This info is as of February 2008. The normal tourist method of getting from the Airport in Huatulco to Puerto Escondido is by cab or hotel shuttle. While a cab will get there a little faster than the public bus, it will also cost you (starting price) 500 Pesos or $US50. A surprisingly comfortable and way less costly alternative is to take the public bus. We read about this, I had my reservations, but in the spirit of trying something new, decided to do it. Its easy, we highly recommend it. As the other posts say, the bus you want is the SUR bus, looks just like your standard greyhound, with green and yellow markings, and says SUR in big letters....this is your bus to PE.
Nice airport, bus stop is said to be right at entrance.....so where is entrance??? You cant really tell from just outside the airport bldg, but just take the road OUT...the one all the buses and cabs etc. go out (there is probably only one anyway). All in its a distance of about 300 meters. As you make your way down it you will feel a bit wierd because (a) you are not totally sure it is the right road cause you can't really see the main road when you are starting out (b) there is no sidewalk and you will probably be the only one strolling down the road with your luggage, and (c) every cabbie will stop and appear shocked when you tell them you are taking the bus. You will also be passed by your airplane buddies in their air conditioned hotel shuttles...but take heart.
So, you get to the end of the airport road (5 minute walk) and on the right hand side is just a big dirt clearing, and an old tree for a bit of shade. There is no bus sign (cabbies like it that way I bet) however just wait at this open sandy area. If you stick your head out to look down the road, a few hundred meters away you can see the hwy sign that says Puerto Escondido , so you know you are on the right road (and anyway there is only one). Gas station is directly opposite you. The bus comes by about every 1/2 hr so you may need to wait that long. While you wait, you'll be approached by cabs looking for business. Many will tell there is no bus , or it takes 6 hours, or it costs way more than they charge... ignore all this.
Since most tourists take a cab or hotel bus don't be surprised if there are no other tourists at the bus stop, but by the time its due, a local or two may be there with you (they know the exact schedule).
We had to wait a bit, about 20 minutes. If your travel partner is the reluctant-for-this-type-of-thing type, at this point you may be in for a little flack, esp with the cabbies telling you the above story. It's worth it to persevere, you can be (a little) smug the whole rest of the trip when you saved $50 (bus cost us under $4 each).
Lo and behold, after about 20 min. big greyhound SUR bus appears, shows Puerto Escondido on the front. They have a luggage area too, and the cost is 37p each !! Lovely. Note this is as of Feb 2008, with gas prices this price may have gone up a bit. If so cabs would have gone up more as well, for sure. Driver is in a suite and tie, and has an electronic fare gizmo that can make change ....very professional. A/C is on, and we had the whole place practically to ourselves (about 6 other people on it ). Yup it makes a few stops, no biggie at all for the amt you just saved. All in it probably takes about 20 minutes longer than a cab would (we cabbed on the way back).
The bus exits at the bus terminal in town, and it was about a 25p ride to our hotel from the terminal . If we had have known the name of the street our hotel was on, we would have asked the bus to stop at that street, bec as it turned out the bus did go right by it.
One other note, altho the bus made change, we had relatively small bills....it would probably be best to have some small peso bills for the ride. As well, in addition to the cabbies, some very rickety bus-type contraptions stopped for us....(with chickens and whatnot, probably). Just wait for your big SUR bus.







