Trip Report: Mexico City to Acapulco on a Luxury Bus.
My Estrella de Oro Diamante bus at its final stop, the Acapulco Costera bus station.
Who knew traveling on an Estrella de Oro Diamante bus between the capital and the Pacific ocean could be so convenient and comfortable?
Looking for details and tips? Head straight to the Practical Information section.
I am a big fan of bus travel in Mexico, so when I booked myself a few days in the seaside resort of Acapulco, in September 2025, I didn’t hesitate and chose to get there by bus.
Acapulco has gone through reputational ups and downs over the past decades, from being a glamorous town for the international jet set in the 1950s and 1960s to a city ravaged by cartel violence in the late 2000s and 2010s, and more recently by a devastating hurricane.
The US department of state labels the whole state of Guerrero, where Acapulco is located, as a level 4 “do not travel” region, its most severe designation, shared with countries at war like Ukraine or very unwelcoming to Americans like North Korea. As a result, international tourism has pretty much dried up.
Yet for all its recent troubles, Acapulco remains a beautiful gem of a resort, on a stunning natural bay, frequented year after year by hundreds of thousands of Mexican tourists. It’s a place that definitely sits on the roads not traveled for Western tourists, and I decided to check it out.
The entrance to the Diamante lounge at Terminal Taxqueña in Mexico City..
Going by bus made a lot of sense - that’s how the majority of capitaleños reach the city from CDMX, and so I would travel with some of them for five hours, on a luxury service.
I got to the Southern bus terminal, also called Terminal Taxqueña in Mexico City on a Monday, around 9.45am, which was a bit too early, for my bus was leaving at 10.30am. I was able to get a few snacks from one of the shops: the station, like any main bus station in the country, is modern and well appointed, like a typical train station in a major city in Europe.
I had booked my ticket online, so I didn’t need to queue to get one, but the counters weren’t busy at this hour. I had decided to try Estrella de Oro’s Diamante service for this trip, for two reasons: first, Estrella de Oro, part of the ADO group, offers the most services between CDMX and Acapulco, being one of the first companies linking the two cities, since 1927. Second, I had never experienced their luxury service and felt it was a good opportunity to do so, and see how they compared with ETN, which I used to get to Aguascalientes or Morelia.
The walk up one way fare to Acapulco is currently MXN 948 (approximately USD52 at time of writing), which, for a 5-hour trip in a seat that would look luxurious in a US domestic first-class cabin, felt like a bargain. However, I had booked my ticket a week early to secure the one seat I wanted (the single seat at the front of the bus), and only paid USD40 for it. ADO has this great policy of discounting its advance purchase tickets more heavily than competition, sometimes up to 50%, and knowing my travel dates were firm, I could take the plunge.
Complimentary drinks trolley for Diamante passengers at the Acapulco bus terminal
Note that ADO’s advance purchase fares come with a lot of restrictions: they are not changeable online and are non-refundable, so if you’re looking for flexibility, buying at the station before boarding the bus may make more sense for you.
I had some time at the station and decided to check out the exclusive Diamante lounge, a unique waiting room reserved for people with a confirmed Diamante ticket. Acapulco isn’t the only destination served with this luxury service from Taxqueña, and as a matter of fact, there was another Diamante service leaving just twenty minutes before mine to Iguala, which means the room was pretty full. I still managed to find a seat, close to the bar.
The lounge feels like a more premium experience than the regular waiting areas scattered in the station, but it is by no means at the level of an airport lounge, even a basic one: it was small, not especially well-designed, and offered only limited services (free WiFi, a charging station, cold bottles of water and a coffee machine). I wouldn’t plan to come to the station early to enjoy the lounge, but I was there, and it was definitely nicer than the hard metallic benches available to everyone in the station.
A few minutes before 10.30am, we were called to board the bus: the lounge door on the platforms side opened, and, after a quick bag inspection and a fast check-in of my luggage, I boarded the Diamante service. I failed to notice a trolley stocked with chilled drinks, complimentary for this voyage. Oh well.
Seats 2 and 3 on row 1 of the bus.
Estrella de Oro recently upgraded their Diamante buses with about thirty new Volvo 9800 Euro 6 units, clad in gorgeous black paint, with design elements reminiscent of all the other ADO brands.
Inside, the bus was fitted with only 27 seats in 9 rows of 3, in a 1+2 layout. All the trappings of a luxury service were available: wide, plush seats with very generous recline and ample legroom, a courtesy pillow and an individual entertainment screen at every seat, and two bathrooms (one per gender) at the end of the bus in an enclosed cabin with two doors (one to get into the bathroom area, then one for each of the bathrooms), which provided more intimacy.
