Getting in and Around Guadalajara

Getting In

• Libertador Miguel Hidalgo International Airport (GDL) is located south of the city along the Guadalajara-Chapala Highway. Along with Mexico's main domestic carriers - Mexicana, AeroMexico and Aviacsa - major airlines, including Alaska Airlines,American Airlines, ATA, Continental, Copa Airlines, Delta and U.S Airways (previous under the America West name) serve Guadalajara. Discount airlines Aerocalifornia, Alma de Mexico, Avolar, Interjet and Volaris jet between Guadalajara and Mexican destinations. A taxi from the airport from anywhere will cost 220 pesos but many hotels offer airport pickups that can be cheaper. There is also a bus that stops at the bottom of Terminal 1 which goes to the Central Camionera Vieja close to the historic centre and costs 6 pesos.

• The new main bus station is in the suburb of Tonalá, which serves all routes further than 100km or so, generally those which leave the state of Jalisco. The old bus station just south of the centro is served by bus lines motoring to nearby pueblos like Tequila and Chapala. Be warned that bus rides can sometimes be a bit jumpy and jittery because of the state of the roads, but the buses themselves are very comfortable. A taxi from the new bus station to the Centro Historico should cost around 60 pesos, or you can get a city bus which will cost 6 pesos unless you get a TUR bus which costs 10, just ask for 'centro'.

Get around

The Centro (downtown) is mostly accessible by walking, assuming you are capable of bearing your own weight. Most attractions lie within an area of about 3/4 of a mile long by 1/4 mile wide. For longer trips or to get in and out of the Centro, use the bus, subway, or a taxi. There are also horse drawn carriages (calandria), which is more expensive and mainly for tours of the center, for those who want to travel in a previous century's style.

By Bus

Dozens of bus routes provide transportation around the city. As of February 2011, regular busses cost six pesos; there are also luxury buses (Turquesa, Tour and Cardenal) costing 10 pesos. Look on the front window of the bus to see where it will go, and ask the driver if you're uncertain. You can also try to purchase a route map (the Guia Roja Red Vial Ciudad de Guadalajara is one option, or ask at any magazine stand or one of the tourism kiosk downtown for a book with bus routes), although as of early 2008 they are no longer being published and are therefore almost impossible to find. This means planning your route ahead, or asking the locals (provided you know some Spanish). Riding the bus also provides a good chance to see different parts of the city and get your bearings. Note that bus drivers will give you change within limits, though after even a day in GDL you might find more 10 peso pieces in your pocket than you can dispose of.

It can be hard to spot bus stops in Guadalajara, in theory there should be a signpost with a blue sign and a picture of bus as well as triangular markings on the road with the word 'Parada' meaning stop. However these aren't always there or the markings having been removed with time. Look around and see where there's a crowd of people waiting, sometimes there are even seats, if not, the buses might stop at the corner or in front of traffic lights. If they drive past you, keep looking at them and try to see where they stop.

If you know a bit of Spanish, try using this page. It has most of the bus routes. Alternatively, this page may fill in any routes the other page doesn't handle.

One particularly useful route for getting back and forth between the Centro Historico and the Zona Rosa - Minerva area is the Par Vial Route. Westbound it travels along Av Vallarta and Eastbound along Av Hidalgo. Just look up for the pair of electrical cables that it uses for power. In the Centro Historico you can catch it on Hidalgo up to the East side of the Plaza Liberación, where it makes the turn to head up to Independencia and back West.

There is also an open top double-decked tour bus (TuriBus) that leaves from the Rotunda and will take you past all the main sites in Guadalajara, Tlaquepaque and Zapopan and will also allow you to ride it all day, getting on and off as you will.

By taxi

Taxis are another option if you don't want to try to figure out the buses. You can either agree to a price with the cab driver or ask him to turn the meter on. Using the latter option, there is a risk that the driver won't the take the shortest possible route if he thinks you don't know it yourself. The meter will normally be a better price than the price the hotel will tell you to pay, if they hail. As always, be sure to ask the fare before you get in. Cabs cost more at night or when they have to cross the outer ring of the city. Day-time fares should never exceed 100 pesos within the city and almost always the price should be even under 50 pesos. At night-time, the prices are doubled. As a rule of thumb, during the daytime the fare is about 3-4 pesos per kilometer and at night about 8-9 pesos, but if the driver is using a meter, there's also a starting price of around 5-10 pesos.

Fares to and from the airport are set at 220 pesos. If arriving at the Guadalajara airport, a taxi monopoly provides the service from the airport. Pre-purchase your taxi ride at the booths outside of the arrival halls. You can take a normal taxi to the airport, though.

By subway

A simple subway network can be useful if you happen to want to travel along its currently limited path. There are two lines that join at the Western edge of the Centro Historico. One runs North-South beneath Avenida Federalismo to the edges of the city in both directions. The other runs East through the Centro Historico to the Eastern suburbs. Fares cost 6 pesos. The subway closes at 11pm.

A new bus service named 'Pre Tren' (Pre Train) goes from the main (Juárez) subway station through the Zona Rosa to the west Outer Ring at a 50% discounted fare for subway card users and provide a good service with new, air-conditioned, red colored units. The service is better than the smaller 'camiones' (bus) service.