Puerto Vallarta Transport


Puerto Vallarta Transport

Puerto Vallarta Bus
A bus stop look like this, but some have disappeared or are hidden pretty good. Just look for a crowd of people on the street, since the busses run very frequently, it will be easy for you to spot the stop.

Taxis Out of City Busses Airport Taxi Car Rental Water Taxis
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Getting to Town by Local City Bus

5.5 Pesos to almost everywhere, unless you go out of Puerto Vallarta.
Example: The South Side of Vallarta to Boca de Tomatlan (about 6 miles south) is 6 Pesos. To El Tuito is 20 pesos.
No longer do you share your ride with live chickens, at least I haven't seen any lately. But you may have live entertainment, all for 5.5 Pesos!
If you are travelling light, the bus stop at the airport is right outside the end exit, you'll see some Resort Busses there, but look for a group of locals - they will be waiting for the bus - the middle exit goes to airport taxis and the parking lot. The yellow cabs are across the road (which is going north and they have to drive to the Central Bus Station road to turn around, which they say is another fare zone, so you only save about 20 pesos.
To get to town from the Hotel Strip and the Marina take the bus that says 'Centro' and does not also have 'Tunel' on it, this one will take you through downtown and on to the south side terminal. The ones which have 'Centro' & 'Tunel' bypass downtown, but still end up at the terminal on the south side by Parque Lazaro Cardenas. So if that’s where you want to go it’s faster than going through downtown and you will see another side of Puerto Vallarta.
Busses going to points south, Mismaloya and Boca de Tomatlan, start from the South Terminal at Constitución and Basilio Badillo and also from Agucate & Carranza. where the busses to El Tuito leave. See Map

Walking

The non ‘tunel’ bus will go straight into town and then make a left just past 'Parque Hidalgo', followed by a right turn. Get of at any of the stops on this street 'Morelos' and walk the one block down to the Malecón (seafront promenade). Stroll down this in the same direction the bus was going (south) and you will reach the Main Plaza, Town Hall and Church. If you continue south (or stay on the bus) you will cross the Rio Cuale and enter the 'south side' of town, lots of good restaurants, bars and coffee shops. Generally everything is cheaper on the south side of Puerto Vallarta. Go inland to see a typical local neighborhood or go down to the beach and have a drink down by the pier at Cuates y Cuetes or Langostinos next door, while you watch another incredible sunset.

Car Rental

The absolute best, and most economical way , to rent a car here is by booking on line before you arrive. Considerable savings in both time and money. Use one of the big US companies such as, my favorite, Dollar Rent a Car.   Note: It's advisable to not use the Dollar Rental booth at the airport, apart from saving 15% Federal tax, there have been reports that the staff there have been trying to add extra charges. Better to book on-line using the AV. FRANCISCO MEDINA ASCENCIO, #1728 - PVR001 address, then walk across the pedestrian bridge to the Dollar Office, get your car and return to the airport to get the rest of your group and luggage.

 

Dollar has low car rental rates
You can do this right now or later using this link.

Taxi

City Yellow Taxis
From Downtown to the South From Downtown to the North
Camino Real 40 pesos Marine Terminal 50 pesos
Mismaloya 100 pesos Airport 70 pesos
Boca de Tomatlan 120 pesos Nuevo Vallarta 150 pesos
  RUI & Flamingos 200 pesos

Vista Vallarta Golf Course from
Downtown 180 pesos Olas Altas 200 pesos Neuvo Vallarta 200 pesos

Marina to Nuevo Vallarta 130 pesos


Or 200 Pesos per. hour, but make a deal for a half or full day for less.

Before entering the taxi, ask the driver what the fare will be to your destination, if it isn't close to the guide lines on this page, go to another taxi. Tips are not required, unless you feel it is warranted.
Tips from drivers on where to eat etc. are not reliable (they will be getting a kickback). There have been some recent complaints of taxi drivers taking people to different places than requested because of this. If the driver tells you the place is closed or he doesn't know where it is - take another taxi. If he takes you somewhere else anyway, find police officer - they all speak English, this will help us get rid of the bad drivers.

 Airport Taxi

These special Federal licensed taxis are only allowed to service from the Airport to Hotels and Condos, more expensive than regular ones. 80.00 - 200 Pesos depending how far. Here's a rough guide

AIRPORT TAXIS
All prices are in pesos
Marina Vallarta
Downtown South-Side
North - Nuevo Vallarta
South-La Jolla de Mismaloya
North- Decameron
Collective - per person 60 70 80 90
Normal - up to 3 persons 147 162 215 255
Van - up to 5 persons 292 324 423 510


Private Driver for the day.

