San Cristóbal de las Casas: the cool, dry base most travellers want
San Cristóbal sits at roughly 2,200 metres in the Chiapas highlands, which is why December to February brings crisp sunny days around 20°C and cold nights that can drop to 5°C. Rain is minimal in these months; the heavy afternoon showers belong to June to October. The historic centre is compact and walkable, built around the Plaza 31 de Marzo and the long pedestrian street of Real de Guadalupe, and this is where I would book for a winter trip built on markets, cafés and day walks rather than beaches.
Most hotels cluster in the grid between the Andador Eclesiástico and Guadalupe neighbourhood, plus a quieter band uphill towards El Cerrillo. Expect rates to peak around Christmas and New Year, with mid-January to early February noticeably calmer. Choose a place with heating or thick blankets rather than a pool, and pick a room away from the bars on Guadalupe if you want early nights. The cobbled streets are steep, so a central address saves real effort at altitude.
Tuxtla Gutiérrez: gateway city, warm and practical
Tuxtla Gutiérrez, the state capital, sits at about 500 metres and stays warm all winter — daytime highs near 30°C — so it works as a one- or two-night landing point rather than a holiday base. Ángel Albino Corzo airport (TGZ) is roughly 35 minutes from the centre by road, and the ADO terminal on Boulevard Belisario Domínguez connects to San Cristóbal in around 1 hour 15 minutes and to Palenque in about 5 hours. If you land late, sleeping near the airport road or the centre beats pushing on in the dark.
The city's own draw is the Sumidero Canyon, reached by boat from Chiapa de Corzo about 20 minutes east, and the regional zoo and museum cluster along Calzada de los Hombres Ilustres. Hotels are business-oriented and cheaper than San Cristóbal in peak weeks. Book here for the first or last night of a winter circuit, not for the whole stay: the highlands give you the cool, dry weather you came for, and Tuxtla gives you heat and traffic.
Palenque and the jungle lowlands: warm days, humid nights
Palenque sits in the lowland jungle at around 150 metres, and winter is the best window: the rainy season eases, days run near 28°C and nights stay mild. The ruins and the town are separate — La Cañada, the small settlement beside the archaeological zone, is 8 kilometres from Palenque town along the Carretera Palenque-Ruinas. Staying in La Cañada puts you at the gate for an early morning entry before the tour buses arrive from San Cristóbal, roughly a 5-hour drive away.
The trade-off is limited dining and evening options in La Cañada, versus a proper town with restaurants, banks and the ADO station in Palenque itself. I would book two nights in La Cañada for the ruins, the museum and the Misol-Há and Agua Azul waterfalls, then move back to town or onward to San Cristóbal. Humidity is high year-round here, so a room with air conditioning and a fan matters more than any view.
How to combine them, and what to skip
A sensible winter route is three or four nights in San Cristóbal, two in Palenque and one in Tuxtla at either end, using colectivos and ADO coaches rather than hiring a car for the whole trip. Summer language schools in San Cristóbal fill beds in January, so reserve highland rooms a few weeks ahead. Bring layers: mornings in the highlands are genuinely cold, and the same suitcase needs light clothing for Palenque and Tuxtla.
Skip the long day trip from San Cristóbal to Palenque and back — it consumes most of a day in the vehicle. Skip San Juan Chamula on a Sunday if you dislike crowds, and skip the coastal Chiapas beaches in winter if you want reliable dry weather, since the Pacific side is a long transfer from the highlands. Puerto Arista and Boca del Cielo are worth it only if you build in an extra two days and accept a 5-hour drive.