someone meet her at the airport. You can look up the fare using travelocity.


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## TundraGreen (Jul 15, 2010)

ElPocho said:


> Our dear member Citalis has really got me thinking about San Cristobal. I heard really nice things about the area about 40 years ago. I did briefly look into it before considering the Merida area. Anyway it might work for me if it's accessible for visitors (my sons and friends) from the USA.
> 
> How does someone fly in from the USA? How expensive are the flights?
> 
> thanks!


The climates of San Cristobal and Merida are about as different as one could imagine.


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## TurtleToo (Aug 23, 2013)

> How does someone fly in from the USA? How expensive are the flights?


There are often very inexpensive flights from the US to Cancun. From there you can fly to Tuxtla Gutierrez, or take a bus. Sometimes flights to Cancun are quite a bit less than to Mexico City, but not always. I'd check both and compare, as well as comparing the convenience of the connection. Either way you will end up in Tuxtla G, and have to get a taxi, bus, or perhaps a shuttle to San Cristobal. 

.


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## shomer (Jul 7, 2014)

There's a lot to like about San Cristóbal. I spend about 3 months there each year, mostly in the "dry" months in late Fall to early Spring. It seems as though a lot of expat retirees who move there don't "stick," though. The very cold winters (it dips down to freezing overnight occasionally) and very rainy Spring-Fall don't appeal to everyone. I've found the expat retiree community to be a bit insular; that could just be me, or my being 10-20 years younger than the typical retiree, but I've heard others make similar comments. There's a growing community of younger and middle-aged expat entrepreneurs and creative folks, from Europe, Argentina, and the USA -- not at all standoffish, in my experience. Added to the longstanding community of Mexicans from all over the country who are involved in the arts or social justice work, it makes for an interesting mix. The city center is gentrifying fast, for better or worse. 

It can be inconvenient to get there from the USA inexpensively in a single day's flying, especially if you want to book all of your flights on the same itinerary. Do try looking for cheap flights to Cancun or Merida instead of flying through Mexico City, as Turtle suggested. From either of those cities, there are very limited flights to Tuxtla Gutierrez on regional airlines. A bus from Cancun is something like 16 hours: not much fun, and not all that much cheaper than flying.


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## chicois8 (Aug 8, 2009)

TurtleToo said:


> There are often very inexpensive flights from the US to Cancun. From there you can fly to Tuxtla Gutierrez, or take a bus.


The bus sounds like fun, Cancun to San Cristobal = 21 to 22 hour trip........


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## TurtleToo (Aug 23, 2013)

chicois8 said:


> The bus sounds like fun, Cancun to San Cristobal = 21 to 22 hour trip........


Not quite that long, if I rember correctly, but long enough that I'm sure you meant this as a sarcastic comment! I mentioned the bus only because I considered it myself, as a way to get a feel for the country between the coast and San Cristobal. In the end, I didn't do it, for the very reason you made the comment! Too long a trip following a (for me) 8-hour flight.

And Shomer is right about the cost--it wasn't much less than flying. 
.


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## citlali (Mar 4, 2013)

