Worlds Highest Cable-Stayed Bridge, Durango

Tucson To Oaxaca Via Durango's New Cable-Stayed Bridge

The bus to Durango uses the new highway 

where the highest cable-stayed bridge in the world, 

the 403m (1,321ft) tall Baluarte Bridge, spans 

a deep canyon in the Sierra Madre 

 Occidental Mountains between Mazatlan 

and Durango.

After my visit to Tucson I headed back to Mexico to see the world's highest cable-stayed bridge,  the 403m (1,321ft) tall Baluarte Bridge.  This high bridge spans a deep gorge in the Sierra Madre Mountains on the new highway between Mazatlan and Durango.
I first went to the Saguaro Shuttle in the 4,000 block of South Sixth and took the van shuttle to Nogales.
     The trip actually started with a Sun Tran from the "Ronstadt Transit Center." ("Transit Center" ?  please, you won't find an information booth, decent signage, maps that a human can read, lavatory, etc;  unless you are a local you are forced to ask the angry drivers for directions.)  (read some funny Sun Tran reviews)
 But the bus is a bargain at $1.50 USD.

     Saguaro Shuttle charges $12 USD for a trip to Nogales.
I walked through the Mexico border crossing with no check of luggage and stopped at the immigration office (INM) to get a six-month tourist pass, FMM.
After paying the $28 USD for the pass I then caught a 70 Pesos taxi to the Tufesa Bus station.
     At the Tufesa location there are bus options.  Next door you find an Estrella Blanca Bus station serving Omnibus, TAP, and Turistar buses to Mazatlan and south.

At that point I booked a Tufesa Bus  to Mazatlan ( no waiting line) but considered Omnibus because their service has greatly improved with the addition of Plus Service that utilizes the latest in bus luxury.
     The reason for my Tufesa choice had everything to do with the huge Easter weekend line at the Omnibus and TAP ticket window.  Bus Guide, Mexico

     Tufesa service is decent enough but they do not stock paper in the lavs and you realize that although the bus is labeled "High Class," in English no less, the service is just what you would find in normal economy service, well-worn lavatories with no paper.   (Tufesa gets high marks in US reviews, except for this humorous one)

Tufesa's "High Class" service, a decent ride

 but no paper in the lavatory on the Mexico buses.

     The Tufesa Bus departed Nogales at 5 pm and reached Mazatlan at 9 am.  I slept much of the way.
     After breakfast I took a taxi to the Mazatlan Central bus station where I booked a Chihuahuenses Bus to Durango.  The bus uses the new highway where there are cable-stayed bridges, one of them the highest in elevation in the world, the 403m (1,321ft) tall Baluarte Bridge.  This bridge spans a deep canyon in the Sierra Madre Occidental Mountains between Mazatlan and Durango.

The new road between Durango and Mazatlan, 

with 60 tunnels and nine high bridges 

will replace the  notoriously dangerous,

 "Devil's Backbone."

The new highway cuts about six hours from the usual trip between Mazatlan and Durango by using nine bridges over 300 meters high and 60 tunnels to replace the notoriously dangerous, "Devil's Backbone," a winding road through the towering Sierra Madre Occidental Mountains that I will not soon forget driving with great fear from Mazatlan to Durango.
The road is a marvel of engineering and the cable-stayed bridges quite a sight.

      Durango offers a small colonial center with pedestrian-only streets and a zocalo.  The town also offers bus service to Mexico City and many other locations.

     Omnibus Plus provided luxury service to Mexico City,  Norte Station,  for around 1000 Peso.  Luxury TV screen at the seat back, menu of entertainment. WiFi , ear phones, leg room, two lavs,  paper in the lavs, and lunch with water and beverage,  that's luxury bus service.

Omnibus Plus service offers airline type seating with

menu TV screens, WiFi, leg room, sandwich and drinks

     I reached Norte Station in Mexico City, drew some cash from the ATM and then booked an AU Bus from ADO for Oaxaca.

Durango Bus station offers Omnibus Plus service to 

Mexico City

     The AU bus does not have a lavatory but does make many stops.  In fact so many stops that a six or seven hour trip turned into nine hours.  We arrived at 3:00 pm, time enough to walk to the zocalo for coffee and get ready for Oaxaca's Silent Parade.

