Cascada Roberto Barrios was an incredibly beautiful set of several waterfalls spanning a pretty decent length and we only really found because of luck. We happened to be in the area and someone had pinned it on an app we had on our phone. We had no idea what it looked like and as we spent a few hours winding our way through the mountains, along dirt roads, and through tiny villages we had no idea what would be waiting at the end. We had not seen a single photo and the description was limited so we were questioning whether or not our trip was worth it, well it was.
We went on an all-out mission to find the most amazing waterfalls in Mexico and while I’m sure we missed dozens we also found dozens of them. All of them were incredibly beautiful, some turned out to be crazy tourist traps while others like Cascada Roberto Barrios much to our delight were completely empty.
If you are in the Chiapas region you will 100% want to check out our posts about Cascada El Chiflon and Cascada El Aguacero
How to get to Cascada Roberto Barrios.
We went to Agua Azul first which was beautiful and you can read about that here, but before leaving there we started scanning the area for other waterfalls and this is when we came across Roberto Barrios..
As we left Agua Azul we started heading towards Misol Ha, which you can also read about here. We Spent the afternoon there before eventually making our way to Roberto Barrios. This was our biggest mistake, we tried to go directly from Misol Ha to Roberto Barrios.
Misol Ha to Cascada Roberto Barrios is only 28kms so we just figured what the hell, it can’t take that long….. Well I mean after 5 months in Mexico we should have known better. This road took a solid 2 hours maybe a little more. So if you’re coming from this direction my suggestion would be to go back towards Palenque on the 199 and when you get to the turnoff to Palenque turn right onto Mex307 from here you travel another 8kms and then turn right again towards Roberto Barrios. After 14kms you will come to the small town of Roberto Barrios. Literally, every single person in the town will know why you are there, there were a couple of signs pointing to the parking lot which is out the front of a cute old church. From here it’s a short walk to the end of the road where the water and the falls start.
If you’re waterfall hunting in Mexico then I would strongly suggest checking out Cascada El Aguacero which is not exactly next to but not too far away from Roberto Barrios.
There are a bunch of other amazing waterfalls in the area. Two more you are for sure going to want to check out are the Agua Azul Waterfalls and Misol Ha waterfall so hit the links to check them out.
I honestly think getting to Cascada Roberto Barrios will be a much more simple task if you have your own transport. That would also give you the freedom to visit several other falls in the area such as Agua Azul and Misol Ha. The other option is to take a taxi from Palenque, I’m not sure what the going rate would be but I’m sure you will be able to negotiate whatever the asking price is and only being 25kms away I can’t imagine it is too expensive.
The cost of entering Roberto Barrios is 20 pesos, which at the time was $1USD, which is a completely reasonable price.
Visiting Cascada Roberto Barrios.
So this is always my suggestion for anywhere you go but get there early, I’m talking sunrise early. We literally had the place to ourselves for the best part of 3 or 4 hours as the sun was rising.
If you can’t get there this early then it is not a huge problem here because unless you’re there on a weekend this place seemed relatively uncrowded. We stayed from first thing in the morning until 1 or 2 in the afternoon and only one small group of European tourists and a few Mexican families showed up, so crowds are not that much of an issue here.
When we returned from the falls we saw a few young kids selling their guiding services but we had already made our way all over the place so had no need for a guide, but we did find out that there are a few hidden caves and a jump spot, but with our lack of knowledge we did not actually know about them, so this might be an option for you to get the whole experience.
At no extra cost to you, some of the links in this article are affiliate links and by using them Sara and I receive a small commission. This goes towards helping us continue to explore and write articles like this. 😁
If you’re into mountains as well you might want to think about Climbing Pico de Orizaba which you can read all about in the link
Where to stay in Palenque.
There are a few options for places to stay around Palenque.
Casa Janaab Palenque, Casa Janaab is recently renovated, it’s clean and in the middle of Palenque so you have access to shops and restaurants it is also well priced. All rooms are air-conditioned as well in case that is a concern.
