¡El Tour
Budget Bicycle Tours in Mexico
www.BikeMexico.com
The Complete Archive · 2000–2020
Los Pingüinos · San Cristóbal de las Casas
From 2003, ¡El Tour partnered with Los Pingüinos — a
bicycle shop and guiding operation in the beautiful colonial mountain city of San Cristóbal
de las Casas, Chiapas. Their tours were cross-marketed on bikemexico.com for years: rentals and
guided day trips into the surrounding Tzotzil Maya country, plus multi-day tours through Chiapas,
Tabasco and across the border into Guatemala. Their Highlands of Chiapas tour even joined
the main ¡El Tour schedule — see
Christmas 2003 and
Easter 2004. Everything below is recovered from Wayback
Machine captures of pinguinos.bikemexico.com and bikemexico.com/pinguinos/
(2004–2008).
Day trips from San Cristóbal
Half-day mountain-bike trips (20–40 km, US$27–50 per person)
visited the small authentic Tzotzil villages, a limestone bridge and cloudforest around San
Cristóbal — "our favorite tours for years!"
Full-day supported rides went further afield: the waterfalls of El Chiflón, the downhill
special to Sumidero Canyon via Zinacantán, and Las Margaritas – Lagos de Montebello
(US$110–180, two-day combinations to US$340).
One Day Tour · US$165
WhenWhereDistanceHighlights
Day 0Meet at Los Pinguinos in San Cristóbal de las Casas-
Meet your guide and get fitted for your bike [more]
We will meet up in the colourful colonial city of San Cristóbal famous for its indegenous cultures. If you are renting a bike from us, we will match you with the bike that fits you best as well as a helmet and bike bottles.Day 1Car or bus to Teopisca (1806m) ride down to El Chiflon (1100m)70km
Colonial mountain town, sugarcane plantations, waterfalls [more]
At 7:30am we will be transported by bus or taxi to our starting point for the ride, Teopisca. From there it's mostly downhill. We drop down through the beautiful pine-clad mountains with breath-taking views and end up in sugar cane country. In El Chiflon we'll see some waterfalls up to 100m high. There, we can camp or stay in simple cabañas.Day 2Back to San Cristobal-
Bus or taxi back to S.C. [more]
We will leave at about 10am taking a bus or a taxi back to San Cristobal.Two Day Tour · US$205
WhenWhereDistanceHighlights
Day 0Meet at Los Pinguinos in San Cristóbal de las Casas-
Meet your guide and get fitted for your bike [more]
We will meet up in the colourful colonial city of San Cristóbal famous for its indegenous cultures. If you are renting a bike from us, we will match you with the bike that fits you best as well as a helmet and bike bottles.Day 1Car or bus to Teopisca (1806m) ride down to El Chiflon (1100m)70km
Colonial mountain town, sugarcane plantations, waterfalls [more]
At 7:30am we will be transported by bus or taxi to our starting point for the ride, Teopisca. From there it's mostly downhill. We drop down through the beautiful pine-clad mountains with breath-taking views and end up in sugar cane country. In El Chiflon we'll see some waterfalls up to 100m high. There, we can camp or stay in simple cabañas.Day 2Chiflon (1100m) to Comitan (1760m)50km
Challenging climbing, colonial town [more]
What goes down must come back up! We climb back into the pine forests, pass through the little touristed colonial town of Comitan. After a good meal we take the bus back to San Cristobal de las Casas in the late afternoon/evening.Three Day Tour · US$310
WhenWhereDistanceHighlights
Day 0Meet at Los Pinguinos in San Cristóbal de las Casas-
Meet your guide and get fitted for your bike [more]
We will meet up in the colourful colonial city of San Cristóbal famous for its indegenous cultures. If you are renting a bike from us, we will match you with the bike that fits you best as well as a helmet and bike bottles.Day 1Car or bus to Teopisca (1806m) ride down to El Chiflon (1100m)70km
Colonial mountain town, sugarcane plantations, waterfalls [more]
At 7:30am we will be transported by bus or taxi to our starting point for the ride, Teopisca. From there it's mostly downhill. We drop down through the beautiful pine-clad mountains with breath-taking views and end up in sugar cane country. In El Chiflon we'll see some waterfalls up to 100m high. There, we can camp or stay in simple cabañas.Day 2Chiflon (1100m) to Comitan (1760m)50km
Challenging climbing, colonial town [more]
What goes down must come back up! We climb back into the pine forests, and cycle to the little touristed colonial town of Comitan. We'll stay here in this 'mini San Cristobal' overnight.Day 3Comitan (1760m) to Teopisca (1806m) and car or bus back to San Cristóbal62km
Hilly, pine forest, colonial town [more]
Our hilly route will take us back up to Teopisca through more pine forest. Teopisca is also a colonial mountain town, though much smaller. It's famous for cecina, a kind of salted dried beef. After all this climbing we will definately enjoy our meal in Teopisca before we take the bus back to San Cristobal.Multi-day tours · Chiapas, Tabasco & Guatemala
Scheduled "every Tuesday, year round," these ran from sea level in
Villahermosa up to 2,200 m in the Chiapas highlands, and two of them crossed into Guatemala
— Quetzaltenango, Lake Atitlán, Antigua — making them the only tours in the
whole ¡El Tour orbit to leave Mexico.