We left Taxqueña station at 10.34am and zipped through the southern suburbs of Mexico City to get onto federal highway 95D, a toll road that would eventually lead us to Acapulco. First, our valiant bus started to climb to get to the pass between Mexico City and Cuernavaca, topping at 8,684 ft (2,647m), after which we could see the capital of Morelos state, down in its valley, on our right. We would pass the La Pera crazy-tight hairpin turn, leave Federal Highway 115D leading to Tepoztlán and Cuautla to our left, and then pass west of Cuernavaca, a city I had just visited a couple of weeks prior. It felt eerily familiar to swing by it at high speed.
South of Cuernavaca, highway 95D is colloquially known as Autopista del Sol (the Sun Highway), and it really felt like my Acapulco vacation was starting there. The road was given this poetic name as it is the shortest way from Mexico City to the sea and to this day, even with the recurring safety issues, Acapulco remains a favorite resort for Mexico City residents, and the easiest, most convenient way to enjoy a weekend in the sun.
Inside my Estrella de Oro Diamante bus to Acapulco, with 3 seats per row.
Wide open valleys soon gave way to small mountains, emerald green at the tail end of the highlands’ rainy season, and before I realized it, we had crossed the Atoyac river, on a bridge that, when it was finished in 1994, was actually the world’s tallest bridge. A massive feat of engineering, the Mezcala-Solidaridad bridge helped shave off 30 miles of driving between Mexico City and Acapulco when it was inaugurated. The view over the landscape from the bridge is one of the visual highlights of the trip, so try not to miss it (both sides are equally beautiful).
I really wanted to get a glimpse of Chilpancingo, Guerrero’s capital, but the bus’ gentle rolling and the plush comfort of my seat, now in full recline, made me fall asleep a few minutes after crossing the Atoyac river. I woke up ninety minutes later, as we were about one hour away from our final destination.
At that point, the landscape was still gorgeous, but much less open, with lush, sharp mountains somewhat close to the highway. It made me wish for a safer Guerrero that I could one day explore in more depth. There was no cell service as we were going through the southern part of the state (and even Telcel, the company with the best coverage throughout the country, doesn’t offer 100% coverage on highway 95D) so I decided to enjoyed the free 30minutes of satellite internet that came with the bus ticket (you can enjoy more, but have to pay for it). For now, the road was slowly descending towards the coast, and about thirty minutes before our arrival, we first saw Acapulco and the Pacific ocean, on the left, in the distance. It felt so close… but we had to drive a few more miles on a somewhat deserted highway, before getting into town, where our average speed took a dive, among all the local traffic and traffic lights.
The view from the Mezcala-Solidaridad bridge looking towards the south, with the Atoyac river below.
Our last notable sight was the Maxitúnel, a 9,700 ft (about 3,000m) tunnel built shorten the travel distance between Acapulco and Mexico City further, and put in service in 1996, through which we zipped to come out on the other side, in what looked like a typical big Mexican town, with traffic coming into every direction, red lights ignored and drivers with an everyman-for-himself attitude. It was a sign we were close to the Estrella de Oro bus terminal.
In fact, less than fifteen minutes later, we were turning into the station and getting off, after 5h30 trip, slightly longer than the advertised 5 hours. I got off the bus, picked up my luggage, checked out the Diamante waiting room, much bigger than in Mexico City, and picked up a taxi down the street to get to my hotel.
The road trip was fun and pretty enjoyable: the scenery was gorgeous, traffic was never really an issue, and the bus ride was smooth and super comfortable. Luxury buses, especially Estrella de Oro Diamante, are the way to go when getting between Mexico City and Acapulco!
Arriving at the Terminal Costera in Acapulco.
Practical information (updated as of September 2025)
In a nutshell
Best bus company for the trip: Estrella de Oro, with more than 30 departures daily from CDMX.
2 levels of service: Diamante (luxury) and Pluss (executive).
Most services leave from terminal Taxqueña, the most convenient bus station to get to Acapulco and arrive in terminal Costera, close to Acapulco bay and its historical center. Some services terminate at the more recent terminal Diamante, serving the fancy Punta Diamante area of the city, home to 5-star hotels.
One-way ticket cost between MXN500 (US27) and MXN950 (US52) depending on how close to the date it is purchased. Can be purchased on ADO’s website or their app (Estrella de Oro is part of the ADO group), or at the counter the day of departure (but always at the highest fare if purchased day of).
Trip lasts about 5 hours (usually a little more with traffic).
Inside the Diamante lounge in the terminal Costera in Acapulco. The lounge is exclusive to Diamante passengers with a valid ticket.
