Xpujil to Palenque. Calakmul visit

The ADO website does show AU second class departures from Xpujil, as well as the ADO first class departures. There are also infrequent shared vans and taxis, and some generic buses (note: there are frequent combis operating between the intersection for Playas de Catazaja on highway 186 and Palenque if you want to board a Villahermosa-bound bus in Escarcega).

Note that there are two bus stations in Escarcega: the generic second class central station, in the centre of town near the railway tracks, and the ADO station at the west end of town (it handles first class ADO buses and the Merida to Palenque second class buses). I remember having a great deal of difficulty buying second class tickets at the ADO station; the staff told me the bus was delayed (it arrived half an hour early), cancelled, fully occupied (much less than half full), and I wasn't allowed to buy the tickets until the bus arrived; clearly they wanted me to buy tickets for the first class departure. My connecting time was shortly after noon, if I remember correctly.

Thanks for the info, mclarjh. Yes, I now see the second class AU departures. There aren't many... how did you manage to get to Escarcega before noon for the connecting bus? I see nothing from Xpujil before noon -- except for the 2am bus (I will be traveling in a couple of weeks, in November).

I am not sure if I understood your comment on combis bound for Villahermosa. Would they drop off in Palenque? Or is that another option to make more transfers somewhere? Thanks!

I can't remember how I got to Escarcega from Xpujil, I will look for my notes.

The info about combis provides another option to get to Palenque. That is, you needn't find a bus in Escarcega that goes directly to Palenque; you can get a bus that's destined for Villahermosa, but get off at the intersection for Playas de Catazaja, then board a combi waiting at the corner for the short ride into Palenque. (I did this in reverse once, departed Palenque using the combi, then waited at the intersection for an Escarcega bound second class bus, eventually ended up in Champoton that day.)

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