Tabasco to Chiapas/Sealevel to 2200m · US$620 (2004) – US$1,340
WhenWhereDistanceHighlights
Day 0Meet in Villahermosa-
La Venta park; Olmec archeological museum, Tabasco zoo. Exciting bustling city. [more]
Villahermosa is an interesting if exhausting city to explore, for a break from the city you might want to head for Parque-Museo La Venta. The ancient (before 600 BC) Olmec city of La Venta was actually on an island in a river some 130km west of Villahermosa. Several enormous basalt Olmec heads (the largest weighs 24 tonnes and stands over 2m tall) and other artifacts were discovered between 1925 and 1940. When oil excavation threatened the site, the most significant finds were moved to thier current home in Villahermosa in Parque-Museo La Venta. There is also a zoo here with everything from crocodiles to jaguars to spider monkeys. It's truly worth a visit.Day 1Villahermosa to Pichucalco78 km
A small town in the foothills of the mountains of Chiapas state. [more]
As we cycle past enormous banana plantation, the distant mountains suddenly come into view. Soon we're cycling up the rolling foothills seeing views of the vast plains below. We cross into Chiapas and Pichucalco is our first stop in the mountains, still at fairly low elevation.Day 2Pichucalco to Tapilula53 km
In the heart of the mountains. Challenging climbing. Amazing views and scenery. Small villages and towns. [more]
You'd better have a triple chainring on your bike for today and tomorrow. We're in for some very challenging steep climbs, with spectacular, rewarding views. Suddenly we find ourselves cycling in a canyon following the Puyacatengo river upstream. In Tapilula the children act as our ambassadors to this charming, friendly little colonial town. For a treat, try deepfried cheese stuffed in banana with cream on it! You deserve it.Day 3Tapilula to Jitotol52 km
Climbing higher into the mountains and yet more spectacular views. Small villages and towns. [more]
Resume climbing. It always seems to be foggy here, but perhaps it'll clear up and we can see what we've climbed over the last day and a half when we reach the lookout at the highest point of the day, 1800m. If the fog causes us to forfeit our distant views then we can instead marvel at how the fog oozes over the mountain pass from one series of valleys into another - it's a magical sight. Descending from the pass we meander our way along the sides of mountains to Jitotol, another unassuming quiet little highland town.Day 4Jitotol to San Cristóbal74 km
Spectacular Mountain Scenery, Villages, the Historic Old Town [more]
Even though the last ride of our tour is only 73km long, it is probably the most challenging and awe-inspiring stage of our journey. From sea level in Cancun the tour ends today at 2100m altitude in San Cristóbal de la Casas. On the way today we'll follow the winding road up and down and around mountain passes and valleys, pine forests and indigenous villages. This is Tzotzil-Maya country.Day 5San Cristóbal de las Casas-
Rest day. Colonial city, great market. [more]
Explore the diverse market, the colonial churches and other colourful sights and sounds.Day 6Around San Cristóbal30km
Explore surrounding the villages of Chamula and Zinacantan. [more]
Today we will explore a couple of the famous surrounding Tzotzil Maya villages, Chamula and Zinacantan. This will give you a chance to get used to your bike and 'wake up' your cycling legs if you have just joined us (for the second week of the our only).Day 7Car or bus to Teopisca (1806m) ride down to El Chiflon (1100m)70km
Colonial mountain town, sugarcane plantations, waterfalls [more]
At 7:30am we will be transported by bus or taxi to our starting point for the ride, Teopisca. From there it's mostly downhill. We drop down through the beautiful pine-clad mountains with breath-taking views and end up in sugar cane country. In El Chiflon we'll see some waterfalls up to 200m high. There, we can camp or stay in simple cabañas.Day 8Chiflon (1100m) to Comitan (1635m)45km
