Honest Sumidero Canyon Tour Review
TL;DR
Incredible canyon, average tour – here’s exactly what you’re signing up for before you book.
If you’re reading this, you’re probably trying to figure out one thing: is the Sumidero Canyon tour actually worth your time and money?
We had the exact same questions when we were in San Cristóbal de las Casas, so we booked one of the most popular options to figure out what the day looks like and whether we’d recommend doing it – or not.
Sumidero Canyon Tour Review
We chose this Canyon, Viewpoints & Chiapa de Corzo Tour from San Cristóbal de las Casas:
Sumidero Canyon Tour Itinerary
This is the itinerary for the Canyon, Viewpoints & Chiapa de Corzo Tour from San Cristobal de las Casas that we took. Your tour might vary due to weather conditions or other circumstances.
1. Viewpoints
We met at the central meeting point and started the roughly 2-hour drive to the viewpoints of Sumidero Canyon. There are five main viewpoints, and we visited three of them.
The first viewpoint we visited was La Coyota. The view was nice, but not that spectacular, as you only see a small part of the canyon.
The second viewpoint we visited was El Tepehuaje, which gave us a second vantage point over the canyon.
Last but not least, we reached our personal favourite, Los Chiapa. From here, you can see a super cool horseshoe bend in Sumidero Canyon.
2. Boat Tour through Sumidero Canyon
Next up was our roughly 2-hour boat cruise from Chicoasén Dam. We first saw some really interesting rock formations, like the Christmas Tree, a 200-meter waterfall that was dry when we visited but still super cool, the Virgen de Guadalupe Sanctuary, which is carved into the rock, and other formations like the skull, which takes a bit more imagination to spot.
Afterwards, our guide spotted loads of wildlife for us. We saw crocodiles, spider monkeys, and of course, birds.
3. Exploring Chiapa de Corzo
Our third stop of the day was the charming town of Chiapa de Corzo. Here, we had free time to roam the streets, which were lined with colourful papel picado.
Our first order of business was to visit the local market, as it was already quite late in the day and we were famished. After a filling meal, we explored on.
We stopped by the Plaza de Armas, home to the iconic La Pila Fountain – a unique-looking brick structure. The square is also perfect for souvenir shopping as the surrounding arches are lined with artisan shops.
We also visited the Convent & Church of Santo Domingo, the biggest building in town and one of the best preserved 16th-century churches in all of Chiapas.
Beyond the main sights, we honestly just enjoyed getting a little lost. We came across plenty of colourful corners and some surprisingly cool street art, which gave the town a bit more personality than we expected.
After roughly one hour, we met back at the bus and commenced the roughly 1-hour drive back to San Cristobal de las Casas.
Sumidero Canyon Tour – Our Honest Opinion
We’ll be straight with you: this tour is a bit of a mixed bag.
On one hand, Sumidero Canyon itself is genuinely impressive. The scale is hard to grasp until you’re actually there – steep canyon walls, dramatic bends, and plenty of wildlife if you’re lucky. The boat ride was easily the highlight of the day.
On the other hand, the logistics are… not great. There’s a lot of driving involved. The viewpoints alone add roughly two extra hours, and starting the boat tour from Chicoasén Dam tacks on even more time in transit. It felt like we spent a big chunk of the day just getting from A to B.
Another thing to be aware of: unless you specifically pay for an English-speaking guide, you’ll likely end up with a Spanish-speaking experience. That wasn’t a dealbreaker for us, but it’s worth knowing going in.
Overall, the tour felt quite standardised – not bad, just not particularly special either.
What Other Travellers Say About the Sumidero Canyon Tour
⭐ Rating: 4.7 / 5 (240+ reviews)
This tour exceeded my expectations. The guide was truly passionate about her work, professional, and very kind, making the whole experience smooth and enjoyable. Her explanations in English were clear and engaging. The schedule was well organized, the content rich, and overall it felt like excellent value for the price. Highly recommended!
– Dong Woo (see more reviews)
Sumidero Canyon Tour Include?
The Cañon Del Sumidero Tour includes:
- Round-trip shared transfer
- Shared boat service in Sumidero Canyon
- Spanish-speaking operator (note that you opt for an English-speaking guide for an additional cost!)
- Entrance & National Park fees
Sumidero Canyon Tour Worth It?
Short answer: yes for the canyon, not necessarily for the tour itself.
We’re really glad we visited Sumidero Canyon – it’s a unique natural landmark with cliffs reaching up to 1,000 metres (3,300 ft) and dramatic river bends, and cool wildlife.
That said, the tour experience didn’t blow us away. It gets the job done, and from what we’ve seen, most tours in the area follow a very similar format. We actually tried to find a “better” one… and couldn’t.
So here’s how we’d frame it:
- If you’re already in San Cristóbal de las Casas, it’s definitely worth doing.
- If it requires a big detour or tight schedule juggling, we probably wouldn’t go out of our way for it.
It’s one of those experiences where the destination carries the day more than the tour itself – and sometimes, that’s enough.
Where We Stayed in San Cristóbal de las Casas
We stayed at La Abuelita Hostal, which was a full 10/10. It is affordable, the location is great, the staff are lovely, the rooftop is amazing, the rooms are super cosy, the showers are hot, the kitchen is well equipped, there’s free drinking water and tea, WiFi was great, and so on.
Our only point of criticism? We tired to extend our stay and it was fully booked. So maybe be smarter than us and reserve enough time in advance.
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