How to go by Bus / Shuttle to Calakmul from Xpujil, Campeche, Palenque or Bacalar (Mexico)

The archeological site of Calakmul is considered one of the most beautiful in Mexico, but not so visited – because of its off-center location compared to other tourist sites (we are in the middle of nowhere). These ruins in the middle of the jungle seduce tourists with time and patience, but all these efforts will be largely rewarded.

To go there, you have to really want to. The bus schedules aren’t well adapted. Basically, you have to spend

• an afternoon drive to the nearest town, Xpujil
• 1 day to go to the site and visit the ruins
• and the whole morning to leave

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Here are the transportation options available to you from Campeche, Palenque, or Bacalar. It wasn’t easy to find up-to-date information, so I’m writing them here to save you the hassle. Rates are as of November 2019.

Part 1: From Campeche
Part 2: From Palenque
Part 3: From Bacalar
Which hotel to book in Xpujil
Notes & Additional Information
Part 4: Departure from Xpujil

Part 1: Campeche – Calakmul by bus

To get to the ruins, you must stop at Xpujil.

• From Campeche to Xpujil: by taking a direct bus (ADO) at 2:30 pm from Campeche, you arrive in Xpujil, the closest town to the ruins. It is served by mainline buses. Travel time: 4h30

On the forums, it is recommended to stop in Escarcega and then take a bus to Xpujil. Maybe it was convenient before, but the schedules of the 1st class ADO don’t fit anymore (too much waiting or you arrive when the ruins are already closed). So if you want to take the 1st class, you might as well take a direct one. I don’t know the timetables of the 2nd class buses leaving from the SUR terminal.

• 1st class Campeche => Escarcega (departures at 02h15, 11h, 14h, 16h45, 23h10) for 227MXN, 2h05
• 1st class Escarcega => Xpujil (departures at 00:30, 08:50, 16:20, 21:40, 23:05) for 158MXN-225MXN, 2h20

• Spend a night in Xpujil because when you arrive, the ruins will already be closed.

• From Xpujil to the ruins of Calakmul :
  • if you are less than 3: take the shuttle at 8 am for 400MXN (round trip) per person. Departure every day. You can book by phone: +521983 211 1839; +521983 211 1806; +521983 137 9403 or via their Facebook page. They tell me that they will be able to stop in front of the bat cave if the passengers specifically request it. Be careful. There is nothing to eat there so please bring something to eat and drink
  • if you are 3 or more: the return trip by privatized cab will cost you 1200MXN

Transportation cost: 703MXN per person (33€)

Part 2: Bacalar – Calakmul by bus

To get to the ruins, you must stop at Xpujil.

• From Bacalar to Xpujil: 2 direct ADO buses leave super late from Bacalar and arrive super late in Xpujil. Clearly, I do not advise you to take them. I advise you to make a connection in Chetumal because the buses are more frequent, even if it takes 45 minutes more (and waiting time), but at least you will arrive in Xpujil at reasonable hours :
  • Take a bus from Bacalar to Chetumal (duration between 35mn and 45mn): departures at 00h05, 00h15, 02h55, 05h16, 05h24, 10h15, 11h35, 12h45, 13h45, 14h25, 14h55, 15h55, 16h35, 17h25, 19h15, 20h05, 21h, 21h25, 21h55, 23h05 (schedules change from one day to another, check on the site) for 77MXN. If you can’t manage to buy a place by bus, cross the street, just in front of the ADO terminal, there are colectivos leaving every 30 minutes for Chetumal (last departure at 4pm).
  • From Chetumal, take another bus to Xpujil (1h45 trip): 00h05, 02h35, 11h30, 12h00, 18h30, 23h for 195MXN
  • To get into your buses without too much waiting (nor risk), we advise you to take 2 buses:
    • option 1: the bus leaves at 10:15 am from Bacalar, arriving at 11 am. Then the bus at 11:30 am from Chetumal. Arrived at 1:15 pm in Xpujil, you will have time to explore the ruins right away, but you will have to pay for a cab
    • option 2: if timetables permit: take the bus leaving at 5:25 pm from Bacalar, arriving at 6 pm in Chetumal. Then the bus leaving at 18:30 from Chetumal. Arrival at 20:15 in Xpujil, you have time to go to your hotel, dinner, and bed.

• If you arrive late, spend a night in Xpujil so thatyou can take the economic shuttle at 8am the next day.
• From Xpujil to the ruins of Calakmul :
  • if you are less than 3: take the shuttle at 8am, for 400MXN round trip per person. Departure every day. You can book by phone: +52 1 83 211 1839; +52 1983 211 1806; +52 1 983 137 9403 or via their Facebook page. They tell me that they will be able to stop in front of the bat cave if all the passengers ask for it. Be careful, there isn’thing to eat there so please bring food and drinks.
  • if you are 3 or more: the return trip by privatizedcab will cost you 1200MXN

Transport cost: 672MXN (31€)

Part 3: Palenque – Calakmul by bus

• A direct bus drops you off in Xpujil at 1:45 am. A little hard.

