Bus Travel Oaxaca Mexico to Tucson Arizona

Bus, Oaxaca, Mexico to Tucson, Arizona  
By First Class Bus
Update and Bus Fares,  July 2014

Tufesa Bus serves between Phoenix and Tucson,  Arizona,
 through Nogales to Mazatlan on the Pacific Coast and on to
 Guadalajara, Mexico

First Class Bus Travel Mexico
 Bus travel in Mexico has become a luxury ride as the systems continue to improve with the addition of modern buses, new, high-speed roads, and new bus terminals.  The improvements make long trip bus travel in Mexico convenient, safe, and comfortable.
     This article describes the bus routes from Oaxaca , in South Central Mexico, to Tucson, Arizona. (44 hours)  through Nogales, Mexico on the US Border.  This route is one of three possible routes for a bus trip the length (north south) of Mexico and is offered as a guide to choosing the best bus ride through Mexico.

• Oaxaca, Mexico to Tucson, Arizona, USA

Oaxaca City, Mexico is a bus hub served by a first class terminal where  ADO Buses make many runs north to Mexico City and south to all of Southern Mexico.  ADO Bus also runs to the Gulf Coast and north along the Gulf Coast to Tamualipas, Matamoros and Reynosa on the US border at McAllen, Texas.
For a trip from Oaxaca to Tucson, Arizona, several levels of service are available for the first leg, the 6 to 7- hour bus trip from the City of Oaxaca to Mexico City.

• Bus Fares

The best option for price  and comfort from Oaxaca to Mexico Norte Terminal (Terminal Central Norte) would be the ADO first class bus at around 580 Pesos  (July 2014) or around $45.00 US Dollars. Upper levels of service are also available at a higher price. They offer fewer seats and more legroom.  The GL service offers deeply reclining seats and can often be found and booked online at discount prices.  Platino Service offers three across seating.
The regular ADO first class bus will offer the option to sleep, especially on a night bus where no movies play. Unless you need lots of legroom, the ADO normal service should be adequate.
For the run to Tucson through Nogales,  make your first stop Mexico City Norte Station; (Terminal Central del Norte) there you will find many options for bus routes going north.  (There are four first class bus terminals in Mexico City)
Ticket Price:  Oaxaca to Mexico City Norte Station,  580 Pesos, Trip duration 6-7 hours.  Night buses offered  ADO Tickets and Schedule 

Terminal Central del Norte in Mexico City offers many bus routes

for travel throughout Mexico.  This is the best terminal for trips
going north.  Find here also bus service to Teotihuacan Archaeological
ruin site and the Tula ruin site. 

• Terminal Central del Norte, Mexico City

Many bus lines run north out of Terminal Norte.  To continue your trip north to the US border you will have many choices of service and price.
If you choose to travel the Pacific Coast route to Nogales and Tucson, a good bus line choice from Norte station is Primera Plus.  
This luxury division of Flecha Amarilla Bus runs a bus route through Guadalajara and then up the Pacific Coast as far north as Mazatlan. ( 950-1100 Pesos) (Half price senior tickets offered)
Primera Plus offers legroom, headsets for the sound system, WiFi, TV monitor at seat-backs with a menu of movies, and separate men's and women's lavatories, all well stocked with toilet paper. They are careful about security and perform metal detector checks on boarding.  (ADO also checks passengers on boarding.)
Primera Plus offers a website and, at times, the ability to book on the web.
 Ticket Price, Terminal Central del Norte to Mazatlan, 1100 Pesos,   senior discount  price 550 Pesos,   Trip duration  14 hours


• Mazatlan To Tucson
In Mazatlan you can switch to Tufesa Bus, which will have many runs each day heading for Nogales and beyond to Tucson, Phoenix, and Las Vegas, USA.  Tap Bus is also an option in Mazatlan but offers less frequent service to Nogales, Mexico.
Tufesa Bus is a cross-border bus company with a US base in Phoenix AZ that is rapidly improving service and building new bus terminals.
  Ticket Price, Tufesa Bus, Mazatlan to Nogales, (at the border) 1,390 Pesos     Trip duration  14-16 hours


