17 Best Hotels in Chiapas and Tabasco, Mexico

On the outskirts of town, Best Western is a haven of gardens with fruit trees, flowering plants, and a secluded swimming pool. Both the rooms and the bungalow-style junior suites have colonial-style fittings and furnishings. The Calabaza Grill serves a buffet breakfast daily and has Mexican specialties for lunch and dinner.

A large natural pool forms in a bend in the Río Nututún, which runs through the grounds of this hotel. The rooms in the low-slung main building are plain but ample. Book a suite and you'll have a terrace overlooking the gardens.

Its architecture may nod to traditional but this small hotel feels every bit as modern as it is. Seven suites surround the open-air restaurant in the hotel's courtyard, which is candlelit by night. Rooms have shiny hardwood floors and bright colors.

If you want to stay near the ruins, this is the place. Amid colorful wild ginger and aromatic jasmine, this cluster of spacious bungalows feels miles from anywhere. Your bungalow has a dressing room, sitting area, and a bedroom with floor-to-ceiling windows overlooking gardens. If you aren't already close enough to nature, there is a pair of mahogany rocking chairs on your back porch. From many rooms you can see the nearby stream that fills the immense lagoon-style pool. Don't confuse this Chan-Kah with the hotel of the same name in town (that one is called Chan-Kah Centro.) This hotel has more character, and it's closer to the ruins.

This colonial-style hotel is surrounded by thriving gardens. A small waterfall and creek run through the grounds. All the rooms, with fabrics made by local artisans, have balconies facing the gardens. The palm-lined pool has several hammocks where you can spend a lazy afternoon.

Overlooking the sparkling Laguna de las Ilusiones, this hotel in a small chain of Mexican business-class hotels is surrounded by coconut-palm, mango, and cacao trees that hide the neighboring hotels. The best rooms are in the newest wing beyond the lushly landscaped pool. A buffet breakfast is included in the rate.

A pond filled with flowers is one of the many touches that make this hostelry in a restored colonial mansion stand out. Glass ceilings in the lobby and atrium make for beautiful lighting. A lovely newer wing across the street, also in a colonial home, has a colonnaded courtyard and large, quiet rooms painted light colors and filled with tasteful photographs of San Cristóbal. The restaurant, which surrounds a courtyard with banana trees, serves international dishes.

Dating from 1740, this colonial-era house has been declared a historical monument. Graceful colonnades separate three interior courtyards. Most of the simple guest rooms have large windows overlooking the courtyard or corridors; a few rooms on the second floor have views of the mountains. The restaurant, Doña Rita, sits among the elegant columns on one of the porches. The hotel is three blocks east of the zócalo.

This hotel is across from Parque-Museo La Venta. After a day exploring, head to the in-house spa. The low-slung building's gleaming white facade is softened by a Spanish tile roof. Rooms are simply furnished, quite comfortable, and complete with a small balcony. The nicest ones overlook the pool. The hotel offers many Web-only promotions.

Although it's stodgy on the outside, this luxury hotel lightens up once you pass through the front doors. The modern Ceiba Café serves a superb breakfast buffet; the more intimate Amate makes a great choice for quieter dinners. With marble floors and polished modern wood furnishings, the guest rooms are some of the city's most luxurious.

Although this hotel is uninspiring, it's quiet and well located on a posh suburban street, La Cañada. The spacious terrace is marked by a huge thatch-roofed sitting area where people meet for coffee in the morning or drinks in the afternoon. Nearby is the tree-shaded pool, which has a mosaic of a hibiscus blossom. Rooms are adequate, marred only by fluorescent lights.

This graceful high-rise sits in the middle of the Zona Luz, not far from downtown. A waterfall sets the mood in the spacious marble lobby. Seemingly dozens of employees are ready at a moment's notice to bring a fresh towel or hail a taxi. The best of the tastefully decorated rooms are in the back.

The downtown location—on a quiet street near the main plaza—puts you close to everything in the Zona Luz. The lobby and common areas are painted in eye-popping bright pink, blue, and yellow. Ask for a room overlooking the river on one of the upper floors.

This comfortable hotel is one of the newest in the area. Spacious, modern, and clean rooms are distributed in 16 large buildings with thatch roofs that they call bungalows. The inviting lobby is also under a palapa roof, as is the large adjacent restaurant. You can access Wi-Fi in the lobby.