# Climate + Rentals in San Cristobal de las Casas



## annananas (May 19, 2017)

Hey everyone! 

Have just signed up as I'm feeling totally overwhelmed by completely conflicting data online (for something different..)

Myself + partner are coming to Mexico in Sept for 6 months, or potentially more & we are deciding where to be based. Currently San Cristobal de las Casas is one of the main contenders. We are looking to keep far away from the plastic tourism of Cancun etc yet be somewhere big enough to have access to good quality WiFi for work.

But the information for the weather is massively different at every source. Can somebody clarify for me what the weather is like over Sept/Oct/Nov/Dec?

Some reports have it in the 30's, other below 20 (Celsius, that is)

Also - would you say the city has a good supply of affordable rental properties, and what is the average going price(s)?

Thanks so much! 

Anna


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## citlali (Mar 4, 2013)

Everyone has their standards so it is probably why you get a lot of different reports as far as rentals.. There are lots of rentals on a week or month basis because many people come and go.. to schools and mostly for projects , NGO´s etc..
I was thinking of selling my house as we have 2 in Mexico and renting a place.. I first looked for unfurnished in or near the center.. I find the rentals dismals some of them very cheap or overpriced .
There are very few houses / rentals I would live in so I decided to keep the house.

Whatever you do make sure you get a place with a fireplace and one that works, you will need it.

I have bougainvilea in my garden so obviously it does not go down very low for very long but we also have hail storms, frost name it we get it..In Vovember and December it is mostly in the 40´s and 50´s but if the northern wind blows. if it drizzles or stay grey for a while it chills your bones. 

Fear not you can do down to Tuxtla in 45 mn and sweat like crazy.. so you can get out of the cold area. We are at 2100 meters in the valley of San Cristobal and go up from there to get out..

The weather obviously varies every year September and october are still in the rainy season. The temperature varis a lot during the days. WHen it is not raining you can have nice sunny days or start the day very cool , get warmer and sunnier during rhe day and cool or cold again in the evening or with the rain.
November , December can be cool to cold, foggy, grey skies ...and so is January.. Those are the coldest months of the year.. It can rain or drizzle as well.
If you have a sweater and a heavy jacket and dress in layers it is no problem.

The town is a fun town to live in, the weather there is more like London or Paris than what you would think of Mexico.. The weather also changes suddenly and often several times the same day but when it is beautiful it is glorious.


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## citlali (Mar 4, 2013)

By the way I live on top of the hill in El Cerrillo just behing Santo Domingo and have no signal for my cel and internet is sloww, breaks down ..just not good in general in that area.


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## circle110 (Jul 20, 2009)

annananas said:


> Hey everyone!
> 
> Have just signed up as I'm feeling totally overwhelmed by completely conflicting data online (for something different..)
> 
> ...


Several people on the forum (like Citali, who already answered) know San Cristobal far better than I do so I'll leave that to them.

But, after reading your requirements, I couldn't help but think of the Bajio highlands colonial cities. Have you looked into them at all? 
Weather? Pretty great all year round, but awesome in the months you mention.
Tourists? Not many, and most are Mexican tourists.
Size? Anywhere form 150K (Guanajuato) to almost 1 million (Queretaro and Morelia)
Internet? Ranges from good to excellent.

The price for rentals depends so much on what you are looking for it is hard to give estimates.
I use vivanuncios.com to look at and get a general idea of prices. An in-person search is the only way to get the very best deals but vivanuncios is no longer an overpriced representation of local real estate. Some will tell you that any website that is for selling/renting properties is overpriced but in the last several years just about everyone has begun using the web for leasing their properties so that has attracted all levels of renters and tenants and therefore made the site a much more realistic representation.


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## annananas (May 19, 2017)

circle110 said:


> But, after reading your requirements, I couldn't help but think of the Bajio highlands colonial cities. Have you looked into them at all?


Fantastic - no I'd never heard of/investigated the Bajio highlands. Looks like it might be a (warmer) match. Although the rental prices look perhaps a bit higher than Chiapas?

But am definitely about to research the area a little more as by the looks of it the overall cost of living varies dramatically between cities/towns. 

Thank you for the info, it's great to have some new options to consider


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## annananas (May 19, 2017)

Thanks so much - this information is really useful and exactly what I wanted to know. In all other regards, San Cristobal is looking like such a wonderful place - I'm just a little hesitant about the cooler climate as I'm definitely more of a warm weather girl myself. 

However, my partner likes the cool and is fascinated by the location. So perhaps we will give it a shot! 

Excellent to know about your internet and mobile signal, as a decent speed of internet is probably one of the more important considerations for us. It sounds like there is some great WiFi to be had around the center, so I imagine it's available. But great to know that it's not the case in every area!

Thanks again


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## citlali (Mar 4, 2013)

Chiapas ia place to visit for sure, it can be magical and San Cristobal is a nice city..I went there 12 years ago and fell in love with it and spend 8 months of the year there . The climate is tough with lots of extremes throughout the state but it is sometjing to experience.. From lush jungles to cool green highlands to areas looking like parts of Africa. When looking for a place or some heater and check the internet and cell phone connection .. I probably live in the worst area for that as my street is ver narrow and most houses are adobe I have double walls so that is not helping.
I live near Guadalajara and in Chiapas and the two areas are very different, I like the Guadalajara area for the wonderful climate at 1500m but I like my life in Chiapas way better..


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## chicois8 (Aug 8, 2009)

Hi Anna, You write this:

"Myself + partner are coming to Mexico in Sept for 6 months, or potentially more & we are deciding where to be based."

The FMM or tourist permit is valid for 180 days and you can not work, if you want to stay longer in Mexico and work you need to obtain I believe a Temporary Resident Visa where you start the process at a Mexican Counsel in your home country....


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## chicois8 (Aug 8, 2009)

Also I use a weather website that averages over the last 22 year and here is what San Cristobal looks like:
Sept through December:

Day highs = 21℃ ---18℃
Day lows = 11℃ ---7℃
humidity = 6%
Rain = it can rain from 83% --- 19% in a 24 hour period 
in Sept. it usually rains 9.8 inches...........Hope this helps....


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## citlali (Mar 4, 2013)

If you live in San Cristobal you can take a trip to the border or Antigua or Pana very easily for 350 pesos one way to Pana and come back and renew your visa so it is not a major problem as the border is close unlike other places.
It is a great oportunity to go and check out Guatemala..

You can also work for New Zealand and get paid in New Zealand via internet..

PS it never gets in the 30´s celcius in San Cristobal ever.. people think they have a heat wave when it is 25. However many weather reports, including the ones on local tv give the Tuxtla temperatures so you get to see 30´s and 40´s in San Cristobal but do not fear it dows not happen.
Beloow 20
my kitchen is 17 all year round and that is with heat in the living room... It is usually below 20 except for a few hours where it can get warmer..

We have frost at night sometimes and some morning you can see your breath..but those are the great morning when it is cold and dry and when the sun will quickly warm up everything, the morning I hate are the drizzly ones or the foggy ones...and we have lots of those.. usually by 11 there is some change but not always..
March and April are the warmer and dryer months This year we had great weather in February, March and April, nice temperature and very little rain..j


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