I would never recommend to bus it from Cancun when they are cheap flights to Tuxtla from there.
I live part of the year in Guadalajara and it is a 2 h flight from Guadalajara direct without going through Mexico..I know nothing about connection to the States as I have never gone from the States to San Cristobal-
The climate is tough it changes many times in one day so it is a little rough on the system, you can wake up to fog then have sun then rain then cold all in one day..
December and January are cold so is november.. It can rain any time during the year but Feb march april are on the dry side.. Many people get sick in April when the wind blows.. I suspect some kind of gastro something being carried by the wind.. Summers can be very nice or very rainy .. The weather can be wonderful and awful all in the same month.
I have a comfortable house in the center with heaters and a fireplace so it is always comfortable for me but the houses in general are damp. cold and dark.
As an earlier post says there are lots of interesting people in town. artists, crazies, póets, writers human right defenders , linguists etc etc.. The Coletos ( people from San Cristobal ) are nice but it is very difficult to be accepted meanwhile it is easy to make friends with people from Mexico city, Vera Cruz and other areas, The Tuxtla people are in general friendlier as well.
The city lacks parks to walk in and the sidewalks are dangerous, very slippery..They are some great food markets. lots of restaurants, mostly touristy ones and the Mexican food is way better in Tuxtla.
There are lots of young people from all over the place and not many Us expats, the common language is Spanish.
Getting from the Tuxtla airport to San Cristobal is a pain.. it is one and a half hour from San Cristobal cabs run 800 pesos, You can take a cab to a terminal for colectivos in Tuxtla and then a van to San Cristobal.. sometimes you get lucky and there is a bus or a tour company that will take you there but all in all not the easiest thing if you do not speak Spanish.
There is also a lot of unrest in the state and a roads get blocked a lot so if you need to get anywhere you need to be aware of what is going on and be flexible..
I think that in the last 2 months I have been working in Amatenango I had about 20 or 25 bloqueos and once I had to spend the night where I was as I had no way to get back.. flexibility if you travel around the state especially in the highlands is a must.
I live down here about 8 months of the year and I enjoy it but the weather and the bloqueos can get old..


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## Isla Verde (Oct 19, 2011)

chicois8 said:


> The bus sounds like fun, Cancun to San Cristobal = 21 to 22 hour trip........


You have an odd sense of humor, sarcasm at its best!


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## citlali (Mar 4, 2013)

yes it takes almost 24 h , a friend of mine from San Cristobal just did it...it is awful


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## TundraGreen (Jul 15, 2010)

citlali said:


> yes it takes almost 24 h , a friend of mine from San Cristobal just did it...it is awful


I've taken lots of 20-30 hour bus trips (Guadalajara-Tijuana, Guadalajara-Ciudad Juarez). I find them to be very relaxing. The luxury buses have plenty of room to stretch out, you can read, look at the scenery, nap. They stop frequently to use a restroom and get something to eat. It is about the only time in my life when I have a whole day free with no obligations and nothing to do but relax. Maybe it has to do with attitude.


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## chicois8 (Aug 8, 2009)

TurtleToo said:


> Not quite that long, if I rember correctly,


I do not know what bus you took but the ADO website states 21.5 hours for 1 bus and 22 hours for another.......

The longest bus ride I have ever been on was Acayucan, Veracruz to Merida, Yucatan and it was a night bus, took 14 hours, I remember being woken to the sound of screeching brakes, looked out through the front window and saw the biggest Brahma Bull lying on the road way....That was a trip to remember, 20 years old and 1967, first solo trip through Mexico and Guatemala.......


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## ElPocho (Aug 25, 2017)

AnneLM said:


> It is not very accessible compared to many other points in Mexico. We flew from Chicago to Mexico City on United, stayed overnight with a friend in Mexico City, then flew to Tuxtla Gutierrez on Interjet the next day, then took a taxi to SCLC. We did it like this as two separate itineraries because connecting flights all theway to Tuxtla are not conveniently timed. Our daughter did do the trip all in one very long day, not getting into Tuxtla until late at night. Fortunately she had someone meet her at the airport. You can look up the fare using travelocity.


Thanks! 
This is helpful.


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## ElPocho (Aug 25, 2017)

TundraGreen said:


> The climates of San Cristobal and Merida are about as different as one could imagine.


Yes, San Cristobal is about as high up as CDMX, so I expect it to be similar to the difference between CDMX and Acapulco, with the exception that Merida is hotter and more humid than Acapulco and San Cristobal seems to always rain and have fog where CDMX there is a rainy season.

I'm still going to check out merida, but now that I've read more about San Cristobal it seems viable. The transportation by air seems to be a factor.


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## ElPocho (Aug 25, 2017)

citlali said:


> I.
> I live down here about 8 months of the year and I enjoy it but the weather and the bloqueos can get old..


Are the retenes military, judicial or state police?


