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wyhaines

Apr 12, 2005, 10:15 AM

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Travel to Xalapa?

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Okay, let's assume, for the moment, that I were going to travel down this summer by myself for, say, a week, to get a feel for the area.
Flying to Xalapa is a pretty expensive ticket from Denver. Flying to Veracruz is about $100ish cheaper. Flying to Mexico City is about 1/2 the cost of flying to Veracruz.

So, the most time effective way to get there is probably to fly all the way to Xalapa, or to fly to Veracruz and then take public transportation from there.

How practical is it to fly to Mexico City and take a bus from there? How much time coming and going am I going to eat if I do this? I made an attempt to google bus schedules myself, but failed miserably.

Thanks,

Kirk Haines

Ed and Fran

Apr 12, 2005, 3:40 PM

Post #2 of 6 (2497 views)

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Re: [wyhaines] Travel to Xalapa?

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Fly to Mexico City. Taxi to the bus terminal (east terminal, known as TAPO) maybe 20 minutes, bus to Xalapa (maybe 3 hours or so). (Obviously plus connection time.)

Definitely the way to go. Enjoy the trip.

Check out the websites for UNO and ADO-GL for decent bus lines between MC and Xalapa.

Roy, any better advice? You´re the local expert.

Enjoy the trip.

E&F

"El Gringo Jalapeño"

Apr 12, 2005, 5:08 PM

Post #3 of 6 (2490 views)

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Re: [wyhaines] Travel to Xalapa?

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Kirk:
Glad you are coming to Xalapa! I agree with Ed and Fran that the most economic(and sometimes efficient) way to get here is through Mexico City, where I have flown out dozens of times.
When you get to MC take a ticketed taxi to the TAPO(bus terminal), then one of the many ADO buses(I prefer ADO GL since they are intermediate price, more comfortable than Premier) which is usually a 4-5 hour bus ride. The landscape is very impressive so crack open the curtains and enjoy. For some reason the www.ticketbus.com.mx site is not running right, but it has good information. The surest and best sites are http://www.adogl.com.mx/home.asp or http://www.uno.com.mx/
Remember I have furnished apartments on a side street in downtown Xalapa, as well as my guide services.
Send me a private message with your phone number if you would like to talk directly with me.
¡Hasta pronto!
Roy B. Dudley "El Gringo Jalapeño" See more about Xalapa at www.xalaparoy.com

(This post was edited by "El Gringo Jalapeño" on Apr 12, 2005, 7:39 PM)

raferguson

Apr 12, 2005, 5:36 PM

Post #4 of 6 (2486 views)

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Re: ["El Gringo Jalapeño"] Travel to Xalapa?

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My bus book says 4.5 hours from the TAPO station to Xalapa. UNO line is better than ADO GL (I think), which is better than ADO. ADO is good, no problem. All of those lines are fine, as are most first class lines. Do not take a second class bus, too slow, no bathroom. The price differences between the various lines are usually small, and you do get what you pay for. In practice, I look at the schedule first and cost second which selecting a bus line. (I usually prefer the better and hence more expensive bus lines). At the risk of repeating myself, I tend to find the various bus lines, regardless of whether they call themselves first class, plus, or lujo, pretty similar. The only one that I have ridden that was clearly better was ETN, which has three seats across rather than the usual 4. I think that UNO may be like ETN, but not sure, since I have only seen them from the outside.

Let me expand a bit on the taxi issue. Mexico City has a taxi robbery problem, so most sources suggest that you never take random passing taxis. At the Mexico City airport, look for the taxi ticket window. Tell them you are going to TAPO, They will sell you a taxi ticket. Take it to the official taxi stand. The stand usually has someone with a clipboard logging departures, this is for your protection. The bus stations use a similar system.

Richard

http://www.fergusonsculpture.com

"El Gringo Jalapeño"

Apr 12, 2005, 7:45 PM

Post #5 of 6 (2475 views)

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Re: [raferguson] Travel to Xalapa?

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Richard:
I just counted the number of buses on www.ticketbus.com.mx which go from Mexico City to Xalapa everyday...54! Of course, that is all the different classes, but still you have lots of choices. I have not driven a car to Mexico City in over 15 years. It is just not worth it.
Roy B. Dudley "El Gringo Jalapeño" See more about Xalapa at www.xalaparoy.com

eportis

Apr 13, 2005, 9:24 PM

Post #6 of 6 (2455 views)

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Re: [wyhaines] Travel to Xalapa?

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As an alternative to taking a taxi to the appropriate bus station in Mexico City, you can take a bus directly from the Airport to Puebla, and then take a bus to Xalapa.