5
Tried to book a night bus in Mexico City and my Spanish failed me for 45 minutes
I was in Mexico City last fall trying to get a cheap overnight bus to Oaxaca, and the ticket vendor kept asking about something called 'seguro' that I didn't understand. It turns out he meant travel insurance, which they add on automatically if you don't say no, and I spent almost an hour negotiating it off. Has anyone else run into hidden add-ons like that when booking local transport abroad?
3 comments
Log in to join the discussion
Log In3 Comments
henryt184d ago
My buddy Dave got hit with this exact same thing in Peru, not Mexico. He was booking a bus from Cusco to Lima and the lady at the counter kept adding on this "boarding priority pass" for like 15 soles. He thought it was just part of the price until he saw the receipt and realized it was extra. Took him a good 20 minutes of waving his hands and pointing at a sign to get it removed, and the whole time she looked annoyed like he was being cheap. Now he just memorizes "no gracias" for any add on they throw at him before they even finish the sentence.
7
ramirez.vera5d ago
Mexico City bus stations are notorious for that. I had a similar experience at Terminal Norte last year where they tried to add a "safety fee" of about 20 pesos to a ticket to Puebla. The thing is, these add-ons are usually optional but the vendors are trained to include them unless you speak up fast enough. Next time just say "sin seguro" firmly right when they quote the price, before they start typing anything into the computer. It saves you that awkward back and forth while everyone in line behind you gets impatient.
5