Tenosique de Pino Suárez

Tenosique de Pino Suárez is the seat of Tenosique municipality in Tabasco's far southeast, on the right bank of the Usumacinta River at about 20 metres above sea level. It had 34,946 residents in the 2020 census, making it the state's fourth-largest city, and it is the commercial hub of the Los Ríos subregion; the El Ceibo border crossing into Guatemala feeds much of that trade. The name comes from the Maya Taanaj-Tsíik, usually read as house of the spinner, joined to the surname of José María Pino Suárez, who was born here, became Mexico's last vice president and was killed alongside Madero in 1913. The city has carried his name since 1915.

The centre is compact and easy to cover on foot: the main square, the riverside malecón with its mural and the colourful TENOSIQUE letters, and Pino Suárez's house. What draws the crowds is Carnival, which opens in late January with a flour fight and runs to Shrove Tuesday (in 2026 it ran from 19 January to 17 February). Its centrepiece is the Danza del Pochó, with cojoes, pochoveras and jaguars, which parades through the streets on four consecutive Sundays; it is recognised as Tabasco cultural heritage and hotels book up far ahead.

Outside town lies the Usumacinta Canyon, a protected area of rainforest with jaguars and white-tailed deer, where rafting trips run the San José and Desempeño rapids. Nearby are the Maya sites of Pomoná, where climbing the pyramids is still allowed, and San Claudio on the road to El Ceibo, plus the Boca del Cerro bridge about 10 km out, used for bridge jumping.