San Juan Chamula and Zinacantán Indigenous Communities

It was interesting. The guide was too serious.

Our guide Rodrigo was very informative about the Mayan culture, and I certainly appreciate the constant reminder of the photography etiquette. I did feel somewhat pressured to purchase at the textile workshop despite that Rodrigo mentioned otherwise, but the constant comments about how beautiful the products are and the hardship of the ladies couldn't help but put me in a guilt trip, despite what he said is true. Nonetheless, a very enjoyable half day trip and great for its value.

The visit to the church is very interesting and worth doing but the rest was average. We just passed through the other town by bus and we spent too much time in the fabric shop run by the women. This tour is good but the time is poorly managed.

Excellent guide who explained everything very well in both English and Spanish. San Juan Chamula was particularly interesting.

We had a wonderful tour experience with Miguel. He was a fantastic guide—friendly, engaging, and incredibly knowledgeable about the two communities we visited. Throughout the tour, he shared interesting insights about the local culture, history, and traditions, which made the experience much more meaningful. Miguel gave us free time to wander around and explore on our own, allowing us to take in the atmosphere at our own pace. During the ride between destinations, we enjoyed a pleasant conversation with him about the local communities and regional food, which added a personal touch to the experience. Miguel’s enthusiasm and expertise made the tour both informative and enjoyable. We highly recommend him to anyone looking for an authentic and memorable experience!

+2

We really enjoyed this tour, the timing and communication was perfect, and the guide was very kind and informative. The sites were very worth seeing as they are unique to this part of México, and we were lucky to see the tianguis around San Juan Chamula and special processions in the churches that were happening the same day.

Great trip and great guide. He knew so much about everything and was kind to all

+1

The most impressive was the visit to the church in Chamula. There we had about 20 minutes to watch the rituals of the shamans. Before that we were still in the village of Zinacantan. That would actually be quite nice to watch. But we only went there to a weavers' cooperative. The "time at leisure" is not spent in the village but in the sales room of the weaving mill. It was nice to watch, but the time there was too long for me. The information from our guide Miguel was good and interesting. He spoke good English. All in all, good value for money. If you are in San Christobal you can recommend the tour.

Not what I expected but for the price it was a worthwhile excursion from San Cristobal. It really wasn’t a guided tour as much as it was a drive and drop off to 3 different location - a textile co-op and a church in Zinacantan and a church in Chamula. The textile co-op was basically a house in a residential neighborhood that sold fabrics and clothing for sale. There was a demonstration of fabric weaving and opportunity for liquor and food tasting (coffee, beans, cheese, salsa and handmade corn tortillas). The food was delicious. The church was about a 20 minutes self guided stop and an opportunity to take pictures for $50 pesos with locals. The church in Chamula was a lesson in local indigenous customs and rituals complete with animal sacrifices. The formerly Catholic Church no longer offers services and most Catholics will be shocked to see the locals practicing their version of “Catholicism”. A guided narration would have been helpful.

The guide was very friendly and gave us interesting information. It was an enjoyable tour full of data that I did not know. We also thank the driver for taking us safely to each location. The church of San Juan Bautista in Chamula is something not to miss.