💦 While staying in Palenque, we became experts on the local waterfalls… Agua Azul is without a doubt one of the most impressive in all of Mexico. Below we answer all your questions!
Fellow travel friends… welcome! If you are looking to take a day trip to some of Mexico’s best waterfalls, such as Agua Azul, Misol-Ha or Roberto Barrios near Palenque… then look no further. Consider me your Palenque travel Guru! Across several posts we explain everything you need to know about planning your visit to Palenque. And THIS post is dedicated to Agua Azul waterfalls, so carry on to find out more.
Just 60 km from Palenque, Agua Azul waterfalls are located in the State of Chiapas, Mexico. When the weather is warm, the beautiful blue water provides an irresistible escape from the humid days. Therefore, you are going to want to add this to you must see and do list!
Throughout this post we cover the options of how to get to Agua Azul, what it will cost for entrance, transport or tour. Including what you can expect to find, in terms of amenities and sights. We share the hidden secret spots, as well as the best swimming holes, that help you discover MORE than the average tourist.
Additionally we explain how to make the visit, without a tour, and how to see both Agua Azul and Misol-Ha together in a day trip. This is how way we chose to visit these two beautiful waterfalls of Mexico, documenting everything along the way… just for our readers 💃
If you are thinking of visiting the beautiful Agua Azul waterfalls of Palenque, Mexico then read on. I’m positive we will answer all your questions and more.
Table of Contents
About the Agua Azul Waterfalls, Palenque – Mexico
Agua Azul literally translates from Spanish to English as Blue Water, and it’s no wonder why!
From a rocky canyon known as La Boquilla (the mouthpiece), a steady torrent of water emerges, creating a picturesque river, series of waterfalls and cascading lagoons. Agua Azul waterfalls are part of the Xanil river, and they cover an area of around 2 to 2.5 km.
It owes it’s turquoise colour to the minerals, such as calcium carbonate, found in the water. Interestingly after chatting to the locals, we discovered because of these high levels of minerals, they don’t drink from the river.
And perhaps what makes Agua Azul waterfalls so distinctive, are the limestone coated rocks, over which the water flows. Due to its uniquely dramatic landscape, the Mexico Government declared Agua Azul along with a total area of 25 km2 a Protected Natural Area in 2000. Naturally this protected area is home to some impressive flora and fauna.
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How to Get from Palenque to Agua Azul
The Agua Azul waterfalls are located approximately 60 km from Palenque in Chiapas, Mexico. Conveniently they take about 90 minutes to reach from Palenque, which is the destination most travellers visit from.
Alternatively, Agua Azul can be visited on a day trip from San Cristobal. However this option takes considerably more time, with a 160 km (4 hour) drive required to reach the waterfalls. In this case, when planning a day trip from San Cristobal, I would recommend a tour.
But let’s not get ahead of ourselves… below we explain more about getting to Agua Azul and the best tours for the job.
📍 The Agua Azul and Misol-Ha Waterfalls are on the main 199 Ocosingo Highway. For this reason they can both be visited in one day. Jump to the map at the end of this post for the pinned locations.
Bests Tours to Agua Azul Waterfalls
Straight to the point… we have found the best tours to Agua Azul, Chiapas through Viator. Here we list the options and the important details of each tour:
1️⃣ You’ll notice that first option includes a combined tour of Agua Azul and Misol-Ha. In fact both of these waterfalls make for a super day trip, given they are so close to Palenque.
2️⃣ The second option, includes both waterfalls AND the Palenque Ruins. In addition it provides a pickup from Palenque and drop-off in San Cristobal or vice versa. It’s a private tour and therefore more expensive, but the overall price also depends on your pick-up location of choice.
3️⃣ The third option combines, Agua Azul, Misol-Ha and the Palenque Ruins, with pick-up and drop-off in Palenque.
4️⃣ I’m adding another option for those super keen travellers who want to book a return day trip from San Cristobal. Follow this link for Palenque Ruins and both waterfalls.
Self Drive Directions
🚙 If you’re driving yourself from Palenque – it’s easy peasy. Simply take the 199 Palenque – Ocosingo Highway.
At about 53 km out of Palenque take the turn-off towards the Agua Azul Waterfalls on your right. Follow the road down into the valley, stopping to pay the road tax just before the entrance to the village.
Carry onto the carpark area at the base of the walk, next to the entrance and ticket office. It’s very easy and if you have any questions, there are plenty of friendly locals to ask.
Collective / Colectivo Transport
🚐 For the budget travellers (like ourselves) embarking on a shared transport mission, then catch a collective / colectivo on Cuarta Calle Pte. A 59. You need to find the vans that are going to Ocosingo and there are at least two companies that do this route. If in doubt just ask for the colectivo to Agua Azul and someone will point you in the right direction. We paid 60 pesos per person, with the drop off on the main highway next to the Agua Azul turn off.