• Cross Border Tufesa Bus
Tufesa Bus is a good, first class ride from Mazatlan to Nogales, a trip of about 14 hours.
One problem comes when the bus crosses the border at Nogales. Non US citizens are allowed to apply for a visa to enter the US at the border crossing. The bus will also go through extensive inspection and could go through a DOT inspection. This could hold the bus up for two hours or more. The best bet, if your destination is Tucson or Phoenix, is to leave the Tufesa bus with all your luggage at its terminal in Nogales and take a 70 peso cab ride to the border crossing.
Find the representative for the Sahuaro Shuttle at the entrance corridor to the crossing. (Or call 520-573-1399) The representative will walk you across the border through customs and immigration and then take you to the shuttle office just across the border in Nogales, Arizona. The van to Tucson will cost $12.USD to South Tucson, the vicinity of the Tufesa Bus Station, or varying prices to other locations in Tucson up to $25 USD.  (Amtrack and Greyhound are located near the center of Tucson.)  These shuttles also reach Phoenix.
If you arrive in Nogales at an inopportune time, there is a decent hotel, the Marquise de Cima, next to the Tufesa Bus Station. (500 Pesos per night)

Once in Tucson, you can find options for trips north including a shuttle van to Phoenix. In Tucson you will also find Amtrak, Greyhound, and an international airport for continuing your trip.



• Bus Hub Cities, Oaxaca, Puebla, Mexico City

Mexico's first class, long-haul buses use hub cities such as Oaxaca, Merida, Mexico City, Puebla, Guadalajara, and Mazatlan among many others to serve the country.
      Passenger trains no longer run in Mexico except through the Copper Canyon so the bus becomes a convenient way to visit the elegant colonial cities that are worth a day or two stop to tour and make travel photos.

Colonial cities such as Morelia make interesting stops

 during a long bus ride through Mexico 

• Bus Routes

Buses run the length of the country from southeast to northwest over three main routes.

• The Pacific Coast Route runs from Tapachula, Chiapas to Tijuana. 
• The Central Alto Plano Route runs through Oaxaca City, Mexico City, and Chihuahua to Juarez and El Paso, Texas. 
• The Gulf Coast route runs from Cancun through Merida to Veracruz and through to Matamoros and Brownsville, Texas. 

Many cross routes connect these north south routes and allow great flexibility in Mexico Bus travel.
First Class Bus is a great way to sightee in Mexico because of the many options for bus routes and some great luxury bus lines.

Primera Plus is one of the best of the long distance

 bus lines. Primera Plus serves between Mexico City

and Mazatlan  while serving many other cities in

 Central Mexico

• How To Buy Bus Tickets

ADO offers a web site where you can buy tickets online. You can also buy tickets at the stations. You rarely need to order tickets ahead, however, except during holiday season. (Christmas, New Years, Easter, Day of the Dead, October)
When buying at the station, if you are not fluent in the Spanish language, write your destination, price and departure time along with your name on a piece of paper beforehand. Take the info from the posted schedule at the station. The clerks will often assume that you want an elevated level of service so by writing the information, you will make sure that you receive the service that you want and the price and departure time.   Choose your seat at the same time; otherwise the ticket sales person will assign a seat that might be too far back in the bus, near the lavatory noise and the noise of the back wheels.
Oaxaca and much of Mexico uses military time; 2300 hours is 11 PM. If you miss your ADO bus you will be asked to pay an additional half price to take the next bus.

• Alternate Bus Routes Through Mexico, Chihuahua

You will have a choice of three routes north through Mexico at Terminal Norte  You can choose the Central Mexico Route and choose between Chihuahuenses Bus, Omnibus, and Futura Bus. Service on each of these bus lines covers Central Mexico to the US Border.  Futura service is just a touch better.
At Agua Prieta Bus Station on the US border with Douglas, Arizona you can choose to go on to Nogales or you can cross the border at this less-busy port of entry at Douglas and take the Douglas Shuttle ($25 USD van) to Tucson, Arizona.

Once you leave Mexico City’s Terminal Central del Norte you will have a relatively uninterrupted ride to either Mazatlan (Primera Plus service ends in Mazatlan) or to Chihuahua. You might book all the way through to Nogales at Terminal Norte if you go the Chihuahua route with Omnibus, Futura, or Chihuhuenses.
You could also choose the Gulf Coast bus route at Norte by going through Veracruz to Matamoros and Brownsville. ADO runs bus routes through Veracruz to Matamoros.

Bus Travel Details

It is good option is to buy a roll of toilet paper in a plastic bag at the small convenient stores in the Norte Station. It is best to carry toilet paper, toothpaste and brush, aspirin, and Imodium in your pack for the extended bus trip. Buy bottled water every chance that you have. Good food will be tough to find in the stations. (healthy food)
Buy dried fruit and granola ahead and pack it.  (Note that in the agricultural areas of Northern Mexico you are not allowed to transport fresh fruit or vegatables)  Only Central del Norte, Guadalajara, and Morelia bus stations are likely to have decent food options.

