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Buses and no Gringos (Reply to this comment)
by gringlien
This is probably the best and most accurate description of buses in Mexico. Our experience was almost exactly the same. Actually we found the second class buses to be often similar vehicles to the first class, but slightly older. And they did not run air-conditioning, but I think some had it. Biggest problem is that they did not usually have bathrooms, so if you had a long ride……
We only took the second class buses a couple of times. They definitely had more character, with families and all age groups. On one we had a couple of musicians playing for tips for their trip. Also, you could open the windows and hang your arm out, take better pictures, etc. And of course, in the central highlands, it’s never that hot in winter. They were not significantly less in cost. The biggest downside with the second class is that they tend to stop in all the little villages, which can get old after a while.
In 3-4 weeks going across the country, we saw a total of 3 Gringos on the buses!! So you really felt you were in Mexico. Only down side of the first class buses was they had these really, really, really bad Hollywood action/blood/guts movies, usually with no subtitles and no ability to turn off the sound. Take ear plugs with you.
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Dec 08 '06
6:57 pm PST
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yup (Reply to this comment)
by garym
Outstanding. Complete and funny.
The system is the same in Chile. The prices are unbelievably cheap.
Ed, I know what you mean about the roadside shrines. I´ve got tennis-elbow from signing so much.
Gary
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Dec 29 '02
12:55 pm PST
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Excellent review . . . (Reply to this comment)
by ed_grover
on bus travel. When I was there in the late 50s we took a bus from Acapulco to Taxco and then on to Mexico City. Then we took a bus to Vera Cruz. Even then they were all air-conditioned and comfortable, but the wayside shrines on the steep hillsides that were erected to commemorate deaths and accidents did throw me a bit. Later we took a local native bus from Vera Cruz to a ferry landing to get to Tlacotalpan. That was an experience!
Ed
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Dec 29 '02
7:47 am PST
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My only bus travel in Mexico... (Reply to this comment)
by vince006
...was in a Sentour bus, from Monterrey to San Antonio. Not sure what class we (it was a school trip) were travelling in, but man are those seats uncomfortable!
Also, the driver(s) got lost in San Antonio and it took us 3 hours to find that damn Quality Inn, sacrificing a trip we were going to do to the SA zoo.
Anyway, pretty cool and fun to read (not to say informative) review, as always. :)
~Vince
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Dec 28 '02
8:05 pm PST
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When we lived in El Paso (many years ago) I always got a (Reply to this comment)
by Howard_Creech
kick out of seeing the Mexican buses (whenever we were in Mexico) that looked just like Greyhound buses, except they had a running jackrabbit logo instead of the running Greyhound. A very thorough and informative primer on bus travel
in Mexico.
Howard
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Dec 28 '02
7:13 pm PST
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Great piece with great advice (Reply to this comment)
by eurowalker
Mexican bus travel ranks as one of the more pleasant surprises in a country full of all kinds of travel surprises. I took my 9-year-old daughter on a jaunt between Mazatlan and Guadalajara a few years back, and we had the time of our lives. You've provided excellent advice on the "how to". One note - as dependable as the buses are, there are those intervening surprises that will sometimes have their way with you. I once took an overnight bus to PV from Guad to catch a morning flight; about 10 miles outside town, our bus got a flat tire - 5 in the morning - with no replacement possible 'til much later. We managed to snag a passing pulmonia, but I learned that with slim support services, cutting it close there is a bad idea. I've also spent a day in Guanajuato trying to retrieve my travelers checks and credit cards after being pickpocketed while getting on a bus in the previous town - by the time I knew what had happened, the bus was already underway. So as good as the buses are, one must remember that they get you around MEXICO, with all its lovable eccentricities.
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Dec 28 '02
3:42 pm PST
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Most of us can't afford deluxe very often in our lives (Reply to this comment)
by naphtalia
but when I travel abroad - by train or bus - I always check out the cost of the highest class travel. Sometimes the difference is worth it for the pampering. I may never fly intercontinental in first class, but I can afford the AVE in Spain from Sevilla to Madrid and get a taste of how the other half lives.
Great advice.
talia
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Dec 27 '02
2:25 pm PST
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