- Travel by bus in Mexico
Buses are an important mode of travel in Mexico and the country has a number of excellent long-distance bus lines with service between major cities as well as many smaller local bus lines that will take you into the smallest and remotest communities.
Major bus lines have Deluxe or Business-class (De Lujo or Ejecutivo) service buses with comfortable seats, a/c, bathroom facilities and, often, videos for entertainment. Some offer refreshments to their passengers. Smaller local lines will have First (Primera) or Second (Segunda) class services, often without reclinable seats or a/c, more suitable for short trips than long hauls. Fares are reasonable and buses provide a mode of travel that allows you to view the countryside at leisure.
When traveling by bus, be sure to carry water and perhaps a few snacks with you, and if you’re on a night service, be sure to dress warmly – even though it may feel warm and muggy outside, night buses in particular tend to keep their a/c up high (maybe to help the driver stay awake!) and it can become uncomfortably chilly if you don’t have a sweater or jacket around your shoulders and socks on your feet.
Servicio Directo or Express denotes direct or express service. Even though many of these will still have intermediate stops, they’ll be short and few.
Click here for a Glossary of terms useful for bus and other travel in Mexico…
Mexico City, as the country’s transportation hub, has 4 major bus terminals in different areas of the city for lines servicing specific states or regions:
Northern Bus Terminal (Terminal Central Norte)
Closest Metro Station: “Autobuses del Norte” (ADO), Line 5.
Destinations: Aguascalientes, Baja California, Chiapas, Chihuahua, Coahuila, Colima, Durango, Guanajuato, Hidalgo, Jalisco, Michoacan, Nayarit, Nuevo Leon, Puebla, Oaxaca, Querétaro, San Luis Potosi, Sinaloa, Sonora, Tamaulipas, Veracruz, U.S. connections
Southern Bus Terminal (Terminal Central Sur – Tasqueña)
Closest Metro Station: Taxqueña, Line 2.
Destinations: Chiapas, Guerrero, Morelos, Puebla, Oaxaca, Tabasco, Veracruz.
Eastern Bus Terminal (Terminal de Oriente – TAPO)
Closest Metro Station: San Lazaro, Line 1
Destinations: Campeche, Chiapas, Puebla, Oaxaca, Quintana Roo, Tlaxcala, Tabasco, Veracruz, Yucatán.
Western Bus Terminal (Terminal Centro Poniente)
Closest Metro Station: Observatorio, Line 1
Destinations: Guerrero, Jalisco, Michoacán, Nayarit, Querétaro, State of Mexico, Sinaloa, Sonora
| General Services |
| Central de Autobuses del Norte – Northern Bus Terminal, Mexico D.F. |
| Ticket Bus – Consolidated ticketing service for many major bus lines |
| Bus Lines |
| ADO GL – Campeche, Chihuahua, D.F., Oaxaca, Puebla, Quintana Roo, Tabasco, Tamaulipas, Veracruz, Yucatan |
| Autotransportes de Baja California – Baja California |
| Autrotransportes Turisticos del Noroeste – Chiapas. |
| Cristobal Colon – Chiapas, D.F., Mexico State, Morelos, Oaxaca, Puebla, Veracruz |
| Estrella Blanca – Majority of regions in Central Mexico |
| Estrella de Oro – Aguascalientes, D.F., Guanajuato, Guerrero, Morelos, Queretaro |
| Estrella Roja – D.F., Puebla |
| Enlaces Terrestres Nacionales (ETN)- 33 destinations in north-eastern and central Mexico |
| Grayline – specialized tours, various destinations |
| Grupo Senda – Coahuila, Tamaulipas, Nuevo Leon, San Luis Potosi & U.S. |
| Linea UNO – Chiapas D.F., Oaxaca, Puebla, San Luis Potosi, Tabasco, Tamaulipas, Quintana Roo, Yucatan |
| Omnibus de Mexico – Aguascalientes, Chihuahua, Coahuila, Colima, D.F., Durango, Guanajuato, Hidalgo, Jalisco, Michoacan, Nuevo Leon, Queretaro, San Luis Potosi, Tamaulipas, Veracruz |
| Parhikuni – Michoacan, Guerrero |
| Primera Plus – Aguascalientes, Colima, D.F. Jalisco, Guanajuato, Guerrero, Mexico State, Michoacan, Queretaro, San Luis Potosi |
| Pullman de Morelos – Morelos, D.F. |
| TMT Caminante Mex, D.F - Toluca, DF, Atlacomulco |
| Transpais – Tamaulipas |
| Tufesa – Sonora, Sinaloa, U.S. |