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Oaxaca Street Parade Youtube   Oaxaca Parade and regional dance

See Mexico Maps North

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First Class Bus, Phoenix And Tucson Arizona to Mexico City

Bus routes follow high speed roads 

 Two routes are suitable to travel by bus from Phoenix and Tucson to the southern parts of Mexico.  One route follows the Pacific coast through Mazatlan and then swings inland to Guadalajara.  The other route is over the Alto Plano through Chihuahua and Zacatecas.
Both these routes will have a similar trip duration and cost, it will only depend on your desire to speed through or to stop along the way and visit some of the colonial cities or Pacific Coast beach towns.

Primera Plus Bus reaches Zihuatanejo (above) Mazatlan,
 and San Blas among other beach towns on the Pacific Coast

     I have made many trips on both routes and usually stop in various cities along the way. On the coast route, Mazatlan is a good beach stop. San Blas and Zihutanejo are other good beach stops although they require a detour. Guadalajara, Morelia, and Patscuaro are interesting colonial cities along this route.

The first class buses usually avoid the steep mountain roads when possible.

     On the Alto Plano route I have detoured to Copper Canyon from Chihuahua and also visited Zacatecas, San Luis Potosi, Aguascalientes, (link for info)  and Guanajuato  among others. You can, however, do a straight, 28-hour run to Mexico City from Agua Prieta.

Tucson Schedule And Bus Fares
Tufesa Bus is one of the options if you travel the Pacific Coast route through Mazatlan and Guadalajara. The Tufesa buses run from Phoenix through Tucson and cross the border at Nogales to run south to Guadalajara, Mexico. They leave Tucson four times daily, 11:00 am, 2:30 pm, 6:30 pm, and 8:00 pm. Trip cost USD $147. 00. (2013 prices)  Tufesa Bus offers free WiFi aboard and in the stations.

Tufesa runs bus route as far north as Ontario. The Phoenix /Tucson route at times starts in Las Vegas. Tufesa buses leave from 16 locations in California and four in Arizona as well as Salt Lake City, Las Vegas, and many other cities in the US. The Tucson route makes the border crossing at Nogales and reaches south to Guadalajara with several stops along the Pacific Coast including Mazatlan.

Futura Buses run direct from Agua Prieta to Mexico City

Guadalajara Bus Change
Tufesa Bus runs routes as far south as Guadalajara. Here you would change bus lines to continue south. Tufesa stops at two stations in Guadalajara, the second terminal (last stop in Guadalajara) is the most convenient for onward bus travel.

Guadalajara offers several bus terminals and is a major bus hub 

for Tufesa Bus and Primera Plus among many others.

Primera Plus Bus
Primera Plus Bus is a good option for continuing your trip to Mexico City. Cost of Primera Plus service to Mexico's Norte Bus Terminal will be around $50 USD  575-600 Pesos (half price for seniors) Primera Plus offers free WiFi with electrical outlets


Once in Mexico you will find that Mexico's Bus systems are extensive and modern.  Mexico's first Class buses have plush seat for sleeping, leg rests, air conditioning, (bring a sweater) lavatories, seat belts, deeply reclining seats, and video movies. (Bring ear plugs for sleeping)
First class buses use the larger hub cities to reach even the most distant cities for about 15 cents USD per mile. The first class buses use the modern, high-speed toll roads (quota) wherever possible.

Primera Plus runs route from a new station in Guadalajara

Alternate Bus Route Through Central Mexico
The other bus route mentioned here is the Alto Plano route through the highlands of Central Mexico.

On the high plains route from Douglas Arizona to Chihuahua

     Starting at Douglas, Arizona/Agua Prieta, Mexico at about 3000 feet above sea level you eventually reach 7,400 feet above sea level in Mexico City.
This trip from Phoenix or Tucson starts with a van shuttle to the border town of Agua Prieta. You walk across through customs and immigration and cab to the bus terminal. Chihuahuenses Buses and Futura Buses (Estrella Blanca) run bus routes south through Chihuahua, Zacatecas, and several other cities for the 28-hour run to Mexico City's Norte Terminal.  Bus ticket price here is about $150.00 USD.
Just across the street from the Futura station, the Omnibus starts its trips over the same bus routes to Mexico City's Norte Terminal.

Guadalajara offer much to see in its museums and colonial 

architecture

Mexico City Norte Terminal
For those interested in touring all the way to Central America by bus , you could go from Guadalajara on a Primera Plus bus to Mexico City’s Terminal Norte. Then take an ADO bus to Tapachula, Chiapas and then a Tica Bus to Panama City, Panama.
For travelers going to Cancun, Chichen Itza, or Belize and Guatamala through Chetumal, the ADO buses from Norte Terminal in Mexico City cover all of southern Mexico.