Challenging climbing, colonial town [more]
What goes down must come back up! We climb back into the pine forests, pass through the little touristed colonial town of Comitan and then drop down a little to the Tojolabal Maya town of Las Margaritas.Day 9Comitan (1635m) to Lagos de Montebello (1488m)65km
Hilly, pine cloud forest, lakes [more]
No big climbs or descents today, but it's still hilly. We go to the pine cloud forest area of Lagos de Montebello with its spectacular lakes. Once again we can camp or stay in simple cabañas.Day 10L. de Montebello (1488m) to Comitan (1635m)60km
Climb back to Comitan [more]
Today we cycle back to Comitan a different way to fully appreciate this gem of a colonial mountain town.Day 11Comitan (1635m) to Teopisca (1806m) and car or bus back to San Cristóbal62km
Hilly, pine forest, colonial town [more]
Our hilly route will take us up to Teopisca through more pine forest. Teopisca is another, much smaller, colonial mountain town famous for their cecina. Once there, we'll be transported back to San Cristobal by car or bus.Day 12San Cristóbal de Las Casas (2100m)-
Rest and explore beautiful colonial San Cristóbal [more]
Back in San Cristóbal you will have a chance to fully explore the diverse market, the colonial churches and other colourful sights and sounds.Highlights of Tabasco & Chiapas · US$1,340
WhenWhereDistanceHighlights
Day 0Meet in Villahermosa-
La Venta park; Olmec archeological museum, Tabasco zoo. Exciting bustling city. [more]
Villahermosa is an interesting if exhausting city to explore, for a break from the city you might want to head for Parque-Museo La Venta. The ancient (before 600 BC) Olmec city of La Venta was actually on an island in a river some 130km west of Villahermosa. Several enormous basalt Olmec heads (the largest weighs 24 tonnes and stands over 2m tall) and other artifacts were discovered between 1925 and 1940. When oil excavation threatened the site, the most significant finds were moved to thier current home in Villahermosa in Parque-Museo La Venta. There is also a zoo here with everything from crocodiles to jaguars to spider monkeys. It's truly worth a visit.Day 1Bus to Palenque-visit of the archeological side Palenque
Day 2Bus to San Crist�bal de las Casas-amazing scenery, exploring the colonial town, get fitted for your bike
Day 3Around San Cristóbal30km
Explore surrounding the villages of Chamula and Zinacantan. [more]
Today we will explore a couple of the famous surrounding Tzotzil Maya villages, Chamula and Zinacantan. This will give you a chance to get used to your bike and 'wake up' your cycling legs.Day 4Car or bus to Teopisca (1806m) ride down to El Chiflon (1100m)70km
Colonial mountain town, sugarcane plantations, waterfalls [more]
At 7:30am we will be transported by bus or taxi to our starting point for the ride, Teopisca. From there it's mostly downhill. We drop down through the beautiful pine-clad mountains with breath-taking views and end up in sugar cane country. In El Chiflon we'll see some waterfalls up to 200m high. There, we can camp or stay in simple cabañas.Day 5Chiflon (1100m) to Comitan (1635m)45km
Challenging climbing, colonial town [more]
What goes down must come back up! We climb back into the pine forests, pass through the little touristed colonial town of Comitan and then drop down a little to the Tojolabal Maya town of Las Margaritas.Day 6Comitan (1635m) to Lagos de Montebello (1488m)65km
Hilly, pine cloud forest, lakes [more]
No big climbs or descents today, but it's still hilly. We go to the pine cloud forest area of Lagos de Montebello with its spectacular lakes. Once again we can camp or stay in simple cabañas.Day 7L. de Montebello (1488m) to Comitan (1635m)60km
Climb back to Comitan [more]
Today we cycle back to Comitan a different way to fully appreciate this gem of a colonial mountain town.Day 8Comitan (1635m) to Teopisca (1806m) and car or bus back to San Cristóbal62km