Oaxaca's silent parade, a Good Friday

 tradition during Easter Week

Oaxaca Bus Service

Bus Border Crossing, USA to Mazatlan and Acapulco, Mexico

Bus Border Crossing, USA to Mazatlan and Acapulco

Bus travel in Mexico is over modern highways and toll roads cut through the mountains.

US travelers can reach the Pacific coast beaches of Mexico by comfortable, first class bus.  Travelers from the US and Canada have found an alternative to the airliner for trips to Mexico, the long-haul, first class bus.  The buses allow trips to the various colonial cities and beach resorts of Mexico while offering more leg room and more comfort than the airliner. The first class bus service in Mexico is plentiful, economical, and stress-free.

Mexico offers some great beaches, not just the resorts.  
One of the Tufesa Bus stops on its way south from Tucson
down the Pacific coast is at Topolobampo, a port for the ferry
 to La Paz in the Baja  and  also a starting terminal for the
Copper Canyon Train

Nogales To Mazatlan By Tufesa Bus

One bus travel option is the Tufesa Bus, a cross-border bus that serves from many US cities to run bus routes south from LA, AZ and Nevada across the Mexican border through Nogales or Tijuana.

Tufesa Bus stops in Los Mochis where the 

Copper Canyon Train starts its 6 am run into

 the canyon

  
Tufesa Bus runs routes south along the Pacific Coast passing through the beach resort of Mazatlan  link (great town for a beach break) and then inland to its two terminals in Guadalajara.  Free WiFi aboard.    Guadalajara link

Guadalajara is a major bus hub for bus routes to Coastal Mexico
and the Colonial cities on the Alto Plano

This first class bus service is economical at about 13 to 15 cents USD per mile 

The great advantage of first class bus travel in Mexico over air travel is that you can stop in the small colonial cities or beach resort towns and tour for a few days. You could just tour for the day and then taxi back to the bus station, board a night bus and sleep until you reach the next city or beach town. 
The Tufesa stop in Mazatlan will offer the beach resort for a tour and also offer several other bus lines such as Primera Plus and ETN Bus for first class bus service to other parts of Mexico.
From Mazatlan the buses continue on to Guadalajara where you can find onward buses to Puerto Vallarta and Acapulco.

Related links
Acapulco Beach Resort
Acapulco Bungy
Acapulco Resorts
Zihuatanejo 

Best First Class Bus Service In Mexico, Primera Plus

    Best First Class Bus Service In Mexico 

Primera Plus Bus service covers a large portion of
 Mexico's Pacific Coast Beaches

Primera Plus Bus
If you want a luxury bus trip to the Pacific Coast resorts or to the colonial cities of Central Mexico, Primera Plus Bus is the way to go.  Mexico City to Zihuatanejo/Ixtapa, north to Puerta Vallarta, and further north to Mazatlan on Mexico's Pacific Coast,  Primera Plus covers the beach resort cities.

 Primera Plus service includes a complimentary snack

 with  beverage, WiFi, and airliner style seats 

with video built into the seat backs with separate audio 

headsets

       Coast Route 200 runs through Ixtapa and Zihuatenao.  From Zihuatanejo,  Primera Plus buses cover a good portion of Coastal Mexico as far north as Mazatlan.  Primera plus also covers inland to Mexico City.
Connecting bus service on Route 200 is available in Acapulco via Estrella Blanca at the Ejido Station.

Bus travel in Mexico reveals the beautiful mountain

scenery

   
Premera Plus buses also cover a large portion of Central Mexico including Morelia and Guadalajara, Patzcuaro, east to Mexico City, San Miguel Allende, and beyond to Queretaro.
 Coastal service reaches  the beach resorts including Colim and Manzanillo
where you find the all inclusive resort Club Maeva with its water slides, horseback riding on the beach, diving, and nightly shows accompanied by grand buffets and all inclusive eating and drinking.

San Blas is a low rise beach resort favored by surfers and 

eco tourists

    A few miles north on Route 200, the village of Barra de Navidad makes a good visit and further north find Puerto Vallarta.  North again find Primera Plus service and connections with other lines for service to Tepic and connections to the surfing beaches of  San Blas, a great town for surfers and for those looking for a small fishing village untouched by high-rise resorts.  Also find San Blas whale watch and lagoon tours.