Related links

Tikal through Palenque
Merida Bus To Chichen Itza
 Oaxaca To Palenque
Primera Plus Flecha Amarilla
Bus to Cancun

Futura Bus runs north and west of Mexico City reaching the

 US border at Douglas/Agua Prieta, Nogales, and Tijuana and 

Bus US to the Copper Canyon, Mexico

Tufesa Bus Cross Border from Tucson to Los Mochis

Bus services offer several ways to travel from the USA to the Copper Canyon.  Two bus route options from Tucson, AZ will be covered in this page.

     The buses reach the Copper Canyon Train terminal cities where trains run daily trips the 400 miles of mountain and canyon between the Mexico Pacific Coast town of Los Mochis and the inland, Central Mexico City of Chihuahua.  You can make the train trip from either end

.

     To start at the western end of the trip, bus from Tucson AZ through Nogales, Mexico to Los Mochis, on the Pacific Coast of Mexico.   (Bus Info)

     To start at the eastern end of the train trip, shuttle from Tucson AZ to Douglas Arizona/Agua Prieta, Mexico and bus 340 miles to the City of Chihuahua Mexico. (Bus Info)

Train Trip From Western Side

     From Phoenix and Tucson Arizona, the Tufesa Bus offers cross-border, first class service to the town of Los Mochis, 500 miles south of Nogales on the Pacific Coast of Mexico.  At Los Mochis, the Copper Canyon Train starts its run east for 400 miles from the Pacific Coast through the Copper Canyon, and into the City of Chihuahua in North Central Mexico.

Los Mochis

      Los Mochis is a good place to start the train trip for those that want the longest possible train ride.  If it is your choice to travel east from Los Mochis, the best seats for viewing will be on the right side of the train as you face forward. 

On certain days, two trains leave from Los Mochis, a first class and a second class.  The first class train leaves around 6:00 am.   The second class train could be a few cars hitched to the first class train or a second train which runs on alternate days. (schedule)  Second Class train seating cost about half as much as first class and varies little except that there is no dining car on the second class train and, if it is a separate train it will make more stops and arrive later.  A good dining experience is offered on the first class train for those that like train dining.

     A better option for those that don't need the full train ride is to bus into the town of El Fuerte, 50 miles inland from the Pacific Coast City of Los Mochis.

 El Fuerte is a well preserved colonial town that offers a train station for the CHEPE train line where you can buy tickets. 

El Fuerte

El Fuerte is a nice colonial town with good hotels and parking at the train station for those driving.  The train will leave Los Mochis around 6 am and arrive at El Fuerte at 9 am.  

         Good hotels in El Fuerte, a small museum, and a nice zocalo make El Fuerte a good base for the copper Canyon trip.  The fact that the train leaves El Fuerte later in the morning makes it more convenient.  You don't miss much by starting in El Fuerte; the first 50 miles of track from Los Mochis to El Fuerte is through flat farmland offering little to see.   After leaving El Fuerte the train starts to climb into the mountains and the scenery gets interesting.

     For those driving to El Fuerte, find overnight parking with the family at the “camp ground” beside the El Fuerte train station.  The family charges 100 peso per night for parking.  They live at the site and they lock the gate after the evening train arrives from Chihuahua, sometime between 7:30-9:30.  See Copper Canyon Train Schedule

Copper Canyon Best Way

     For those driving from the north, watch for the turnoff to El Fuerte near the border of Sonora State on Route 15.

El Fuerte By Bus
Arriving from Nogales by Tufesa Bus, you will reach the small Los Mochis Tufesa Bus Station.  Buses serve from there, south to Guadalajara and north to Phoenix and Tucson.  From the Tufesa station find the local bus, (second class bus) that reaches El Fuerte.  From the Tufesa bus station taxi to the Hotel America or walk to the Mercardo  Independencia where you will find the second class bus to El Fuerte on Inpendencia Avenue.

     The CHEPE Copper Canyon train, Mexico’s last regularly scheduled passenger train, leaves El Fuerte at 9 am and starts to climb into the mountains.  It will reach the center of the Copper Canyon area in mid afternoon.  The train will stop at three villages that are most popular with visitors where lodging is offered: Posadas Barrancas, (Areponapuchi)  El Divisidero, and the Village of Creel.

     The train reaches Creel at between 4:00 and 4:30 in the afternoon.  Creel offers a variety of lodging options and tours to the various Copper Canyon Villages and sights. (See second class train and save)

Creel offers an ATM machine but they are scarce. It is best to bring peso in small denominations.  The towns in Copper Canyon are small towns and no one will have change or be able to convert dollars or Euros. 

Next Page, The Towns of the Copper Canyon