Puerto Vallerta bus 🚌

[little britain]

The bus is a quick and cheap way to get into town. They run very frequently along the road outside the port. As you exit the port you are on the correct side of the road going into town. 
They are marked Centro.

Fare is 10pesos pp e/way. That is $0.56c!

Cab drivers wanted $5pp e/way

 

On the return get in a bus that is going to Walmart. This is opposite the port gates. 

 

Info correct as of May 3,2023

[Ine]

5 hours ago, little britain said:

The bus is a quick and cheap way to get into town. They run very frequently along the road outside the port. As you exit the port you are on the correct side of the road going into town. 
They are marked Centro.

Fare is 10pesos pp e/way. That is $0.56c!

Cab drivers wanted $5pp e/way

 

On the return get in a bus that is going to Walmart. This is opposite the port gates. 

 

Info correct as of May 3,2023

Please note Buses to Centro with the extra sign "Tunel" do not go via the hotelzone or Malecon and enter old town through Venustiano Carranza. Not too far from Playa Los Muertos.

On the return be aware there are 2 Walmart! One near the cruise terminal the other near Pitillal. So check you go to the right one.

[Ashland]

Take a shuttle at the port or a taxi out on the street...cheap and easy. We used to take the bus to the Malecon and back but our last few times we have seen the bus very crowded with locals trying to get where they need to be and standing room only.

[Hlitner]

It might be helpful to repeat our taxi mantra.  The taxis inside the port have a Federal franchise that limits port access to only those taxis.  They are the ones that charge a $5 (or other) per person charge.  The taxis you can find outside the port (while many call them yellow taxis they can also be white) charge a fare "per taxi" and not per person.  The fare into town should be about $150 (many will ask cruisers for $200 pesos) but we are talking about $10 per taxi ($2.50 US per person if you have 4).  

 

While the buses are fine (we use them many times a week while living in PV) they are significantly slower (because of all the stops) so one could argue that for $2.50 per person, a taxi makes sense.  When it comes to any taxi in PV (or Mexico) make sure you know the fare BEFORE you get in the taxi.  Some drivers see cruisers as "easy marks" to pitch higher prices.  The true taxi fares in PV are by zone and set by a government agency.  But that has never stopped drivers from charging "gringo prices."

 

Hank

[Starlight Durban Cruising]

One thing with the busses - if you have Pesos (that you got prior to arriving in MX), then that will be in notes (not coins), and those notes will often be in higher denominations. The busses may not be able to make change if you only have notes. Sure if you have a large group then one note may cover the fee for all in the group, but just be aware if you are only a few people in your group and you have a 500 Peso note, then that may get complex.... 

 

Might be easier if you have MX coins to pay for bus coming back to the port.

[Hlitner]

On 6/2/2023 at 4:33 AM, Starlight Durban Cruising said:

One thing with the busses - if you have Pesos (that you got prior to arriving in MX), then that will be in notes (not coins), and those notes will often be in higher denominations. The busses may not be able to make change if you only have notes. Sure if you have a large group then one note may cover the fee for all in the group, but just be aware if you are only a few people in your group and you have a 500 Peso note, then that may get complex.... 

 

Might be easier if you have MX coins to pay for bus coming back to the port.

For those who travel in pairs, you can use a $20 Peso note on the buses.  The fare collection machines have a place where you can insert bills and the twenty will cover two fares.  With the newer fare collection system, drivers are no longer supposed to make change.  We have actually been on some buses where passenger, near the front of the bus, helped some folks with change.  But that is not the norm.  For those not familiar with Mexican currency, they do have 5 and 10 peso coins which are great for the buses   

 

Hank

[teacherman]

To each their own, but we have been to PV for week long vacations many times, and if I only had a 1 day cruise stop, which I will have in December, I would not waste time taking a bus to downtown just to save a few dollars.  There are usually many stops and, sadly, it can be a pick-pocket heaven.  As others have said, just walk out of the terminal gate and get one of the taxis that will be waiting outside.  My advice is to always ask the driver what the fare will be (dollars or pesos) to your destination.  It will be easy to get taxis downtown when you are ready to return to the ship.  And ask the driver, again, as the fare may be different.🤔

[Mike45LC]

Whilst on a cruise, my time in port is precious, and a $5 - $10US cab fare is not going to add much to the price of the cruise vacation.  And my wife and I dislike crowded busses.