Halfway through a boat tour of Sumidero Canyon, guides slow down for one particular stretch of cliff. From the water, it looks almost too deliberate to be natural: a towering, moss-green shape climbing the rock face, tapering toward the top the way a pine tree does. Locals named it Árbol de Navidad — the Christmas Tree — and once you've seen it from the river, the name makes complete sense.
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| The tree-shaped moss formation of Árbol de Navidad |
Where to Find It and What You're Actually Looking At
The formation is located inside Sumidero Canyon National Park in the Mexican state of Chiapas, on a limestone cliff wall that rises to nearly 250 metres above the Grijalva River. What you're seeing isn't paint or a carved sculpture. It's centuries of mineral-rich water running down the same stretch of rock, leaving behind calcium carbonate deposits that moss and small plants have taken root in. Over time, that buildup spread into the shape locals settled on: a giant, slightly lopsided evergreen.
Boats leave from a handful of piers around Chiapa de Corzo and Chicoasén, and Árbol de Navidad is usually one of the two or three stops every tour makes, alongside the pink-walled Cueva de Colores further along the canyon. You don't hike to it. You see it from the water, the guide pointing it out as the boat idles just offshore.
Why It Only Flows Part of the Year
Here's the detail most first-time visitors tend to misunderstand: the formation isn't a waterfall that runs year-round. Árbol de Navidad depends on rainfall higher up the canyon walls, so the water only cascades down the formation during the rainy season, roughly June through October. Outside that window, the "tree" is still visible — the moss and rock structure don't disappear — but it's dry, more of a green stain on the cliff than a moving waterfall. If seeing actual water is the point of your visit, timing matters more than almost anything else.
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| A closer look at the unique tree-shaped structure |
A Formation That Nearly Didn't Survive
This section is the part of the story that doesn't make it into most travel blogs. Árbol de Navidad has been damaged before, more than once. A severe drought in Chiapas around 2014 dried the structure out so badly that it lost much of its water flow and, with it, some of the moss cover that gives it its shape and colour. It wasn't until 2020 that the formation recovered its usual flow, according to regional coverage from México Desconocido.
Separately, sections of the rock have weakened over the years to the point that speleologists — cave and rock-formation specialists from both Mexico and Italy — have stepped in to assess the damage and help stabilise it. That's not a small detail. A limestone formation like this is fragile in ways that aren't obvious from a passing boat tour: dry spells, human traffic, and shifts in the canyon's water table can all speed up erosion that took centuries to build.
The Canyon Around It
Sumidero Canyon itself is worth knowing a bit about, since Árbol de Navidad is really one highlight inside a much larger geological story. The canyon was carved by a fault roughly 30 to 35 million years ago, around the same era the Grand Canyon began forming, and its walls climb as high as 1,000 metres in places. It's one of the defining natural landmarks of Chiapas — the canyon's silhouette even appears on the state's official coat of arms.
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| Viewing the formation from a canyon boat tour |
Frequently Asked Questions
Where is Árbol de Navidad located?
It is located inside Sumidero Canyon National Park in Chiapas, Mexico, on a cliff wall above the Grijalva River.
When does the waterfall actually flow?
Mainly during the rainy season, roughly June through October. Outside those months, the moss formation is visible but usually dry.
How do you get there?
By boat tour, departing from piers near Chiapa de Corzo or Chicoasén. There's no hiking trail directly to the formation.
Why is it shaped like a tree?
Centuries of mineral-rich water running down the same section of cliff left calcium deposits that moss and small plants grew into, gradually forming the tapered, evergreen-like shape.
Has the waterfall ever been damaged?
Yes. A severe drought around 2014 significantly reduced its flow, and it didn't fully recover until 2020. Rock specialists have also intervened at times to help stabilise weakened sections of the formation.
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| The cliff wall holding the Christmas tree formation |
Mexico's Christmas Tree Waterfall
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| Water flowing down the formation in the rainy season |
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| A tour boat passing the Christmas tree waterfall |
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| Moss and plant growth shaping the formation over time |
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| The towering canyon walls surrounding the waterfall |
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| The waterfall is seen from higher in the canyon. |
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| The full scale of the formation against the cliff |
Árbol de Navidad Waterfall: Mexico’s Christmas Tree Rock Formation
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| A final view of Árbol de Navidad in Sumidero Canyon |
Conclusion
Árbol de Navidad isn't a waterfall you stumble across. You go looking for it, usually as part of a longer canyon boat tour, and the payoff is a formation that took Chiapas centuries to build and, at least once, nearly lost. Visit in the rainy season to see it flowing, and take the guide's commentary seriously — this waterfall is one of those places where the backstory adds as much as the view.
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References & Sources:
- México Desconocido: Cascada Árbol de Navidad en el Cañón del Sumidero
- MyBestPlace: Árbol de Navidad, a Waterfall Shaped Like a Christmas Tree
- Destinos México: Parque Nacional Cañón del Sumidero
- El Momento Chiapas: Cascada Árbol de Navidad
- CONANP — Sumidero Canyon National Park
- Visit Mexico — Sumidero Canyon
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