Hilly, pine forest, colonial town [more]
Our hilly route will take us up to Teopisca through more pine forest. Teopisca is another, much smaller, colonial mountain town famous for their cecina. Once there, we'll be transported back to San Cristobal by car or bus.Day 9San Cristobal-Rest day
Day 10Bus to Sumidero canyon-boat trip through the canyon
Day 11Around San Cristóbal30-50km
Explore surrounding the villages of Chamula and Zinacantan. [more]
Today we will explore a couple of the famous surrounding Tzotzil Maya villages, Chamula and Zinacantan.Day 12Fly home-Stay a little longer or fly back home
Highlights of Chiapas & Guatemala
WhenWhereDistanceHighlights
Day 0Meet at Los Pinguinos in San Cristóbal de las Casas-
Meet your guide [more]
We will meet up in the colourful colonial city of San Cristóbal famous for its indegenous cultures.Day 1Public bus to Quetzaltenango, Guatemala-
Border crossing, Chicken buses [more]
Please note, busses in Guatemala are not as comfortable as in Mexico. It's definately an experience to do at least one trip by public bus. For our return trip it's recommended to go by private van to the border.Day 2Trekking from Quetzaltenango to Lake Atitlan-
Camping (except rainy season) [more]
The trekking trip includes food, transportation, tents, and sleeping bags. More details coming soon.Day 3Trekking from Quetzaltenango to Lake Atitlan-
Camping (except rainy season) [more]
The trekking trip includes food, transportation, tents, and sleeping bags. More details coming soon.Day 4Trekking from Quetzaltenango to Lake Atitlan-
[more]
The trekking trip includes food, transportation, tents, and sleeping bags. More details coming soon.Day 5Transport to Chichicastenango & Antigua-market in Chichi, Colonial town Antigua
Day 6In and around Antigua-
Rest day or biking/trekking [more]
Take a rest day or trek to one of Antigua's three volcanos or a down-hill bike ride.Day 7Transport back to San Cristobal-
Day 8San Cristóbal de Las Casas (2100m)-
Rest and explore beautiful colonial San Cristóbal [more]
Back in San Cristóbal you will have a chance to fully explore the diverse market, the colonial churches and other colourful sights and sounds.Day 9Car or bus to Teopisca (1806m) ride down to El Chiflon (1100m)70km
Colonial mountain town, sugarcane plantations, waterfalls [more]
At 7:30am we will be transported by bus or taxi to our starting point for the ride, Teopisca. From there it's mostly downhill. We drop down through the beautiful pine-clad mountains with breath-taking views and end up in sugar cane country. In El Chiflon we'll see some waterfalls up to 200m high. There, we can camp or stay in simple cabañas.Day 10Chiflon (1100m) to Comitan (1635m)45km
Challenging climbing, colonial town [more]
What goes down must come back up! We climb back into the pine forests, pass through the little touristed colonial town of Comitan and then drop down a little to the Tojolabal Maya town of Las Margaritas.Day 11Comitan (1635m) to Teopisca (1806m)62km
Hilly, pine forest, colonial town, transport back to San Cristobal [more]
Our hilly route will take us up to Teopisca through more pine forest. Teopisca is another, much smaller, colonial mountain town famous for their cecina.Day 12Around San Cristóbal30km
Explore surrounding the villages of Chamula and Zinacantan. [more]
Today we will explore a couple of the famous surrounding Tzotzil Maya villages, Chamula and Zinacantan.Day 13Bus to Palenque-
A scenic bus trip through the mountains to Palenque [more]
Sit back and relax on a bus that takes you through the spectacular Chiapas mountains down to the Mayan ruins of Palenque. These famous ruins are set right at the edge between the mountains and the vast flat lowlands stretching out to Tabasco and the Yucatan peninsula.Day 14Palenque and nightbus-
visit the ruins of Palenque nightbus to catch your flight home [more]
