Hold onto your backpacks and put down your guidebooks because we’re about to embark on an adventure to Palenque! Where the ruins are ancient, the jungles are lush, and the accommodations are not only a place to sleep but a fully immersive experience into the beauty of this paradise. Let me take you on a journey through the Palenque ruins, the many breathtaking natural wonders, to finally relax in the jungle bubble paradise of El Panchan.
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How to get to Palenque
San Cristobal de las Casas to Palenque
Where to start… In short, the drive from San Cristobal de las Casas to Palenque can be short and risky or loooong. The short but risky route goes via Ocosingo and is known for blockades and robberies. This route goes through mountain villages and the public buses or shuttles usually travel in a convoy, sometimes with a police escort, to avoid any mishaps. The long way, which goes via Villahermosa, is usually the route the ADO buses takes to avoid any situations and may also be considered the safer route.
I went the short but risky way.
Ok, I know what you’re thinking. But while I was in the area, I had heard that there had been no issues in the past month which made me a bit more comfortable taking the short and risky way. Also, Puerta Vieja had a shuttle transport option that left at 4am, took us to see Agua Azul, Misol-Ha, and the Palenque ruins, which is where we left the tour group. This cost about 700 pesos from what I remember.
The ride itself wasn’t too bad at all, other than waking up at 4am. We traveled through the small mountain villages in a convoy of 6-7 shuttle buses. It didn’t seem like there were any issues. We made it to Agua Azul about 4 hours later around 8am. Made another stop at Misol-Ha which was another hour drive. Finally made it to the Palenque ruins about a half hour drive later. I had told the driver in advance that I was only going one way and not coming back to San Cristobal de las Casas with the rest of the group.
Other ways to get to Palenque
The ADO buses go to Palenque from any city East of Mexico City. They’re usually very straightforward and comfortable to ride in. There is a local airport, however, there are very few flights. The most common option is arriving by bus.
Where to stay in Palenque
STOP LOOKING FOR PLACES TO STAY IN PALENQUE. I will tell you the BEST place to stay and trust me, you will love it!
It’s called the Jungle Palace. You won’t find it on Hostelworld, Expedia or any other travel booking sites. But you can find it on Google Maps, however the only way to book with them is by messaging them on WhatsApp. You can find their phone number of their Facebook page, along with some updates on the place.
How to book with Jungle Palace in Palenque
I was able to get a private room with a shared bathroom for 345 pesos for 2 nights. With a private bathroom it would have been 569 pesos for 2 nights. When booking, they will tell you that a deposit is required for at least one night to reserve the room. The deposit for me was 175 pesos, or about $8.75 USD.
Over WhatsApp they will give you an account number for BanCoppel bank along with their name. You will have to go to an Oxxo and pay the deposit through Oxxo by giving them that account number and the name of the person. You will receive a receipt from Oxxo that you will have to take a photo of to send them on WhatsApp. Once you send them the photo of the receipt, you are all set. Be sure to bring enough cash with you to pay the remaining amount.
Getting to Jungle Palace in Palenque
Getting to Jungle Palace was a bit of an adventure at first, but is actually very straightforward. After I visited the Palenque ruins with the tour, I asked the driver if he could drop me off along the road near Jungle Palace. The ruins are about a 45 minute walk from the Jungle Palace and with my backpacks, that was something I did not want to do. From looking at Googles Maps, I told the driver where to drop me off. From there I began to walk to the entrance.
The entrance is behind a construction site, somewhere around this point. It’s right before the gate to get into the protected ruins area and right across the street from Cabañas Kin Balam Palenque. There is a large sign (only facing one direction towards the construction site) that says El Panchan. There is a smaller sign underneath for Jungle Palace.
From there you will have to continue walking straight into the jungle. Along the way you’ll pass a big restaurant, a bridge, and eventually on the left you’ll see a sign for Jungle Palace. Right after the sign you’ll see what looks like the reception desk where you can check in.
The room and bathrooms
At first, Jungle Palace seemed like a maze in a jungle surrounded by tropical plants, animals, and cabanas around every corner. My cabana was really a room on the second floor of a larger 3 room structure. I had my own entrance and the room itself was covered with netting to keep the insects out. The room had two beds and a small table. There were about 4 outlets in the room and cell service was very slow. There is no WiFi at the Jungle Palace, but you can buy WiFi at the nearby restaurant for about 20 pesos for the day. They keep changing the password every day so it only worked for me one day.