Bus companies offering service between Mexico City and Acapulco
Mexico City to Acapulco is a major transit route and, as such, is served by a variety of bus companies offering different levels of services at various prices, from a few intercity bus stations in the capital.
Estrella de Oro:
The #1 company operating on the route is Estrella de Oro, a subsidiary of ADO, the biggest bus company for travel south of Mexico City. Estrella de Oro has a long history with Acapulco, having commenced service between Mexico City and the port town in 1927. Today, Estrella de Oro offers more than thirty departures a day from four stations within the capital. The majority of services operate from Terminal Taxqueña, in the south of the city, but a few departures leave from the TAPO station or the airport. There is even one departure a day from a small but very convenient station, Terrapuerto El Angél, just off Reforma avenue in the center of Mexico City.
The majority of Estrella de Oro services originate in their Mexico City terminal, and not from a city further afield, which means they are likely to depart punctually. All services to Acapulco are non-stop from Taxqueña, and terminate either at the terminal Costera, close to the famous bay of Acapulco or at the terminal Diamante, in the eponymous, upscale Acapulco neighborhood further south.
Estrella de Oro offers two levels of service on the route: its luxury service Diamante and its executive service Pluss. The walk up fare for Diamante service is currently MXN 948 while it is MXN810 for Pluss. You can purchase tickets in advance on ADO’s website or in their (well-designed) app, with a discount that can reach 50% - but advance purchase tickets are very restrictive, and non refundable.
Services from Taxqueña clock in at 5 hours between the two cities, while leaving from the airport (around 6h), the TAPO station (5h30) or the Terrapuerto station (5h30) take a little bit longer due to each terminal’s location further north.
I chose Estrella de Oro for my trip because of the convenience of so many departures, allowing me to pick the exact one I needed, and the Diamante service to be able to relax and even sleep during the trip. I booked my ticket a week in advance to be sure to score the first solo seat on the bus, and enjoyed a discount of about 20% off the walk-up fare.
The men's bathroom on my Diamante service.
ETN/Turistar:
A major luxury service player for northern destinations (its Spanish name used to be an acronym for Enlaces Terrestres del Norte, loosely meaning Northern Bus Services), ETN offers several routes between Mexico City and Acapulco’s Terminal Papagayo:
2 nighttime services leaving from the TAPO terminal and calling en route at Terminal Taxqueña, and Chilpancingo (one service also stops in Cuernavaca). Note these do not all originate in Mexico City and because of this, could have a delayed departure because of traffic on the route leading to the capital.
5 services from the Northern Bus station, stopping at the Taxqueña terminal to pick up passengers. Some also stop in Chilpancingo.
Note you’ll see CostaLine services listed if you search the ETN website for trips to Acapulco, but these services are first class (and detailed below).
CostaLine:
Costa offers first-class services between Mexico City and Acapulco:
7 services from Terminal Taxqueña, in the south of the city, to Terminal Papagayo in Acapulco, most of them originating in CDMX’s Northern Bus terminal (look for the mention “de Paso” confirming the bus will come from another city or station), with some of them being non-stop.
8 services from the Northern Bus station, stopping either at terminal Taxqueña or Chilpancingo (or sometimes at both). These services also terminate in Acapulco’s terminal Papagayo.
Lush Guerrero landscape between Mexico City and Acapulco on the 95D highway.
First class, Executive class or Luxury service?
Counterintuitively, bus classes aren’t as they seem in Mexico.
First class (primera clase):
The standard class for most medium to long distance travel in the country, this is the default level of service (Second class buses do exist but I wouldn’t recommend them unless you have no other choice, as most of them don’t have AC or toilets on board). You get good (but not great) legroom, a seat that reclines, and entertainment beamed to several overhead screens throughout the bus. Seats are assigned and buses feature AC and toilets.
Executive class (clase ejecutiva):
A notable step up from first class, Executive buses offer the same features with much more legroom, a seat with a moveable leg rest, and individual entertainment screen at every seat. It’s a much better proposition for trips longer than a few hours, and usually comes at at premium of 15 to 20% above first class.
Luxury class (clase de lujo):
This is the best experience you can get on a bus. Seats are no longer 4-a-row but only 3, so each seat is wider, legroom is even better than on executive buses and recline is super deep. Cost is usually 10 to 20% higher than Executive services, and for longer trips like Mexico City to Acapulco, I would strongly recommend you consider them - especially if you’re traveling solo, as you can pick a seat on the left side of the bus, with no immediate neighbor (so you seat is both an aisle and a window seat, how cool is that).
I wrote a full article with pictures on the differences between these services to help visualize the differences between classes, and you can check it out here.
Passengers boarding an Estrella de Oro Pluss (executive) service at the terminal Costera in Acapulco.
