We re by no means experts on travel by bus and shuttle in Central America. There are plenty who hav

A few days before we departed for our travels in Central America we hosted a wine tasting for the staff of a local restaurant and some of their notable patrons at our home in Lake Tahoe.  The restaurant is a client of mine and the manager is a very good friend of my wife, and because we love to entertain, our house has become the default destination for such occasions.
One of our guests was very interested when he learned that we were preparing for 6 weeks of travel in Central America.  I got a kick out of it when he asked if we were taking the kids!  His life experience apparently hadn t exposed him to a lot of families cheap florida vacation packages staying anywhere other than the Marriott.
I ll be the first to admit that we had little cheap florida vacation packages idea what we were getting into.  Monica and I honeymooned in Costa Rica, but did not get far beyond the confines of the luxurious Four Seasons Resort where we were staying .  When Jackson was a year old we spent three weeks in Nicaragua, but that trip was different.  We went straight to the low-key Corn Islands and then spent some time in Granada .  We went to destinations and then stayed there.  We were not traveling. We certainly weren t taking buses.
The bus company was Hedman Alas , and we d travel by Hedman Alas not just on that initial trip to San Pedro Sula to La Ceiba but later back to San Pedro Sula from La Ceiba and then onto Copan Ruinas Honduras.  In all, we logged about 12 hours on Hedman Alas buses.
Kids under 5 do not have to book their own seat when traveling within a single country.  The buses are rarely very full so once you are on board you can spread out.  Worse case scenario, if you have a full bus the kids will end up on your lap.
We didn t realize we d be separated from our backpacks until we were getting on the bus.  Our large backpacks were designated as too big to be carry-ons.  It was not until we handed them over that we realized that we had separated ourselves from our computer, one of our credit cards, most of our cash, our passports, and the copes of our passports.  Brilliant, right?  It all happened so fast.  Fortunately, everything worked out okay, but after that first bus ride we did adjust the way we packed before heading to the bus terminal in the future.
Getting your tickets will take you 10-15 minutes at the counter.  At least that s how long it took us as a family fo 4.  You ll need to show your passports.  They do take credit cards, not always a given in Central America.
cheap florida vacation packages When we prepared to leave Copan for Antigua, Guatemala, though, we did a double take.  Because we were crossing a border, the kids would each have to have their own seats.  Even though cheap florida vacation packages their seats were discounted, our total for all 4 of us from Copan to Antigua cheap florida vacation packages was going to be close to $150.  Our hostel advertised a shuttle service, and though we hadn t looked into it much yet, we knew the numbers were much lower.
There s really no name for these shuttle companies, but they run to and from every travel destination in Central America.  They pick you up right at your hotel or hostel.  They are very nice 15-passenger vans with luggage racks on the roofs.
Hostels and hotels typically act as their own booking offices.  In some of larger cities you ll have stand alone booking offices.  But each office charges whatever they want.  The hostel you re staying at may charge $20 for a ticket while the place next door charges only $17.  So do a little research to make sure you are getting a good deal.
Pick-up times are approximate.  When you book your ticket, they ll give you a time.  For example, the shuttle from Antigua to Panajachel leaves at 8:00 AM.  But they tell everyone, at every hostel or hotel 8:00 AM.  Obviously they can t be at every pick-up spot at 8:00 AM, so don t freak out if your shuttle cheap florida vacation packages is 20 minutes late. There s no reason cheap florida vacation packages to panic only reason to be bummed, as you ll get last pick of your seat
The final leg of our journey cheap florida vacation packages included cheap florida vacation packages a mammoth cheap florida vacation packages bus ride from San Salvador to San Pedro Sula.  To make matters worse, we had to first get a shuttle at 5:30 in the morning from the beach town we were staying cheap florida vacation packages in El Tunco to San Salvador.  Then we had 10 hours on the bus from San Salvador to San Pedro Sula on a King Quality Bus .
Much of what I have already said about Herman Alas applies to King Quality.  These are big motor coaches that more closely resemble commercial air travel (make that are better than commercial air travel).  They are roomy and comfy.  On our 10 hour ride from San Salvador to San Pedro Sula we had a attendant working cheap florida vacation packages the cabin who provided a hot breakfast and later a snack.  There were movies playing the duration of the trip.  Just a nice ride.  A few other things to point out about King Quality Buses.  Kids have to buy a ticket, no matter what, but tickets are 50% the full fare rate
Of course while you re in Central America, your transportation needs are likely to go beyond those destinations that are hours and hours away.  Taxis and tuk tuks abound.  In some destinations you ll want to be sure to confirm the price before you get in, but honestly, even in the places cheap florida vacation packages most notorious for trying to haggle travelers for a few extra bucks, wee never had any trouble.
The busses and shuttles between major destinations were all very nice and very professionally operated.  Within those destinations it s a bit different.  Arranging transportation can feel a bit like hitching a ride from a friend.  Your driver picks you up a half hour late, then stops to get gas, then stops by a friends house, then runs into the store to get a soda.  It s not that bad really, it s just an adjustment.  You d never see that in the States.  After a while it becomes more comical than anything.
Later in our travels, a friend back in the States messaged me on Facebook and asked me why they called them Chicken Buses.  I said, I don t know, really.  Maybe because people carry anything and everything on them.  Like chickens.
Chicken buses are really the primary transportation of locals.  They are old school buses from the United cheap florida vacation packages States.  That tells you something about the States. cheap florida vacation packages  These buses continue to operate just fine for years and years after going south.
The chicken buses we rode on both in Guatemala and along the coast of El Salvador were packed.  On a short ride from Playa El Zonte to Playa El Tunco a man hopped on and began talking at the top of his lungs preaching the Gospel.
When we were getting ready to leave Honduras for Guatemala, one of the things my wife really liked about traveling by Hedman Alas was that she had read somewhere online about how professionally they handled the border crossings.  Still, we decided others happened to survive border crossings just fine on the shuttles, so we decided to save $100+ and take the shuttle.
Every border crossing we experience from Honduras to Guatemala, then from Guatemala to El Salvador, then from El Salvador to Honduras were super easy.  Honduras has small entrance and exit fees a few US dollars.  Guatemala had a small fee to enter the country but no fee to exit.  There were no entrance or exit fees to El Salvador.  (Thank you, El Salvador).
When you get to the border there will be people waving huge stacks of cash in front of you offering to exchange money.  Do it!  I assumed the exchange rates being offered at the border would be bad, but they re actually very, very good.  Just do your research when crossing the border i.e. figure out how many Guatemalan Quetzal you should get for your Honduran cheap florida vacation packages Lempera.  I only changed a very little of the Honduran currency that I had when entering Guatemala cheap florida vacation packages and there was nowhere to exchange the money once we got to Antigua.  Changing US Dollars or Euros no problem, but that s it.  I did eventually find a place to exchange my Lempera but that s a whole different story.
We re by no means experts on travel by bus and shuttle in Central America.  There are plenty who have done a lot more traveling in Central America than we have.  But our 6 weeks traveling 3 countries did teach us a few things and I m happy to share what we learned.
If you're new to Family Trek, let's get connected.  We're on a quest to work less, live more, and travel the world as a family.  We're trying to live deliberately, examining every aspect of life to ensure that our life actually matches up with the things we say we value most.  You can  like our page on Facebook  and  follow us on Twitter ! Other Posts You May Enjoy:
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Central America Trip Fall 2012 , Chicken Buses in Central America , family travel , Family Travel by Chicken Bus , Family Travel in Central America , Hedman Alas Buses , King Quality Buses , Shuttles from Hostels in Central America