I was given this room because it was on higher ground and it was raining when I arrived. However, for the same price you can also get a more private cabana right along the river.
The shared bathrooms are nearby. There are outdoor sinks toilets with a door, and showers with a curtain. I saw them cleaning the bathrooms every morning but it gets dirty fairly quickly since it is outdoors. It was more just filled with bugs than dirty, but this didn’t bother me so much since half the time I went to the bathroom I didn’t wear my glasses.
the bottom line
With that said, this is no luxury accommodation. There is no air conditioning or daily housekeeping. What this is is an immersive experience in the jungles of Chiapas. I felt like I was sleeping in the middle of the jungle by hearing howler monkeys roaring in the early mornings, seeing capybaras running around the property all the time, and eating breakfast under a family of toucans. I was even able to catch a beautiful lightshow from the tropical thunder one night right from my cabana. Staying at Jungle Palace is more of an experience than just a place to spend the night. Luxury or not, this is exactly the type of places I look to stay at on my travels.
Surrounding area to Jungle Palace
El Panchan and maybe Don Mucho’s?
Jungle Palace actually only makes up a portion of this whole area. There is also a well established restaurant called El Panchan. They have an extensive menu for each meal along with good drinks. There are certain items on the menu that are budget friendly and others are not. This restaurant is also the only place in the area you can get WiFi at for 20 pesos a day. And some nights they offer a fire show, which was spectacular to see. The restaurant generally gets busier at night for the shows and is much less busy during the day.
There is also a place called Don Mucho’s, and I’m not quite sure if that is combined with El Panchan or not. The signs were a bit hard to what was what but if you’re in the big restaurant looking area then you’re in the right place.
La Cocina de Mama Julieta
Nearby there is another amazing spot called La Cocina de Mamá Julieta. This is a very budget friendly spot that makes the BEST tortas for only 25 pesos, and theyre pretty big! They also have tostados, tacos, and a couple more items for very cheap.
Surprise breakfast spot
Right across from the Jungle Palace entrance, there is a small restaurant that is generally only open in the mornings and maybe in the afternoons. It is run by a friendly older woman who cooks the best food.
My first time there I asked for a menu, but apparently there is no menu so she just started telling me everything she can make. I asked for some eggs with meat for breakfast and instead I got something that looked like a quesadilla with no eggs but some meat and beans. The next day I asked for something else and she gave me something completely different.
By then it was a running joke with her and the other travelers that no matter what we ask for she will only make us whatever she feels like making that day. Nonetheless, everything she made was DELICIOUS and it was very budget friendly.
Bars
There is another bar in the area right by Jungle Palace. Since I was visiting during the off season there was never anyone at this bar. But it did look like this area could get very crowded during peak season due to its picturesque location and the mystical jungle environment.
Ancient Hand Poking Tattoo with Samuel Olman
Tucked away into a corner of the jungle is a handing poking tattoo spot run by Samuel Olman. Here you can get a hand poked tattoo, experience Temazcal, or buy handmade jewelry. Samuel takes extreme caution in making sure all the tools and the area in which he’s tattooing is sanitary. He definitely tries to make the environment as calming as possible, despite how painful the tattoo actually is. Don’t ask me how I know, I definitely did not get a tattoo here 😉 (sorry mom and dad, I actually might have).
What to do in Palenque
Agua Azul
Agua Azul translates to “blue water”, however, during the rainy season there may be a chance that the water is not blue. Such was the case when I went.
I stopped at Agua Azul with the tour on the way from San Cristobal de las Casas to Palenque. There were a few restaurants nearby that all had a basic breakfast for an ok price. Nothing too special to comment on. Agua Azul itself was spectacular, despite being brown and murky. The falls are huge and there are many spots for swimming further up past the falls. Be sure to look for the safety ropes and the safe pools to swim in before getting in the water anywhere.
Misol-Ha
Misol-Ha was the next stop on the tour on the way to Palenque. It’s a huge, magnificent waterfall in a lush green jungle. You are able to walk all the way around the waterfall (be prepared to get wet!) and there’s many nice spots for photos.
Palenque Ruins
The Palenque ruins were the last stop on the tour and may also be my most favorite ruins on my trip through Mexico. Entry into the ruins is 85 pesos and tickets can be bought at a ticket counter outside the entrance. Right before the entrance, we were approached by a number of tour guides. The English tours are almost twice as expensive as the Spanish tours, and there’s also two different sections of the ruins that they offer tours for. There is the jungle portion and the cleared ruin section. All in all I paid 400 pesos (including the 85 pesos ticket) for an English tour of only the cleared ruins section.