From here you will need to grab a taxi, and there are normally one or two waiting at the turn off. If not just wait five minutes and one will turn up. We paid 30 pesos per person which was 120 pesos for the entire taxi. You could walk but it’s a little over 4 km and will take you nearly an hour.
Below we explain in more detail, how to catch a colectivo to Misol-Ha waterfall if you’re adding it to your journey as a day trip.
What to Expect at Agua Azul Waterfalls
As we mentioned above Agua Azul waterfalls cover a large area, but not all are open to swimmers. The largest of the falls are there purely to admire from the viewing platforms. Nevertheless, there are MANY areas to swim… sorry worry not!
⭐️ Tip: There is a busy swimming area below the large waterfalls (pictured below). By comparison, you’ll find many quieter swimming holes further up the trail beyond the large waterfalls. And in my opinion, these were the better ones.
We found that Agua Azul was the busiest of the waterfalls that we visited around Palenque. A constant stream of local and international travellers were there to get the pictures. Though I felt less of these visitors were looking for a swim. As such it wasn’t difficult to wander further up the track to find a quieter swimming spot.
Because of the number of visitors it attracts, Agua Azul is well set up. You’ll find public bathrooms available for a small fee. There are also many cafes, restaurants and souvenir shops lining the trail, ready to cater for all needs. So if you wanted to spend a full day at Agua Azul and experience a piece of touristic Mexico culture, you’ll find everything you need here.
Read on for a more detailed explanation of what to expect on your visit to Agua Azul. Alternatively jump to the end of this post for the prices, our short video of Agua Azul and a location map.
Entrance and Lower Pools
The car park and taxi drop off is at the bottom section of the Agua Azul waterfalls. Here you will also find the ticket office. Entering via the main path, you’ll notice vendors and stalls on either side. From here either continue down the path or head right, following your nose towards the river.
It’s also here that you will find the first and most busy of the swimming areas. As mentioned above, this is located just below the main and largest of the cascadas, with all the ammenities close by.
Upper Falls and Pools
Follow the trail from the viewing platform up. Just above the large waterfalls these magic swimming holes (pictured above) were a fab place to bathe. Imagine a cool jacuzzi surrounded by lush Mexico jungle, this is where Agua Azul shines. Trust me… on a hot day you’ll need to drag yourself out.
Many swimmers had found their own posy among the gentle falls, to sit back and soak it up! You might want to do the same… or you might want to explore further up the trail as we did.
Beyond the Falls – The River & Walk
Our favourite part of the visit to Agua Azul was the river above and beyond the waterfalls. Simply follow the main trail up the river. The walk takes you past several swimming spots and picnic areas. The small restaurants and vendors continue up the path.
After some time, these start to thin out and you’ll find yourself heading to more open areas. And before long, there will be no-one else around. Boom… result! Pick a spot to rest and swim, or continue towards La Boquilla also known as the mouthpiece of the Xanil River.
Upper River – La Boquilla
How far you continue up the river, is really up to you. Of course this may be dictated by how much time you have. Obviously the further you walk, the less people you’ll see. And the upper section does have larger lagoons and some really pretty spots to swim in and enjoy.
Eventually we arrived at a large grassy area, where the trail became less of a trail. Check it out on our video below. It was here that a local lad fishing on the bank of the river advised us that we couldn’t go any further as it was his family’s private land.
It transpired however, that for a small fee, he could escort us up further to where the river disappeared into the canyon. Naturally being the curious folk we are, we thought why the heck not.
So from here we walked about another 10 minutes up river along a small walking trail. Stopping at another large pool at the bottom of a set of rapids, which you can see from the image above. From this standpoint we could look up to where the river gushed out a crack of the dense jungle – La Boquilla.
And listen! It wasn’t a life-changing, shatter the ground beneath your feet kind of view or experience. But it provided a nice perspective of Agua Azul, and at the same time it felt like we had reached the source of the Xanil River. It was also nice to meet and chat with one of the locals.
Best Time to Visit Agua Azul Waterfalls Mexico
Ideally the best time to visit Agua Azul is during the Mexico dry season between November to May. During this time of year the water flow is reduced, giving the cascadas the various hues of aqua blue that they’re known for. Also keeping the clarity of the deeper pools and giving you the best chance to enjoy the swimming holes.
During the wet season, the flow of water can increase significantly. This means rain brings soil run off, turning the water from blue to different shades of brown. As a reference, we visiting Agua Azul in April.
How Long You’ll Need for a Visit
Most tours plan for a two to three hour visit to Agua Azul. Realistically, this allows enough time to see the falls and take a quick dip.
However we spent around four and a half hours at the falls in total. One of our missions for the day, was to see if we could visit both Agua Azul and Misol-Ha in one day. Below we provide our recommended timetable if you wanted to do the same.
How to Visit Agua Azul & Misol-Ha Waterfalls in 1 Day
If you decide to visit without a guide, this is what a day trip to Agua Azul and Misol Ha might look like. The below is a breakdown of how we planned our visit to both of the falls, via public transport.
