First-Class and Above
Tickets for first class and above can be purchased in advance. This is not usually necessary, but for important trips such as connections to catch a flight, I do book in advance. When you arrive in a town and you certain ofwhen you will be leaving, it may be a good idea to purchase your ticket to the next destination. Tickets can also be purchased at travel agencies. Ticket Bus sells tickets online and at their offices in the Mexico City area for buses trav eling routes in the southeastern section of Mexico as far north as Mexico City. I do not recommend buying bus tickets online.
 
Second-Class
Tickets for these buses usually cannot be bought more than a short time in advance, usually around an hour beforehand. If you are at a ticket counter 15 minutes before departure there should not be a problem, unless it is a very busy time such as during Semana Santa. If the bus is about to depart or you catch a bus between stations, you can buy a ticket on the bus. While second class buses may often have passengers standing in the aisle along popular routes, they usually do not leave a bus station full, but fill as they pick up passengers at other locations. Save your tickets. Bus company inspector may border a bus enriute and ask to see tickets.

 
Most cities have a single bus station. They will usually go by the name Central de Autobuses, Terminal de Autobuses or Camionera Central. In some places the station will have its own name, such as CAPU in Puebla. Don't worry. If you you ask a taxi driver to take you Central de Autobuses and it is known in that town as the Camionera Central, he will understand and may reply with a polite correction, “Si señor, a la Camionera Central.”
 
The counters of the various bus companies are often in one area of the bus station. Some larger bus stations are divided with first class buses in one area and second class in another. Guadalajara is divided into seven separate connected small terminals. Because of its size, Mexico City has four large stations, each named for a compass direction.
 
Some cities have not consolidated their bus stations into a single station. Oaxaca has grouped the bus companies into two stations, one for second class buses and another in a different area of the city for the higher classes. There are towns where each company or group of companies will have their own station. These may all be in the same area, but as in Cuernavaca, a taxi may be need to make a connection.
 
While I have experienced a few bus company employees who were rude or indifferent, the vast majority have been polite, knowable and eager to help with any questions. I have been told, “We have a bus leaving for there in a half hour. However, if you go over to that lady, her company has one leaving in 5 minutes.”
 
Taxis are normally lined up in front of bus stations. Ask for the price before entering the taxi. In larger stations, ticket booths inside the station sells tickets at fixed rates depending on the area you wish to be taken to. You then give the ticket to the driver of one of the official taxis lined up in the area set aside for them.