The ruins section was magnificent with some areas we could climb on. The area is fairly large and took me about an hour and a half to walk through. My tour guide let me know that the jungle portion can only be accessed through a tour, but if I follow another tour closely I’ll be able to get in. I was way too nervous to do that and possibly get in trouble so I skipped the jungle tour altogether. Later, when I asked another tourist how the jungle tour was, they said it wasn’t all that other than just a muddy jungle walk. But others have said it was great, so I guess it depends on your tour guide.
Go for a hike in the jungle
Outside of the paid entry area, there is also a nice hike through the jungle. I did this hike on one of my free days while staying at Jungle Palace. You’ll need to keep your wristband that you got from seeing the Palenque ruins because on the walk there you may pass a couple checkpoints where they ask to see your ticket. The wristband is good for 3 days, I believe, and I just let them know I’m only doing the free hike instead of going into the ruins, which would cost another 85 pesos.
I walked about 45 minutes to the Palenque ruins from the Jungle Palace. There is an overgrown trail on the side of the main road that I walked on for the most part but occasionally had to walk on the road. I passed the exit of the hike first, and then found the entrance of the hike right before the busy area near the paid entrance of the ruins. The entrance of the hike is just a slightly cleared trail with no signage.
The hike will take you through the jungle where you’ll cross some streams, the Forgotten Temple and the beautiful Motiepa Waterfall. All in all the hike is fairly short and only took me about 2 hours to walk through while taking a million breaks for photos. It’s a hike worth doing if you’re looking for peace and exploration.
I exited along the side of the road, which I had passed on my way there. And then I walked back to the Jungle Palace.
Cascadas Roberto Barrios
Cascadas Roberto Barrios was probably my favorite place I saw during my stay in Palenque. The waterfalls were a beautiful blue and the environment was like a dream. I would highly recommend seeing Cascadas Roberto Barrios if you’re in the area.
How to get to Cascadas Roberto Barrios
Getting to these waterfalls is fairly simple but may take a bit longer than expected, especially if you’re coming from Jungle Palace.
- Take the colectivo that goes from the entrance to El Panchan all the way to the town of Palenque (20 pesos). Ask the driver to drop you off closest to where the colectivos for Roberto Barrios are.
- Find the colectivo to Roberto Barrios. This was a bit difficult but I was traveling with 4 other people to we split up and started asking everyone we saw on the streets. Eventually we found a colectivo somewhere around here. The ride was 50 pesos per person and took about an hour.
- We were dropped off right where they sold tickets. Once we bought the tickets we walked down a road and eventually made it into what looked like the park.
- On the way back, you’ll go the same way but in reverse. The colectivos often don’t leave until they are filled to maximize the amount of money they make, so you may have to be patient. The park also closes around 5pm and the last colectivo will wait there for sometime to try collect any stragglers.
What to do in Cascadas Roberto Barrios
There’s really only two things to do, go for a hike and take a dip in the falls! I was lucky to go on a sunny day so the water looked extra turquoise. There is a trail that can go for as long as you want it to go. And there are several areas around the pools where you can keep your bags while you swim.
What to bring to Cascadas Roberto Barrios
- CASH. Always have cash on you while in Mexico. You will also need cash for the colectivos and the tickets.
- Swim suit
- Eco-friendly sunblock
- Sunglasses and/or hat
- Waterproof casing for your phone or anything waterproof to take photos
Where to Next?
Spending a few days in jungle paradise felt like a dream. Thinking back, I must say Palenque was one of my favorite places to visit on this entire 3 month adventure. Maybe it was the Palenque ruins, or the magnificent waterfalls, or maybe even the delicious drinks served at El Panchan. Little did I know what other paradise lay ahead of me. Join me as I take you through the beautiful blue lagoons of Bacalar.
This is a great guide to Palenque. What a cool immersive experience in the jungle!
I love visiting ruins and discovering the past. And the added bonus to these ruins are they are located in a beautiful jungle with waterfalls! Love it.
This looks like a magical place. Thank you putting together all of this detailed research
This looks like such a beautiful destination, and that cake looks super tasty! Thanks for sharing 馃檪
I’d love to book Jungle Palace in Palenque! Looks fab!
I had never heard of this destination in Mexico before reading your post! I have always wanted to visit Mexico City and the Yucatan, but now I’m thinking I need a longer trip! Thanks for sharing – Jungle Paradise looks fantastic!