Spend the day exploring every fascinating corner of the ruins and then take an overnight bus to where you can catch your flight home. Convenient cities to fly in and out of include Villahermosa, Veracruz, Merida, Cancun or Mexico city.Day 15Fly home and stay a bit longer-fly home fly from Villahermosa, Veracruz, Merida, Cancun or Mexico City
Tabasco to the highlands of Chiapas & Guatemala
WhenWhereDistanceHighlights
Day 0Meet in Villahermosa-
La Venta park; Olmec archeological museum, Tabasco zoo. Exciting bustling city. [more]
Villahermosa is an interesting if exhausting city to explore, for a break from the city you might want to head for Parque-Museo La Venta. The ancient (before 600 BC) Olmec city of La Venta was actually on an island in a river some 130km west of Villahermosa. Several enormous basalt Olmec heads (the largest weighs 24 tonnes and stands over 2m tall) and other artifacts were discovered between 1925 and 1940. When oil excavation threatened the site, the most significant finds were moved to thier current home in Villahermosa in Parque-Museo La Venta. There is also a zoo here with everything from crocodiles to jaguars to spider monkeys. It's truly worth a visit.Day 1Bus to Palenque-visit of the archeological side Palenque
Day 2Bus to San Crist�bal de las Casas-amazing scenery, exploring the colonial town, get fitted for your bike
Day 3Around San Cristóbal30km
Explore surrounding the villages of Chamula and Zinacantan. [more]
Today we will explore a couple of the famous surrounding Tzotzil Maya villages, Chamula and Zinacantan. This will give you a chance to get used to your bike and 'wake up' your cycling legs.Day 4Car or bus to Teopisca (1806m) ride down to El Chiflon (1100m)70km
Colonial mountain town, sugarcane plantations, waterfalls [more]
At 7:30am we will be transported by bus or taxi to our starting point for the ride, Teopisca. From there it's mostly downhill. We drop down through the beautiful pine-clad mountains with breath-taking views and end up in sugar cane country. In El Chiflon we'll see some waterfalls up to 200m high. There, we can camp or stay in simple cabañas.Day 5Chiflon (1100m) to Comitan (1635m)45km
Challenging climbing, colonial town [more]
What goes down must come back up! We climb back into the pine forests, pass through the little touristed colonial town of Comitan and then drop down a little to the Tojolabal Maya town of Las Margaritas.Day 6Comitan (1635m) to Teopisca (1806m)62km
Hilly, pine forest, colonial town, transport back to San Cristobal [more]
Our hilly route will take us up to Teopisca through more pine forest. Teopisca is another, much smaller, colonial mountain town famous for their cecina.Day 7San Cristóbal de Las Casas (2100m)-
Rest and explore beautiful colonial San Cristóbal [more]
Back in San Cristóbal you will have a chance to fully explore the diverse market, the colonial churches and other colourful sights and sounds.Day 8Public bus to Quetzaltenango, Guatemala-
Border crossing, Chicken buses [more]
Please note, busses in Guatemala are not as comfortable as in Mexico. It's definately an experience to do at least one trip by public bus. For our return trip it's recommended to go by private van to the border.Day 9Trekking from Quetzaltenango to Lake Atitlan-
Camping (except rainy season) [more]
The trekking trip includes food, transportation, tents, and sleeping bags.Day 10Trekking from Quetzaltenango to Lake Atitlan-
Camping (except rainy season) [more]
The trekking trip includes food, transportation, tents, and sleeping bags.Day 11Trekking from Quetzaltenango to Lake Atitlan-
[more]
The trekking trip includes food, transportation, tents, and sleeping bags.Day 12Transport to Chichicastenango & Antigua-market in Chichi, Colonial town Antigua
Day 13In and around Antigua-
Rest day or biking/trekking [more]
Take a rest day or trek to one of Antigua's three volcanos or a down-hill bike ride.Day 14Transport back to San Cristobal-
Day 15San Cristóbal de Las Casas (2100m)-