Dorms start at $13 USD
While Private rooms are starting at $45 USD.
Kin Balam Cabanas is located closer to the actual Palenque Ruins and is a little more of an overall experience. Tucked into the national park it comes complete with pool and a river that runs through it.
Dorms start at $9.50 USD
Private rooms are from $25.
If you’re after something a little more upmarket here are a few other options.
Hotel Boutique Quinta Chanabnal is a kind of expensive option, rooms start at $200 USD per night but they look incredible, rooms have aircon, there is a massive garden with an amazing looking pool complete with waterfalls.
Plaza Palenque Hotel & Convention Center is much more reasonably priced with rooms starting at $32 USD. The rooms look nice and it comes with a large outdoor area and pool.
Cascada Roberto Barrios or Agua Azul
As mentioned above we went to Roberto Barrios, Agua Azul, and Misol Ha. All three were incredible and had certain things about them that made them each special but personally if I were forced to make a choice between Roberto Barrios and Agua Azul I would pick Roberto Barrios. It is quite. The town is not blown up with tourism. You can be alone and the town is actually super cute. It is a little more difficult to get to but that should not deter you at all.
Being sustainable while traveling.
Mexico is an extremely beautiful place and between the beaches, the coral reefs, and all of the waterfalls there are a few small things we can do to help keep them pristine.
One thing that will help so much is having a Reusable Water Bottle this Sawyer one comes with its own filter and a million-gallon guarantee meaning that you should never need to replace it. It filters 99.9999% of bacteria meaning you can fill it from and drink out of any tap. As well as drink from lakes and streams. This completely cuts out the need to buy bottled water which is a huge thing in Latin America.
My first tip for this especially for the cenotes, and coral reefs or any delicate ecosystem really is to use a sunscreen specifically designed not to damage the reefs or impact waterways or marine life in any way.
Not only that most of them are better for your skin as well as the environment.
There are more and more options becoming available when it comes to this but here are a few of our favorites.
SunScreen
ThinkSport This is my choice personally but there is a range of other options.
Kiss My Face is one brand that is making a really nice mineral face and body cream. They are also cruelty-free so you can feel good about that, and it contains beeswax, green tea, sunflower oil, and sage.
Sun Bum is a super fun company that has a large range of reef-friendly mineral products. Ingredients include mineral zinc oxide, coconut oil, and cocoa seed butter.
All Good Sunscreen Butter is one we have not actually tried but have been hearing a lot of good things about online. All good use zinc oxide mineral ingredients to protect your skin, as well as coconut oil, beeswax, and vitamin E oil.
Insect Repellent
Bug spray is something else you should be conscious of using before going in the Roberto Barrios Waterfalls. If you’re just on your way to the beach or a waterfall you don’t need to drown yourself in bug spray before jumping in. A lot of the chemicals can be toxic and help do damage to the ecosystems.
I personally try and avoid any kind of repellent unless I am getting absolutely destroyed. I just have a thin pair of cotton pants and a long sleeve button up that is made of thin material to try and stay cool at the same time. However, we do carry bug spray and there are some pretty clever options out there so you might want to check these out. Not only will the first two options be better for you all-round they will also reduce your single-use plastics ever so slightly.
Exofficio Bugs Away Leggings these are for you if you’re like us and don’t like bug spray, they also have pants for men. We just put long pants on in the morning and evening when it starts to cool down and the bugs really start to come out.
Royal Robbins Mens Bug Barrier shirt I love long sleeve button-ups for travel, its too hot, no worries, undo the buttons, roll up the sleeves and you’re good. Cools down, roll the sleeves back down and do the buttons up. This shirt also comes with treated fabric to help repel bugs. I went for the plain light blue option but that’s all up to you.
Lemon Eucalyptus Insect Repellent If you are really hell-bent on some kind of spray because, well let’s face it sometimes it is just too hot to wear long-sleeved anything then this is probably your best option. DEET free and non-aerosol it has a couple of thousand 5 star reviews on Amazon which is pretty incredible really.
