Everything you need to know about the Puerto Vallarta bus system

There are fewer amended ways to get to cognize a metropolis than from the spot of a bus. In Puerto Vallarta, that spot mightiness beryllium plastic, somewhat cracked and amazingly loud, but it comes with a front-row presumption of regular beingness successful 1 of Mexico’s astir beloved formation towns. And for conscionable 10 pesos a ride, it’s 1 of the champion bargains successful the Bay.

If you’re visiting Puerto Vallarta, oregon possibly recently settling in, here’s everything you request to cognize to marque the astir of this humble yet businesslike nationalist transport network.

First things first: Where’s the autobus stop?

While immoderate autobus stops look similar this, others aren’t truthful formal. You’ll person to look for the cosmopolitan hint to a autobus stop: a thoroughfare country with a clump of random radical clustered together, trying not to look astatine each other. (Internet)

Puerto Vallarta’s autobus stops are often much conception than structure. While immoderate are marked by a tiny motion oregon faded shelter, galore person simply vanished — oregon ne'er existed successful the archetypal place. Locals cognize the drill: stitchery connected a acquainted country and wait. Your champion stake is to look for a tiny radical of radical lasting together, particularly adjacent intersections. That’s your cue.

Out successful the colonias (neighborhoods farther from the tourer zone), the strategy is simply a spot much flexible. Buses volition halt conscionable astir anyplace someone’s waiting: astatine a corner, successful the mediate of the road, oregon adjacent waving from the sidewalk. A raised manus doesn’t warrant the autobus volition stop, but constituent purposefully to the roadworthy successful beforehand of you and you whitethorn get lucky.

Welcome aboard: What to expect

Puerto Vallarta’s buses are progressively modern, immoderate utilizing alternate vigor sources similar earthy gas. (Government of Jalisco)

Yes, Puerto Vallarta has caller buses. And they’re great. Many are clean, powered by earthy gas, and technically person aerial conditioning, though don’t number connected the A/C being turned on. Still, they bushed the sweltering metallic boxes of years past. Though, depending connected the route, you whitethorn beryllium blessed with a thrust aboard these rickety clip capsules.

Fares are flat: 10 pesos gets you conscionable astir anyplace successful the metropolis proper. Pro tip: Once aboard, get to your spot fast. Drivers don’t ever hold for you to settee earlier gunning it. And portion the archetypal fewer rows — often painted yellowish — are reserved for the elderly, disabled oregon pregnant, the remainder of the autobus is just game. 

The routes: Centro, Túnel and beyond

The autobus is simply a inexpensive mode to research different parts of PV too the beach, similar the beauteous Zona Romantica. (Shutterstock)

Navigating the autobus strategy is amazingly intuitive if you cognize what to look for. Buses person signs successful their beforehand windows indicating their wide route. If you’re heading downtown from the Hotel Zone, drawback a autobus marked “Centro.” This 1 snakes done downtown and ends successful the Zona Romantica.

Want to skip the congestion of El Centro and get to the Zona faster? Take a autobus marked “Túnel.” This way bypasses downtown via the tunnels, offering a theoretically speedier thrust with a peek astatine the hills and backstreets of Vallarta astir tourists ne'er see. Whether oregon not it’s faster to spell done the tunnel, owed to postulation and velocity bumps, is up for debate. I’ve personally ne'er timed it.

If you’re southbound toward Mismaloya oregon Boca de Tomatlán, caput to the terminal astatine Constitución and Basilio Badillo. Buses depart regularly and outgo the modular 10 pesos. These are besides your rides to the Puerto Vallarta Zoo — get disconnected astatine the Barcelo Hotel successful Mismaloya — oregon onward to sleepy villages.

Going further afield

With a plethora of routes, you tin sojourn tourer attractions similar Vallarta’s botanical garden. (Vallarta Mágico)

Looking for the Botanical Gardens oregon the chill upland municipality of El Tuito? Those buses permission from Aguacate and Basilio Badillo. Expect to wage astir 40–50 pesos for the thrust and program for astatine slightest 50 minutes. 

A fewer section quirks

Avoid buses that person “Pitillal” scrawled connected them — unless you privation the genuinely scenic route. (Internet)

Let’s speech astir the airport. If you’re traveling light, skip the pricey taxis and caput to the pedestrian span extracurricular the terminal. Locals stitchery connected the airdrome broadside to drawback buses heading south. Avoid immoderate autobus that says Pitillal unless you’re successful the temper for a scenic detour done Vallarta’s backstreets.

If you bash request to instrumentality a taxi, usage the pedestrian span to transverse the highway, wherever you’ll find a drawstring of yellowish taxis. These taxis are often cheaper than the ones you volition get straight astatine the airport.

If you’ve got clip and nary agenda, hop connected immoderate autobus and enactment aboard until the extremity of the line. For 10 pesos each way, you’ll beryllium treated to a existent portion of section life. It whitethorn not beryllium glamorous, but it volition beryllium memorable.

Finding your route

Forget costly taxis! Take the autobus to and from Puerto Vallarta’s airport. (Aviación 21)

A website called RutasVallarta.com claims to assistance you hunt routes by destination, but successful my experience, the representation is often broken. Google Maps does a overmuch amended occupation of telling you wherever to go. You tin besides inquire a local.

You tin find the routes laid retired connected the website if you sojourn rutasvallarta.com/rutas, but you’ll person to cognize the commencement and extremity constituent of the full enactment to find wherever you privation to go. It’s overmuch much businesslike to usage Google Maps.

Once you get the bent of the buses, they’re a fantastic mode to research the metropolis similar a resident. And, fortunately, the metropolis isn’t truthful large that you extremity up precise acold distant from wherever you privation to be. If each other fails, Uber is ever conscionable a pat away.

Meagan Drillinger is a New York autochthonal who has spent the past 15 years traveling astir and penning astir Mexico. While she’s connected the roadworthy for assignments astir of the time, Puerto Vallarta is her location base. Follow her travels connected Instagram at @drillinjourneys or done her blog at drillinjourneys.com.