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## citlali (Mar 4, 2013)

no maestros, zapatistas, transport , taxis.. one village fighting the other, one group taking over a place etc.. a little bit of everything.. There are police and migration retenes but those are no problem especially if you look foreign. I commute everyday right now and the cops stop my car to shake my hand and say hello and that is about it from them


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## costaricamex (Jul 7, 2017)

Not sure if anyone knows Comitan a bit south of San Cristobal? I went last year and really liked it. Nice sized city with plenty of shopping and nice zocalo. 
Small town feeling but good sized city.

I went in february and was lucky to see their festival with parade. Was very fun. 

Probably very very few expats if any but also warmer I think than San Cristobal. Which was freezing in February.


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## Isla Verde (Oct 19, 2011)

TundraGreen said:


> I've taken lots of 20-30 hour bus trips (Guadalajara-Tijuana, Guadalajara-Ciudad Juarez). I find them to be very relaxing. The luxury buses have plenty of room to stretch out, you can read, look at the scenery, nap. They stop frequently to use a restroom and get something to eat. It is about the only time in my life when I have a whole day free with no obligations and nothing to do but relax. Maybe it has to do with attitude.


Better you than me! I prefer to do my relaxing at home..


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## citlali (Mar 4, 2013)

My friend is 46 and in shape he came back wiped out from that wonderful bus ride which is not first class on ADO.. I have taken many long bus ride and they wipe me out especially the overnight ones and many of the artisans I know have to take the long busride overnight and I do not know one of them who would not take the plane.. but as they are pretty bad at planning trips they always do things at the last minute and end up on the overnight buses..


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## citlali (Mar 4, 2013)

Comitan is a pueblo magico , and a colonial town, it is a nice town but is close to the border and gangs from central America are beginning to show up.
It is a prosperous town with few expats, and as the municipio borders Guatemala foreigners cannot own rightout.
The climate is better than that of San Cristobal as it is at a lower elevation and the countryside around is very nice.. 
The airport of Tuxtla is 3 o 4 hours away and as there are lots of bloqueos in Chiapas you never know when you can get through for sure.. Today we are having a bloqueo in Chiapa de Corzo and in Comitan between 8 am and 3 pm another day it is longer atc.. so it is not the ideal place to have visitors showing up..
There is not a whole lot going on there but for people who do not want to live around expat it is fine as long as you speak Spanish or Tojolabal..


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## TundraGreen (Jul 15, 2010)

citlali said:


> My friend is 46 and in shape he came back wiped out from that wonderful bus ride which is not first class on ADO.. I have taken many long bus ride and they wipe me out especially the overnight ones and many of the artisans I know have to take the long busride overnight and I do not know one of them who would not take the plane.. but as they are pretty bad at planning trips they always do things at the last minute and end up on the overnight buses..


I have taken overnight buses in the US (El Paso to Denver). They are like 2nd class buses in Mexico and are awful. It is a different world from the luxury buses in Mexico.


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## horseshoe846 (Feb 8, 2017)

TundraGreen said:


> I have taken overnight buses in the US (El Paso to Denver). They are like 2nd class buses in Mexico and are awful. It is a different world from the luxury buses in Mexico.


I remember this topic from the past. This week we were on (what for us) were two nice 'executive' buses. There are bathrooms in the back and they show movies. For an hour and a half trip into CDMX (for 65 pesos w/ INAPAM) that is plenty good enough for us. At one point you posted a link to one of the 'luxury' buses you ride. Could you possibly re-post a link to such a bus. They did look first-class...


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## TundraGreen (Jul 15, 2010)

horseshoe846 said:


> I remember this topic from the past. This week we were on (what for us) were two nice 'executive' buses. There are bathrooms in the back and they show movies. For an hour and a half trip into CDMX (for 65 pesos w/ INAPAM) that is plenty good enough for us. At one point you posted a link to one of the 'luxury' buses you ride. Could you possibly re-post a link to such a bus. They did look first-class...


