Bus Travel From Cancun to Tijuana?

[nedgoudy]

i am flying into Cancun and meet my GF who is fluent in SPANISH and has traveled via bus extensively ALONE in Mexico, BUT... I need to know how much a total trip via bus from Cancun to Tijuana would cost and how many days that would take AT THE LEAST...

Also... is it safe to eat food in central mexico or do you take your life in your own hands? (I realize this may be a gringo question to the max... but I gotta ask??? I figure to take plenty of Immodium AD with me as it is, but would like to know what to expect.

Any advise from veteran travelers would be a great thing. I am not opposed to taking a week or 10 days or more for the trip from Cancun to Los Angeles, but just need to get an idea what to expect???

Ned

[nedgoudy]

Originally Posted by nedgoudy

i am flying into Cancun and meet my GF...
Any advise from veteran travelers would be a great thing. I am not opposed to taking a week or 10 days or more for the trip from Cancun to Los Angeles, but just need to get an idea what to expect???

Ned

Well... I guess if anyone from this forum DID get on a bus in Cancun and attempt to ride it to Tijuana that they must have died on the way and we will never know what happened to them.

What other explanation could there be?

But seriously folks... anyone had any experience riding a bus out of Cancun into the North beyond?

Ned

[d360]

Hi Ned,

It looks like no one has the answer, yet. I've traveled extensively throughout Mexico and while I've never been Cancun north I've been Cancan south to the border and I found it to be perfectly safe and enjoyable. Much better than driving.

I've taken buses up by Cabo, down by Zihu, through the interior of the country and never had any problems to speak of. Once while driving I did get pulled over by the Mexican police and extorted me for 500 pesos.

The food is incredible! if you like Mexican food and if you search out the good stuff. Some of the best food I've had is from the small food stands run by old ladies. Cheap and Good!

You can always go to an expensive hotel if you want to eat more American style food and prices.

ADO, Omnibuses de Mexico, and Primera Plus are some of the major first class bus lines.

The luxury buses are usually called Clase Lujo or Clase Executivo.I have ridden the luxury buses and they are excellent. These have only three seats across, instead of the usual four seats. The cost is about US$3-4 for every 100km covered.

Here's a link that might help:
https://www.ticketbus.com.mx/ticketbus/eng/index.jsp

Let me know if you have any more questions.

[nedgoudy]

Originally Posted by d360

Hi Ned,

It looks like no one has the answer, yet. I've traveled extensively throughout Mexico and while I've never been Cancun north I've been Cancan south to the border and I found it to be perfectly safe and enjoyable. Much better than driving.
Let me know if you have any more questions.

Hola...

Upon review of the internet, and discussions with GF on the matter I now realize that BUS travel in Mexico is WIDE OPEN... clean, safe and convenient...

I am going to spend 40 days and see it all... I am learning as much Spanish as possible, but my GF is fluent and I expect that we will have no problems throughout the trip...

I would NOT consider this trip however if I weren't with a person I trust implicitly who has traveled extensively in Mexico previously and is capable of saving my butt from the Federales if the occasion should call for it. :o)

Hasta la Vista Compadres...

Un informe detallado seguirá

Hasta Entonces...

Ned

Well sounds interesting! Be sure and let us know how your trip went.

[nedgoudy]

Originally Posted by everyann

Well sounds interesting! Be sure and let us know how your trip went.

Just a word about Bus Travel in Mexico.

I returned about two weeks ago from doing
45 days in country. Flew into Cancun, did
at least a week or more in each city of interest.

GF spoke the language and I got good enough
to get a bus and order food.

Bus travel between Cancun and Mexico City
and Guadalajara and Alcapulco is SUPERB.

First class bus, Primero Plus Class, all great.
Air conditioned, comfortable, on time, and on
Primero Plus you get snacks and drinks at
every stop. Even 2nd Class buses were not
bad. Did have a bad experience on a 1st class
bus from Puebla to Cuernavaca. The damned
air conditioning went out and the driver just drove
on. I began making jokes in Spanish, loundly so
that all the locals could hear to the effect that the
next stop the bus would make was in HELL because
it was so f'n hot. But other than that, the entire trip was
great.

1st Class buses take US credit cards. Local, or Regional
buses require CASH in Pesos. City buses can get you
EVERYWHERE if you are willing to ride a bus with steel
seats with no padding. In the larger cities however, city buses
are just about as good as Los Angeles.

