Gateway to Mexico's Grand Canyon — Tuxtla Gutiérrez is the base for the Cañón del Sumidero where the Grijalva River runs 1,000 metres below cliff walls, for the ZOOMAT all-native wildlife zoo, and for San Cristóbal de las Casas in the highland Maya heartland 90 minutes away
Tuxtla Gutiérrez is the capital and largest city of Chiapas — Mexico's southernmost and most Indigenous state. The Cañón del Sumidero (12 km north) is one of Mexico's most spectacular natural features — the Grijalva River runs through a canyon with walls rising 1,000 metres above the water, accessible by boat from Chiapa de Corzo. The Zoológico Regional Miguel Álvarez del Toro (ZOOMAT) is one of the best zoos in Latin America, with all-native Chiapas wildlife: jaguars, quetzals, tapirs, and spider monkeys in naturalistic habitats. San Cristóbal de las Casas (80 km east, 2,100 m elevation) — o…
The Zoques inhabited the Tuxtla valley for over 2,000 years before Spanish colonial contact in 1528. Chiapas was part of the Captaincy General of Guatemala — it only joined Mexico in 1824 after a referendum chose Mexico over Central America. The city was renamed Tuxtla Gutiérrez in 1848 to honour liberal governor Joaquín Miguel Gutiérrez. Chiapas's Indigenous Maya communities constitute 30% of the state's population. The Zapatista uprising (January 1, 1994, EZLN) erupted in the Chiapas highlands partly in response to NAFTA's effects on Indigenous farmers.