ETN, TAP, Primera Plus, Omnibus de Mexico all run luxury buses. They usually have some designator for their luxury buses which are a step up from the regular 1st class buses. For example, I think TAP calls them TAP Conforte. ETN only runs the luxury class buses. I think it is the only one that has three across seating instead of four across. They are my first choice but they don't travel all routes. On all of the lines the luxury class costs more than the regular first class, but if you have a senior citizen card (INAPAM), the difference is not very great and well worth it. ETN's web site is https://etn.com.mx.


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## citlali (Mar 4, 2013)

yes I know , etn has double deckers and if you get the downstairs with a couple of friend it is like having your own living room with bathroom and coffee machine, I still get backaches on long hauls with those...I hate sleeping on a bus no matter how "comfortable" .. they are.. As long as I am not lying down I get back problems.


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## TundraGreen (Jul 15, 2010)

citlali said:


> yes I know , etn has double deckers and if you get the downstairs with a couple of friend it is like having your own living room with bathroom and coffee machine, I still get backaches on long hauls with those...I hate sleeping on a bus no matter how "comfortable" .. they are.. As long as I am not lying down I get back problems.


I sympathize. I am lucky in that the bus seats don't bother me. And I can sleep anywhere. Car seats are another matter. I cannot spend more than an hour in a car without getting a pain in my lower back. I like the seats in front on the upper level of the double deckers. You have a panoramic view of the scenery.


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## TurtleToo (Aug 23, 2013)

TundraGreen said:


> I sympathize. I am lucky in that the bus seats don't bother me. And I can sleep anywhere. Car seats are another matter. I cannot spend more than an hour in a car without getting a pain in my lower back. I like the seats in front on the upper level of the double deckers. You have a panoramic view of the scenery.


My favorite seats! It was while sitting in one of these very seats waiting to depart the bus station in Évora, Portugal that I first learned about the concept of assigned seats on buses. Several of my fellow passengers (with non-existent English) politely attempted to explain this fact of life to me, with my all but non-existent Portuguese. Of course, I was sitting in someone else's assigned seat. Once they realized that I was ignorant (rather than arrogant), they graciously and generously insisted I stay in the prime location--after all, I was going to see this scenery for the first time, and they made the trip routinely. 

I also find that when traveling solo, those single seats in the 3-across seat configuration can make all the difference between a pleasant trip and an uncomfortable one. Buses in the US are not outfitted this way, unfortunately. 

.


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## ElPocho (Aug 25, 2017)

AnneLM said:


> It is not very accessible compared to many other points in Mexico. We flew from Chicago to Mexico City on United, stayed overnight with a friend in Mexico City, then flew to Tuxtla Gutierrez on Interjet the next day, then took a taxi to SCLC. We did it like this as two separate itineraries because connecting flights all theway to Tuxtla are not conveniently timed. Our daughter did do the trip all in one very long day, not getting into Tuxtla until late at night. Fortunately she had someone meet her at the airport. You can look up the fare using travelocity.


Good info, regional airport is Tuxtla. 
Good to know, thanks


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## ElPocho (Aug 25, 2017)

Thanks for all the great info! I have a lot of research still ahead.


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## ElPocho (Aug 25, 2017)

citlali said:


> Comitan is a pueblo magico , and a colonial town, it is a nice town but is close to the border and gangs from central America are beginning to show up.
> It is a prosperous town with few expats, and as the municipio borders Guatemala foreigners cannot own rightout.
> The climate is better than that of San Cristobal as it is at a lower elevation and the countryside around is very nice..
> The airport of Tuxtla is 3 o 4 hours away and as there are lots of bloqueos in Chiapas you never know when you can get through for sure.. Today we are having a bloqueo in Chiapa de Corzo and in Comitan between 8 am and 3 pm another day it is longer atc.. so it is not the ideal place to have visitors showing up..
> There is not a whole lot going on there but for people who do not want to live around expat it is fine as long as you speak Spanish or Tojolabal..


Very good information. Never heard of Tojolabal.


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