Traveling by bus in Mexico is superb since the country
is so beautiful. Starting in Cancun, you have pristine
beaches and jungle, then jungle and such to Veracruz
and a variety of other climes and geography all the way
to the US. Mexico has ancient volcanoes everywhere
and that makes for scenic beauty beyond compare.

The bus trip from Puebla to Cuernavaca for example
took us through an area so beautifutl, I had only seen
pictures of some places in China that were so grand.

And the benefit of course, is that you just sit in air
conditioned comfort and watch the scenery roll by.

Taxi's are available, but we didn't use them except in
relative emergencies. Fares start at about $3.00 US for
a taxi up to about 5 miles. We took one Taxi in Mexico
City however for the two of us, from one side of town to
the other. (About 20 miles) that cost $14.00 US. equivalent.

WARNING HOWEVER: We essentially ended our
Mexico trip in Guadalajara and took a 1st class bus
all the way back to Los Angeles. THE FEDERAL
POLICE, DRUG POLICE, FEDERAL MEXICAN ARMY
and the agricultural inspectors in EVERY state of Mexico
between Guadalajara and Tijuana PULLED us over, boarded
the bus with MACHINE GUNS, made everyone get out of the
bus and got into the guts of the Storage compartment and went
through our belongings, alledgedly looking for DOPE. I assume
they were also looking for subversives and Arabs posing as Mexican's
and for WMD. I learned quickly to say in Spanish. Good Evening, my
wife and I are NOT carrying anything dangerous in our luggage. No guns,
No drugs, No alcohol, etc. We are friends of the people of the United States
of Mexico and look forward to returning here soon. Blah Blah... On one occasion,
they pulled the bus over and made all the men get out and checked us against
a picture book. Again, apparently for WMD type issues.

10 or 12 stops in the 40 hours it took to get from Guadalajara to Tijuana.

Other than that, the buses were THE WAY to go. One word about City Buses
however. Crowded city buses, with all the potholes in the street will quickly give
you the strength of Superman, for standing in the aile,, (in my case, with a heavy
day pack on my back) and holding onto the rail, balancing to keep from falling on
your butt, and after 15 miles, beginning to feel like you were being cruxified from the
pain. But after about week three, I became invincible.

Final Thought: Mexico is a magical place. In 45 days, I spent what AAA asks
for 7 days in Cancun. We traveled by bus, stayed in youth hostels and cheap(er)
hotels, ate where the locals ate, and had the time of our lives. I highly recommend
Mexico for adventure, faith building experiences, making new friends and learning
a new way of life. I will never be the same person again after this trip. And we intend
to go back in successive years and see Northern Mexico, Chiapis, Oxoca, and then
into Belise, Paraguy, Bolivia and more.

Ned
age 57

[natnuts]

that bus link i tried . no departures from tijuana
what else can i try?

[hermandaz]

i've done this route and the bus fare between Cancun and Tijuana cost me around 200 Mexican pesos, which is about $150. I normally would say that the bus is best, but it took around 12 hours to get there. I thought that flying would've been better at then end so I'd say fly to Tijuana.

[Qatarina]

If choose to fly between Cancun and Tijuana, be sure the flight is routed through Mexico City as it'll work out much cheaper budget airlines such as Aerolineas Volaris and Aviacsa.

By the way, it won't be much cheaper if you book a round-trip ticket, so get two one-way trips as this will allow you to travel by bus or taxi.

I found a flight on Aviacsa from Tijuana to Cancun for less than $100 one way, even with a stop in Mexico City. You could return to Tijuana from Cancun by bus, or fly from Cancun to Tijuana, again via Mexico City.

[hermandaz]

just wanted to share some tips for traveling safe by bus in Mexico since nobody seems to have shared some light yet...

Basically, if you want to bus around mexico whether is from Cancun to Tijuana or Guadalajara as a tourist you need leave that flashy camera around your neck, and the lonelyplanet guidebook back home, or at least out of sight!

Im amazed at the amount of people I come across that complaint about safety in Mexico, but forget this universal(though untold) truth..."don't make yourself a mark for thieves"

Also, why would you want to go to Tijuana?... Tijuana is not a good part of mexico so I would recommend going to acapulco or ixtapa.