• Another option would be to visit Campeche first (a nice colonial town), and take a bus the next day to Xpujil at a more convenient time? (see part 1)

• You can also opt for a one-day tour from Palenque for 1410MXN per person. Many agencies offer it: departure at 5 am, return at 9 pm in Palenque. Time on site: 3h. If you wish, ask the driver to drop you off in Escarcega on the way back. That way, you don’t have to come back to Palenque, and you can continue your trip to Campeche or Merida in peace.

Which hotel to book in Xpujil?

Be careful. There are only a dozen hotels and camping sites on site. It would be best if you thought to look carefully at your accommodation location before making a reservation. If you plan to take the shuttle to go to the ruins, you should be in Xpujil and not in a hotel at the reserve entrance. Also, ask if there is a restaurant on the spot because if you aren’t motorized and you are in the reserve, the chances are that you have nothing to eat.

We recommend the Gran Garra de Jaguar Hotel, 300MXN, right next to the ADO bus terminal. I don’t know why it is badly rated on Google while the shower is hot with pressure, the room is spotless, and it is in a backyard, so 0 noise problem. I strongly advise against Cabanas Chaac, which is super dirty and not isolated at all.

Notes & additional information

Guided tours with transport

There are quite a few Spanish & English speaking motorized guides, who can offer you both (1) transportation to the site – and back (2) either a small tour of the fauna and flora (you have to get up very early for this) or a visit to the cellar where thousands of bats come out at nightfall (3) a visit to the ruins. The prices are about 800MXN per person. You can find the list of the official guides & their contact details here

Otherwise, you can also contact the shuttle company above. They offer transportation and a guide for 800MXN/person, lunch included.

English speaking guide for Calakmul

The only official French-speaking guide, Luis, does not have a car. If you have a car or privatize a cab, he will get in your car and visit the ruins and the reserve with you. You can contact him here: luis8lewis [@] hotmail.com

Note: I know he works with a reputable French agency, but I have never tested his services

Hitchhiking

I know a local bus that regularly makes Xpujil => junction to Calakmul (entrance of the reserve) for 160MXN. From the reserve entrance, it is necessary to continue another 60km approximately to reach the ruins (I told you that it was in the middle of nowhere).

Some bloggers advise to hitch-hike to this place, but given the little frequentation of the site out of tourist season (4-5 cars per day), I advise against it. The wait could be long. At worst, if you can’t find a stop sign, you can always opt for the van just at the junction, ready to leave for 450MXN/person, but it’s more expensive than if you had opted from the beginning for the shuttle leaving at 8 am from Xpujil (400MXN round trip). The easiest way would be to ask on the travel groups on Facebook a few days before if someone rents a car and is willing to share the cost with you.

Rent a car

You can rent a car from Xpujil. I don’t know the prices though. The road is beautiful until the entrance of the reserve. Then, from the entrance to the ruins, it is about 60km. The road isn’t perfect, but by driving slowly, it should be fine. Avoid getting out of your car without a guide, there are jaguars and pumas, and some attacks have been reported.

Cab fares (Return from Xpuji)

There are other small ruins & sites of interest nearby, here are the official cab fares to get there (round trip from Xpujil)

• to the ruins of Calakmul: 1200MXN
• to Calakmul – Balamku: 1500MXN
• to Xpujil (ruins), Becan and Chicanna: 800MXN
• to the Volcan de los murciélagos: 600MXN
• to Becan : 80MXN
• to Chicanna : 90MXN
• to Hormiguero: 400MXN

Part 4 : Departure from Xpujil by bus

Attention, the bus schedules vary a little from one day to another. Check them systematically on the ADO site. You can buy ADO bus tickets online with a foreign card (and even with PayPal), contrary to what is told on the internet 😉

• From Xpujil to Campeche by bus: only one departure at 12:55 pm for 414MXN, duration 4h20. However, you can go to Escarcega (several departures per day) and then take a colectivo just in front of the ADO terminal for Campeche.
• From Xpujil to Palenque by bus: only one departure at 3h30 for 357MXN, duration 5h50, it’s the only direct bus to Palenque. If you are desperate to miss the only bus of the day, you can go to Escarcega (several departures per day) and then take a direct bus to Palenque (5 departures per day)
• from Xpujil to Bacalar by bus: departures at 1h20 and 23h55 for 164MXN, duration 2h40
• from Xpujil to Chetumal by bus: departures at 6:35 pm, 10:30 pm, 11:55 pm for 164MXN, duration 1 hour 50 min
• from Xpujil to Escarcega by bus: departures at 00h55, 02h19, 03h30, 12h55, 19h25, 23h50 for 225MXN, duration 1h55. From Escarcega, you can go to Palenque, Campeche or Merida

If you want to take a long-distance cab (one way only), here are the official rates:

• to Chetumal: 1300MXN
• to Cancun : 3500MXN
• to Bacalar: 1500MXN
• to Campeche : 2500MXN
• to Merida : 3500MXN
• to Palenque : 3200MXN

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If you liked this article, you can consult our travel diary in Calakmul here, our other articles about Mexico here and our guide 15 days in Mexico by bushere