How To Take the ADO Bus From the Cancun Airport to Cancun Hotel Zone

If you are staying in Cancun in the Hotel Zone and want to get there by the ADO bus, here are step by step instructions on how to do it. Taking the ADO bus to the Hotel Zone is considered the cheapest option especially if you are traveling solo or with one other person. Just note that at the airport, buses to the Hotel Zone are different from the ADO bus route to the downtown area of Cancun.

What is the ADO Bus?

The ADO Bus Company is one of the main long-distance bus services in Mexico, operated by the company ADO (Autobuses de Oriente). It’s widely used by both locals and tourists as a comfortable, safe, and affordable way to travel between cities, especially in regions like the Yucatan Peninsula and Riviera Maya. ADO is also the only bus service to and from the Cancun Hotel Zone and the Cancun Airport. This is considered the only “public” transportation to and from the Cancun Airport.

Where Do You Get the ADO Bus at the Airport?

Each of the terminals at the Cancun International Airport has service by ADO.

Terminal 1 This terminal is currently being renovated. But when it opens it is easy to see the buses. This is a smaller terminal, and the ADO buses are just in front of this terminal. Exit the terminal and look right. It is about a one-minute walk.
Terminal 2 Exit the terminal and walk immediately down the sidewalk in front of the terminal to the right. At the end of this walkway, you will see the bus platforms. This can be a four-minute walk.
Terminal 3 Exit the building and walk straightforward and in about 30 seconds you will see the bus platforms with the iconic red buses to your right.
Terminal 4 When you are leaving the terminal, there are two exits. One is straight ahead and one of the exits is the left and down a covered walkway. The exit straight ahead is for friends and family. The exit to the left is where you will walk out to the bus platforms. It is about a 3-minute walk. If you accidently walk out the wrong exit, you can ask the security to let you back in and go out the other exit to catch the ADO bus.

Tip: Don’t listen to taxi drivers or other people that say the “next bus is in on hour or longer” or “there are no more buses today “. These are just tricks to get people to take a taxi or van service.

ADO buses at the Cancun Airport — This is the ADO bus that has service from the Cancun Airport to the Hotel Zone in Cancun.

How Do You Buy the Tickets from the ADO Bus?

Tickets are available upon arrival at the Cancun Airport. You can purchase tickets online ahead of time, but we do not recommend this. You don’t know if your flight will arrive on time or how long it will take to go through immigration and customs (Usually count on 40 minutes at the Cancun Airport). The tickets are timed and if you arrive late, you will need to buy another ticket.

Once you arrive at the Cancun Airport and leave the customs area, you can purchase ADO tickets at an ADO booth or a stand on the bus platform. Usually, it is quicker to buy them outside on the bus platform. It also means you might be able to jump on a bus that is just leaving if they see you buying a ticket. Note: In the early hours of the day and after about 6:30pm, the outside ticket sellers are not working, so you need to purchase them inside.

ado bus counter — This is what a ticket counter looks like for buying your ADO bus tickets inside the Cancun Airport.

Payment Methods Accepted for Bus Tickets

You can pay with credit card, USD or Pesos. If you pay with USD, make sure you have small bills, nothing bigger than a 20-dollar bill. Change will be in Pesos.

Tickets are also assigned a seat. Sometimes when purchasing the tickets the person will turn the screen toward you to select seats, or they might just be automatically assigned.

How Much Are the Bus Tickets to the Hotel Zone?

Ado bus tickets are 170 pesos each way between the Cancun Airport and the Hotel Zone of Cancun.

How Long is the Bus Ride Between the Airport and the Hotel Zone?

Basically, it takes between 40 minutes to one hour. The amount of time will vary. the first reason is because the ADO bus will stop at all terminals before going to the Hotel Zone. The ADO bus leaves from Terminal 4, then goes to Terminal 2 and last to Terminal 3. It will also depend on where in the Hotel Zone you need to get off.

How Many Buses A Day are There Between the Cancun Airport and the Hotel Zone?

There are 8 buses a day leaving the Cancun Airport for the Hotel Zone. These buses currently start at 10:25am and end service at 6:25pm. Going from the Hotel Zone to the Cancun Airport there are 9 buses a day. The first one is at 8:16am and the last one leaves at 7:50pm. You can see the exact schedules between where you need to get on or off and the terminal you need at the ADO website. The website is in Spanish but is fairly easy to figure out. Use “Aeroperuto Cancun” and the terminal number (T2, T3, T4) and “Zona Hotelera Plaza Fiesta” for your search terms.

What are the ADO Bus Stops in the Hotel Zone?

It is very important to see which stop is near your hotel. The Hotel Zone is about 14km (22.5 miles) long. This means that there can be several miles between stops. If a stop is not near your hotel, you might have to take an additional taxi, or you can look at all your transportation options from the Cancun Airport to the Hotel Zone.

The stops in the Hotel Zone coming from the airport are: Museo Maya, Aquaworld, Plaza La Isla, and Plaza Fiesta. Going back to the Cancun Airport the ADO buses start from Plaza Fiesta, Plaza La Isla, and Aquaworld. The ADO bus does not stop at Museo Maya going back to the airport.