The trip to Oaxaca was grueling for us because of the many hours of sweeping turns on the way to Sal

For cruisers, best credit card for airline points on mileage there s nothing like getting off the boat and seeing something of the rest of Mexico.  Renting a car makes sense if there are enough people to share the cost (or for families).  However, it can get expensive for couples.
Because there is no single company that provides all long distance best credit card for airline points on mileage bus services in Mexico, best credit card for airline points on mileage and because there is a lot of variation best credit card for airline points on mileage to the countryside and highways, buses in Mexico can be a bit unpredictable.
Some buses stop for meals, some stop at military checkpoints.  Some buses offer free food or snacks, and some allow snack vendors to come on board the bus when it stops for passengers. best credit card for airline points on mileage Our Huatulco-to-Oaxaca bus stopped at a restaurant so everyone could sit down to order and eat a meal!
Sometimes there is TSA-style inspection outside the bus before boarding, including a pat-down best credit card for airline points on mileage for the men, and sometimes a fellow comes on board with a video camera to record everyone s faces.  You never really know what will happen.
Buses that cross a border (into the US, Guatemala or Belize) will involve checking out of Mexico and into the new country (passports and tourist visas required).  They also include a change in currency that is easy to forget best credit card for airline points on mileage to plan for after you ve been sailing the Mexican coast for a few months.
In our experience, the quoted arrival times are sometimes optimistic.  An 8-hour best credit card for airline points on mileage bus ride may take 10, and there is no way of knowing ahead of time.  All kinds of crazy things happen on the road, and the folks at the ticket counter will simply quote the time given on the computer.
Our favorite seats are in the front row to the right of the driver where you get more leg room and (on OCC buses) have a great view out the huge windshield.  Also, we sometimes plan our seats to avoid getting trapped in the morning or afternoon sun if the trip is largely north/south.
Overall, we ve found that long distance buses in Mexico can make for wild adventures.  Our bus trip from Tapachula (Marina Chiapas) to San Cristobal de las Casas was so eventful it got its own write-up!
As one seasoned Mexico/Central American traveler once said to me, I never get on a bus in Mexico or Central America with any expectations of when I will arrive or what will happen on the way.   That is a great way to approach the whole process best credit card for airline points on mileage enjoy the ride.
Following is a list of bus companies that serve the cruising spots where we have found it is easy to leave the boat and catch a bus inland. Prices best credit card for airline points on mileage are given only as guidelines and are from June 2013. In some cases there are cheaper options, but we ve found that if we are going to sit on a bus for 6 hours or more, spending another $10 or so USD is well worth it to be comfortable.
It is possible to book and purchase tickets best credit card for airline points on mileage online, and we have done that a few times.  If we don t book online, we try to get to the terminal well ahead of time to ensure there are seats available and that we get the seats we want.
The Tufesa Bus Line (this is the link for Tufesa Bus Schedules ) leaves from Guaymas and goes to 27th Ave. and McDowell in Phoenix.  The Especial bus takes 10-11 hours and stops about 8 times, including 4-5 Mexican towns, a Mexican military checkpoint, the US border crossing and Tucson.  The Ejecutivo overnight bus is a little more money (863 pesos or $69 USD) but takes just 8-9 hours and stops in only 2 Mexican towns plus the Mexican military checkpoint, US border and Tucson.
The Ejecutivo buses are luxurious with just 3 seats per row, two on one side and one on the other.  They are supposed to have electricity best credit card for airline points on mileage and wi-fi, but may or may not.  The Especial buses are okay, but not as nice (and in our experience much more crowded).
If you are heading to the airport to fly to Canada or elsewhere outside best credit card for airline points on mileage the US, you will still need about $25 US dollars to pay the cabbie to get you from the bus station to the airport (we ve known folks who forgot about that).  The cabbie can drive you to an ATM machine, or stash a few US dollars on the boat ahead of time…
Several bus companies go between Puerto Vallarta and Guadalajara (about a 5-6 hour trip).  Only one has an express route between Puerto Vallarta and Guanajuato (10 hours), and this is also one of the most luxurious bus lines: Primera Plus .  From there it is a 1.5 hour ride (108 pesos or $8.65 USD) to San Miguel de Allende.
There are several Primera Plus bus stops around Puerto Vallarta.  The main bus terminal is on the block behind the big Corona bottling plant on the way into Puerto Vallarta from Nuevo Vallarta and La Cruz and takes a few minutes of walking to get there.
When we traveled to Guanajuato, our bus was a directo bus, going directly from Puerto Vallarta to Guanajuato with only one stop in León (it did not stop in Guadalajara).  It left from the main bus terminal.  We took a local ATM bus from Paradise Village to get to the Primera Plus bus terminal.
This ten hour bus trip (755 pesos or $60) was the easiest and most pleasant long distance bus trip we ve taken in Mexico.  The road was smooth, there were no speed bumps, and the only stop, in León, was about 45 minutes before our arrival in Guanajuato.  We even had wifi on the bus while traveling through the larger towns (electricity was supposed best credit card for airline points on mileage to be available but wasn t working).