Which bus station to pick in Mexico City to get to Acapulco
Most services to Acapulco depart from the Southern bus station, also called Terminal Taxqueña. It is fairly easy to get to by public transport, as it sits right by the Tasqueña subway station on line 2 (and yes, in a decidedly Mexican twist, the subway station and bus stations are spelled slightly differently).
You can also reach Taxqueña in an Uber, Didi or reputable taxi.
I prefer to leave from Taxqueña because most services leave from there, and therefore I am spoiled for choice when it comes to departure time. It’s also the southern station and is close to the Cuernavaca highway which buses to Acapulco take - so you spend less time stuck in the notorious Mexico City traffic than if I were to leave from, say, Central del Norte (the Northern bus station).
That being said, if any other station, the Terrapuerto El Ángel, the Airport, terminal del Norte or TAPO is closer to you, it may make sense to choose to leave from one of these. There is no wrong answer to that question.
Which bus station to arrive to in Acapulco
There are three main bus stations in Acapulco. Two of them are located near Acapulco’s famous bay, and close to most of the city’s historical attractions: terminal Costera is used by Estrella de Oro services, while terminal Papagayo, just a little further west, is the station of choice for ETN, Turistar and CostaLine.
Estrella de Oro has another terminal near Punta Diamante, the more exclusive and more recent part of Acapulco, home of Banyan Tree Cabo Marqués, arguably the city’s most luxurious resort. It will show up as Acapulco Riviera Diamante in the search results on the ADO website. It can be slightly confusing that Estrella’s luxury service also happens to be called Diamante, so to be clear: Estrella de Oro’s Diamante luxury service offers non stop buses from Mexico City to both the Costera terminal and the Riviera Diamante terminal. However, Estrella de Oro’s executive service, Pluss, only serves the Costera terminal.
Inside the terminal Costera in Acapulco, Guerrero.
Cost of a bus ride between Mexico City and Acapulco
Luxury buses:
Estrella de Oro, the frequency leader on the route, offers its luxury Diamante service for MXN948 one way (USD52 at time of writing) but heavy discounts can be had if you buy your ticket in advance. For instance on the day of publishing, the overnight Diamante service leaving at 12.15am from Taxqueña ten days later was sold at MXN496, or USD27. Check out ADO’s website for the latest prices, but note advance tickets are hard to change and fully non-refundable.
ETN’s one way walk-up fare to Acapulco is MXN945. Unlike ADO brands, ETN doesn’t usually offer a big discount for advance purchase, it’s usually about 10% off, but you’re able to change your ticket time online up to three times, without change fees (you’d only pay the fare difference). That being said, when I researched this article, I saw ETN luxury services for about MXN550 if purchased a few days in advance, so it pays to look anyway.
Executive buses:
Estrella de Oro’s Pluss one way fare is MXN810 (USD44) but can be had for much cheaper if you buy your ticket in advance.
First-class bus:
While I don’t recommend this service class for such a long trip, CostaLine’s walk up fare is MXN 775, close enough to Estrella de Pro’s Pluss fare to justify upgrading to an executive service. CostaLine buses can be booked in advance at a discount as well.
WiFi
Estrella de Oro offers limited free satellite WiFi on the route, which is useful because large portions of Highway 95D do not have cell service (from any network, even if Telcel has the best coverage of all of them, there are parts of the trip in rural Guerrero where no provider offers coverage). On its Diamante service, the free allowance is 30 minutes, which is nice, but I was out of cell coverage for much longer than that. It is possible to purchase satellite WiFi for 2 hours for MXN50 (a little less than USD3) which felt like a good deal. WiFi speed was decent and I never waited long for pages to load.
You can check independent cell coverage maps for Mexico here (link in Spanish but fairly visual).
Bus safety
Buses in Mexico are generally very safe, and bus travel is definitely safer than renting a car, especially when crossing a level 4 state like Guerrero: bus drivers know the route very well, they would be made aware of any issue on the road by other drivers ahead of them, and nothing beats being able to sleep in a plush seat while someone does the driving for you.
Additionally, all bus services between Mexico City and Acapulco listed above offer a secure check-in service for luggage: you bring your own luggage to the bus and an attendant takes it from you to put it in the hold, gives you a ticket with a number that matches the number on your bag, so no one can claim your bag but you.
On a direct service like the one I took, there is no opportunity for luggage shenanigans as there are no stops and the hold compartment isn’t opened until the bus gets to its final destination, making sure your luggage will not be accessed.
Any questions I may not have thought about? Do not hesitate to drop me a line!
All photos are mine and are copyrighted. Hover over the photo (on a desktop) or click on it (on a phone) to see the legend.