Get a bilingual private driver with a air-conditioned van (capacity 14) for a mere $35 US per hour (4hr. min. in town only), includes a cooler with ice and drinks can be arranged. Go where ever you want to go with a very knowledgeable driver.
The complications involved in trying to get a permit to pick up passengers at the airport, make this not worthwhile as a service.    Tours with Tony

Bay Busses.

Are slightly longer route busses that can take you to some very nice beaches on the north side of the bay, beyond the bay and to El Tuito, a small town to the south that is older than Vallarta.

ATM (Autostransportes Medina de Puerto Vallarta) leaves it's terminal at Brazil #1410 (at the south side of the Sports Stadium), every 7 min. to Punta de Mita and every 10 min. to Nuevo Vallarta. The busses stop across from Copal (in front of HSCB Bank ), in front of Walmart and across from the airport. Look for the sign on the Maps.
The Nuevo Vallarta bus goes to all the hotels in Nuevo. To reach downtown PV you'll have to change from the ATM bus to a local one. The easiest place to do this is at the Marine Terminal (across the road from Walmart,Sam's), just get off there and wait for the next city bus going to 'Centro' - see top of the page for more info. on Local Busses.
Fares are Bucerías - 12 pesos, Nuevo Vallarta & Valle de Banderas - 12 pesos, Destiladeras Beach - 16 pesos and Punta Mita (El Anclote Beach)- 20 pesos.
They also have service to Sayulita, San Francisco (San Pancho) and Rincón de Guayabitos.

El Tuito. The bus to El Tuito leaves from the corner of V. Carranza and Aguacate, see Map. The fare is 20 pesos and takes about 50 min.
A nice excursion you can take for yourself to an old colonial town and a source for Raicilla. See Raicilla

South. The bus to Mismaloya and Boca de Tomatlan (water taxi to Yelapa) now leaves from the same place as the El Tuito bus, see above. It still stops at it's old station, on the corner of B. Badillo & Constitución, on it's way south.

Intercity Busses

 

Bus Travel Bulletin Board

These busses, many of them very luxurious, can be found at the Main Bus Terminal just north of the airport, Map, see this link with a nice plan of the place, including links to the bus lines.

There are some places in town that you can book and purchase tickets in advance. One is opposite from Farmarcia Guadalajara on Insurgentes, between L. Cardenas and V. Carranza, where the photo on the right was taken.

The busses to Manzanillo also stop for passengers on the corner of Aguacate and V. Carranza, The Cihuatlan,Pacific Line also runs 2nd class busses south. There's a lady on that corner that sells tickets. Map.

First class service to Manzanillo:
The Flecha Amarilla - Primera Plus Line have two First Class busses per day at 07:45 and 12:00
The Chiuatlan - Pacific Line runs two Primera Plus Class busses per day, one at 16:00 (4:00 pm) and at 23:30 (11:30 pm).
Lots more second class service:
Flecha Amarilla - Servicios Coordinatos run Second class busses at 7:00, 16:00, 19:45 22:30 23:30 and 01:30
Cihuatlan,Pacific Line run second class buses at 05:00, 06:00, 07:30, 08:30 09:30, 11:30 12:30, 14:30, 15:30, 17:30 and 19:30
These are all bus station times.

ETN, the most luxurious bus line, leaves for Guadalajara at
00:30, 01:00, 07:45, 8:45, 10:15, 11:45, 13:00, 14:00, 14:45, 15:30, 16:15, 17:00, 24:00       ETN >   warning loud music!

Another option in traveling to Guadalajara is 'Vallarta Plus", a line that takes you to their own terminus in Guadalajara - not the Bus Station that is not near the center of town. Map
Only 276 pesos each way. The terminus here is on the right of the access road to the Central Bus Station. Map

 Water Taxi

'NEW' to Chimo, with some stops on the way including Pizota, from Boca. 100 pesos each way.

Rosita Hotel Beach to Yelapa Beach 100 pesos + 10 pesos. for the boat from the beach to the launch. Expect getting your feet wet.

Los Muertos Beach to Yelapa 100 pesos 1st class pier to pier - no chance of wet feet, but a longer ride than above.

Or take a Taxi $10.00 (100 Pesos ) or Bus .50c (6 Pesos) to Boca de Tomatlan then water taxi from the beach.
Boca de Tomatlan to Las Animas 20 pesos, Quimixto 30 pesos, Yelapa 60 pesos or Pizota for a bit more. Prices vary sometimes.

Water Taxi Schedule for Yelapa.
From David's Yelapa.info Site