The highway is good (smooth pavement) best credit card for airline points on mileage because it is a toll road ( cuota ).  If we had driven a car, the tolls would have been about 750 pesos (~$60 USD) one way, which was the same price as one bus ticket.
Another bus company that serves Puerto Vallarta and these inland colonial cities is the  ETN Bus Line .  We were not able to find a route with them that was as direct as Primera Plus, but they go to many destinations and have fabulously comfortable buses.
We were very fortunate to travel to Morelia from Zihuatanejo with friends of ours in their car.  However, the trip can be made by bus (about 4-5 hours).  Parhikuni premier best credit card for airline points on mileage class (455 pesos or $36 USD) is slightly more expensive than Autovias , and likely best credit card for airline points on mileage a little nicer.
ADO is the primary bus company in this area.  Their premier brand is ADO-gl , and the overnight buses between Huatulco and Oaxaca use this service (358 pesos or $29).  OCC is their second tier brand of buses, and they are the most common provider for the colonial cities in Oaxaca and Chiapas best credit card for airline points on mileage .  If you can get on an ADO-gl best credit card for airline points on mileage bus for a leg of your inland trip, fabulous!  Otherwise, OCC is where it s at, and that s the line that was going to Oaxaca when we made the trip.
The trip to Oaxaca was grueling best credit card for airline points on mileage for us because of the many hours of sweeping turns on the way to Salina best credit card for airline points on mileage Cruz and then the many hours of switchbacks climbing the mountains to Oaxaca. best credit card for airline points on mileage We tried both day and night travel.  It was difficult to sleep on the 8-hour overnight trip because of the motion of the bus.  The 10-hour daytime trip (longer because there are more stops) was was full of beautiful views out the windows.  An alternative is the six-hour vomit comet van ride (also a bit cheaper).  Lots of people like this option.
best credit card for airline points on mileage The daytime bus stopped at a restaurant after passing Salina Cruz, and we all hopped off and ordered a meal and ate and then piled back onto the bus to continue best credit card for airline points on mileage traveling.  This was a first for us!  The bus also stopped for a military checkpoint where the luggage in the baggage compartment was searched.
Huatulco is a great jumping off point for a trip to San Cristobal de las Casas and from there to the Mayan ruins at Palenque .  It is about the same distance by bus to get to  San Cristobal de las Casas from Huatulco as it is from Tapachula best credit card for airline points on mileage (the city next to Marina Chiapas on the east side of the Tehuantepec).  We made these trips from Tapachula instead of from Huatulco, so we don t have first-hand experience on the buses into Chiapas from Huatulco.
Like Huatulco, ADO is the primary bus company in this area (here are the bus schedules and ticket info ).  OCC is their second tier brand and that is the line that goes to San Cristobal de las Casas .  The combi vans to Tapachula from Marina Chiapas pass close to the ADO bus terminal. best credit card for airline points on mileage Tell the van driver you re going to ADO, and you will be dropped off about a block from the ADO terminal.  On the return trip from the ADO terminal, we always caught a cab to the combi terminal and boarded the van headed to Zona Naval.
The easiest trip to San Cristobal from Tapachula is via Tuxtla Guttierez (change buses there) because Tapachula-Tuxtla leg of the trip is on a highway and has no speed bumps.  The 9-hour best credit card for airline points on mileage trip directly from Tapachula to San Cristobal crawls over the mountains (many lovely views and interesting small towns), and there are tons of speed bumps.  The bus comes to a stop for most speed bumps and creeps over them one axel at a time.  We also stopped about every 30-45 minutes during the trip either to let passengers on/off, or for military checkpoints.
Our 9-hour bus trip from Tapachula to San Cristobal (276 pesos or $22) was eventful enough to warrant a page of its own.  We continued our trip by going from San Cristobal de las Casas to Palenque (312 pesos or $25).  Then from Palenque to Comitán (250 pesos or $20).  And finally from Comitán to Tapachula (206 pesos or $17), all on ADO (OCC) buses.
Tica Bus connects southern Mexico to all of Central America.  Bus schedules and ticket purchases best credit card for airline points on mileage here .  It is possible to travel on their buses from Mexico best credit card for airline points on mileage City (or Tapachula) all the way to Panama City, Panama.  They leave from the ADO bus terminal in Tapachula.  Take a combi van from Marina best credit card for airline points on mileage Chiapas to Tapachula, tell the driver you are going to the ADO bus terminal and you will be dropped off a block from the terminal.
Our 8-hour bus ride ($19 USD) to Antigua was on a double decker bus.  We traveled one way on the upper level (regular class) and one way on the lower level (first class).  The view from the front row seats in the upper level can t be beat (we weren t lucky enough to get them on our trip).  The first class seats on the lower level are nicer seats, and we were served a complimentary hot meal that was much like the