Fresh fish on the grille in San Blas

Primera Plus service includes security checks of boarding passengers, a complimentary snack with beverage, and airliner style seats with video built into the seat backs with separate audio headsets if one chooses to sleep during the trip. is

Primera Plus continues service to Mazatlan, its northern most stop on the Pacific Coast.

Bus Travel Chihuahua to Mexico City

Chihuahua, Mexico Bus

We reached Chihuahua at 7 PM.

      I left the Chihuahuenses to switch to an Omnibus. Chihuahueses does not put paper in the lavatories; Omnibus does. This is no big deal but it demonstrates that Chihuahuesesa has a low regard for the passengers that I find annoying. I had never ridden on Omnibus and wanted to check them out.

Copper Canyon train stop at Divisadero.  Train passenger get 15 minutes to
look out at the junction of three canyons  

Copper Canyon Trips

From Chihuahua you can get a bus to Copper Canyon for 240 pesos to the village of Creel in the high mountains at the edge of the Copper Canyon. The train is not the only option for a Copper Canyon visit.

see Copper Canyon options Copper Canyon Trips.  The Cuauhtemoc Bus makes 5 trips daily.

I left Chihuahua on an Omnibus at 8:00 PM after a burger dinner and settled in for the 12 hour trip to Zacatecas. (635 pesos)

I slept most of the night and arrived in Zacatecas at 9:00 AM, 8:00 Tucson time. I then booked a 10:45 Futura Bus for Mexico City Terminal Norte for 430 pesos.

Futura Buses are the best of the three: Futura, Chihuhuenses and Omnibus. They are each a good and convenient ride. Chihuahuenses does not provide paper in the lavatory (hardly a First Class attribute) and their bus was an older model frayed at the edges. Omnibus was running an older bus also but they did provide paper, took careful head counts, and had a well maintained lavatory.

The Futura bus did have paper in the lavatory and was the newest bus of the three.

Primera plus, a division of Flecha Amarilla, runs on the coastal route from Mazatlan to Mexico Norte and they run the best buses and best service for the long haul trip through Mexico, north of Mexico City.

Primera Plus runs luxury buses from Mazatlan on the Pacific Coast

 to Mexico City through Guadalajara  

I arrived at Mexico City's Terminal Norte and 8:00 PM and booked an ADO bus for Oaxaca,  leaving at 11 PM.
I have made this run before and I wanted to arrive in Oaxaca at dawn. ADO runs excellent service south of Mexico City. See ADO

I slept most of the way and arrived at 6:00 AM refreshed.
The total cost of the trip (excluding food) was around 160 USD including the Tucson/Douglas Shuttle. ($320 USD round Trip) Round trip air at the time was around $ 550 not counting taxi to and from the airport. (about $100 USD)
BUS-$340 USD including taxi transfer      AIR-$650 USD including taxi transfer.   (575 with a shared shuttle to Tucson Center)

Bus Service Mexico: Just Show Up. (Article)
The bus companies have web sites but they have for the most part opted for style rather than substance. They are full of razzle dazzle flash but lack function. With the exception of ADO and Primera Plus, they are not fully connected by computer and can not take bookings on the web.   That is not a problem. You just show up and there are so many options, so many lines and so many buses going in all directions that you seldom wait more than an hour, usually less. (Except at Christmas and Easter)
I usually stop in one or more cities for the night on a long trip like this. see Mazatlan,   Morelia,   Guadalajara,   San Louis Potosi,   Zacatecas, Chihuahua, Casas Grande, Alta Vista/Sombrerete

Estrella Blanca (Article) is a group of bus lines that serve 27 of Mexico's states. Lines include Futura, Futura Plus, Chihuahuenses, and Elite along with many more.

Mexico City Norte Bus Station

Mexico Norte terminal is a bus hub for trips north west and east primarily 

although ADO serves southern Mexico from Norte.  Buses from Norte 

terminal also serve to  Teotihuacan Ruin and Tula

Next: Eight Months Backpack By Bus to south America/Antartica