Note: We visited in April when the sunset in Palenque was about 6.30pm. This meant we had time to get back to our accommodation during daylight hours. The shortest days are in November and December when the sun sets around 5.30pm. In which case, I would adjust the schedule to arrive back in Palenque earlier for safety sake.
| 8.30am | 🚐 Colectivo from Palenque to Agua Azul exit |
| 9.30am | 🚕 Taxi from the highway to Agua Azul ticket office |
| 9.45am | 🧭 Explore the Agua Azul waterfalls and trail |
| 2.15pm | 🚕 Taxi back to the highway |
| 2.30pm | 🚐 Colectivo to Misol-Ha exit |
| 3.15pm | 🚶 Walk from the highway to Misol-Ha ticket office |
| 3.30pm | 🧭 Explore Misol-Ha waterfall and cave |
| 4.45pm | 🚶 Walk back to the highway |
| 5.00pm | 🚐 Colectivo to Palenque |
| 5.45pm | 💥 Arrive back in Palenque |
Taking a Colectivo from Agua Azul to Misol-Ha
A note on catching a colectivo on the main highway from Agua Azul to Misol-Ha! There are many minivan colectivos travelling back and forward between the two hubs Ocosingo and Palenque. This makes getting back to Palenque easy… but what if you want to go to Misol-Ha?
Essentially, it works the same way. Wave a colectivo down and negotiate the price for a drop off at the Misol-Ha turnoff. Then from here you walk… it takes about 15 minutes to the Misol-Ha waterfall ticket office. We did it with kids and it was no drama. All in all, it’s a really nice walk later in the afternoon.
✏️ We didn’t get the first colectivo, as we were four and didn’t fit in, but another followed along shortly after.
Read: Our post on visiting the Misol-Ha Waterfall
Prices and Costs of Agua Azul
So travellers! Now you know how we did it… let’s look at what you can expect to pay for a visit to Agua Azul waterfalls in Mexico 🇲🇽
Below we explain the total cost per person from entrance to Agua Azul waterfalls, to road tax, through to what we paid for public transport.
| Colectivo Palenque to Agua Azul | 60 MXN pp |
| Taxi Highway to waterfalls | 30 MXN pp 120 MXN full taxi |
| Road tax to Agua Azul | 40 MXN pp |
| Entry to Agua Azul | 40 MXN pp |
| Local guide to La Boquilla | 50 MXN |
| Taxi back to highway | 30 MXN pp 120 MXN full taxi |
Colectivo prices fluctuate and may well depend on the van you get. We asked about possible costs at the colectivo depot, and found that we paid around 10 to 20 pesos more per person. Also if you don’t like the cost quoted, just wait for the next one.
👨👩👧👦 Note: If you are travelling with kids, be sure to question the prices. We got away not having to pay some road taxes and entry for the kids when we asked.
All up for our family of four we spent around 1200 MXN pesos for an AMAZING full day out.
Location Map of Agua Azul Waterfalls – Mexico
Staying at Agua Azul
Agua Azul does have a pretty awesome camping spot. So if you’re travelling around Mexico with a tent this is definitely a place where you could chill for a few days. Go check it out on iOverlander to find out more details.
Reportedly, the camping is free. Others have said you do pay 50 pesos for parking, and 5 pesos to use the bathroom facilities.
If you don’t have a tent, then there are also cabins available for an accommodation alternative.
What to Pack for a Day Trip
Pack like you’re going for a day at the beach – swimmers, towels, sunblock, hat and sunglasses. Bring cash, a water camera and a dry bag. Budget travellers might want to pack lunch, otherwise there is plenty to choose from in terms of lunch and snacks.
⚠️ No drones are allowed at Agua Azul waterfalls.
If possible wear good shoes that are also great in water, or something you can slip on and off easily. This is because, you’ll spend time getting in and out of the water and traversing rocks. We don’t travel without our Tropic Feel Shoes and they were brilliant in and around Palenque for these water activities.
We also thoroughly recommend a LifeStraw, so that you don’t find yourself contributing to single use plastic waste.
Video of Agua Azul Waterfalls
Our short video below shows you some of the highlights of Agua Azul Waterfalls in Mexico. I will add… we are not YouTubers, so mind our amateur ways.
More on Palenque!
We loved Palenque… It’s a slightly more off the beaten track slice of Mexico. Which is our favourite kind of travel. Consequently, we spent a lot of time exploring this beaut little area in Chiapas and wrote many posts on our favourite places.
If you’re looking for more awesome things to do in and around Palenque, then check our other posts:
- A complete self-guided tour to Palenque Ruins + map
- How to visit Yaxchilan and Bonampak ruins + itinerary + prices
- Roberto Barrios Cascadas – are they worth the visit
- An all-you-need guide to Palenque + itinerary (coming soon)
- Should you visit Aluxes Ecopark – yes or no
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