Towering walls
From a boat below.
Sgroey — CC BY-SA 4.0 · AnbyG — CC BY-SA 4.0 · Christopher Javier Cuenca García — CC BY-SA 4.0 · Carlos t — CC BY-SA 4.0 · Carlos t — CC BY-SA 4.0
A deep canyon cut by the Grijalva River through the mountains of Chiapas, its vertical rock walls rising as high as about a thousand metres above the water, with the river turning sharply along its thirteen-kilometre length. It lies within a protected national park and is one of Mexico's best-known landscapes, even pictured on the Chiapas coat of arms. There are two ways to see it: by boat from the pier at Chiapa de Corzo, on a trip of about two hours between towering walls, watching crocodiles on the banks, monkeys and birds, and a waterfall spilling over moss-covered rock in the shape of a Christmas tree; or from the viewpoints along the upper rim near Tuxtla, where the river looks like a green thread far below. Highlights of the boat trip include small caves in the rock wall and the stretch at the end where the walls open out at a large dam holding back the river. The boat is fast and open, so bring a hat and a light jacket for the spray. Chiapa de Corzo itself is pretty, with its square and a large brick fountain built in Moorish Andalusian style. The visit is usually combined with the viewpoints in one day.
From a boat below.
On the riverbanks.
A green thread below.
North of Chiapa de Corzo, near Tuxtla Gutiérrez; about an hour and a quarter by road from San Cristóbal
Ideally both: the boat shows the walls' scale from below, the viewpoints show the whole canyon from above. They are usually combined in a one-day tour.