Magical Day, Wonderful Tour Company - I’ve taken this trip in the past on a solo trip to Chiapas, but this time I was traveling with my husband for an anniversary trip. What could be a more romantic way to spend our special day than Palenque and waterfalls! When we were picked up at 4am, we were a pleasantly surprised that we had our own driver. On my previous trip in 2019, I payed the same amount to be on a larger group tour. We got to know Juan and some great conversations. I knew that the guides at Palenque are very expensive ($3000 pesos to start), so I did my research and saw that we could pay by credit card. I didn’t want to carry that much cash on me and it seemed like the best option. When we got to Palenque, we verified with our guide, Gama that we could indeed pay by card. I highly recommend paying for an official guide because the experience is worth it. Unfortunately when we were finished with our tour, our guide was unable to connect to the internet server and so we were going to have to pay by cash, which we definitely didn’t have. The closest ATM was a Santander and it wouldn’t take my card. This could have been a really precarious situation, but Juan immediately stepped in and covered what we didn’t have, no questions asked. Our next stop was to the magical Misol-Ha. On our way to Agua Azul, there was an unexpected thunderstorm. We were able to to stop for lunch, but couldn’t access the falls because of the rain. Even with being rained out of Agua Azul and the mishap at Palenque, it was a really magical day and we know that part of that was because of the excellent attention and service we received. We would definitely recommend booking with this company.

Incredible ruins, difficult travel - OVERVIEW: I would recommend this tour, but you need to know what you’re getting yourself in for. The car ride to Palenque is incredibly bumpy and takes approximately 5 hours. Not for the faint of heart! But that being said, Palenque is an incredibly special archaeological site, and this is really the best way to see it. If you’re nervous about the long driving day, your other options for seeing Palenque are to spend the night and drive back the next day, or take a public bus that is about 9 hours. For me, it was good to just have one really painful day and then get home and sleep. However! If you’re not willing to shell out for the official Palenque tour guide, this trip will not be worth your time. The drive is just too painful, and the self-guided materials at Palenque are limited. It’s worth it to get an official guide. DRIVER/TOUR GUIDE: The tour operator was really just a driver, not a tour guide. You will need to pay extra for a guide in Palenque. That being said, these guys are expert drivers and are really worth the money. The main highway through Ocosingo has many checkpoints and is periodically closed. We took a back road, which was likely less paved but safer. PALENQUE: We got the “long” tour in English for a group of 6, and we haggled it down to 400 pesos a person. Be aware that if your group is smaller you will pay more. The long tour is about 2 hours and will get you a guided tour of the main temples (Temple of Inscriptions, Temple of the Cross) as well as access to the outlying jungle. The long tour is the only way you will get access to the jungle trails, and in my opinion it was totally worth it. There will be more scrambling and climbing around roots, but if you’re in good physical shape it is not to be missed! You’ll feel like Indiana Jones for an hour, walking on top of ruins that have been overtaken by vines. MISCELLANEOUS: Bring toilet paper and hand sanitizer- it was about a 50/50 chance of finding stocked facilities. Earplugs are good if you want to snooze on the bus, because our driver blasted music the whole ride. Also watch for water bottles that have been refilled- do not buy if the seal around the cap is broken.

Maybe not the best experience - The high points were Learning about Palenqué and seeing the cascada de azul. The driver was kind and accommodating. With that said, the road was really rough and long, and the food stops were questionable. I did end up with food poisoning. In hindsight I would not have gone. I think looking into a flight into Palenque or Villahermosa might be a better way to do this trip. The other issue was the high price for an English speaking guide at Palenque. $2000 pesos per person ($120)-we were lucky that we brought enough cash.