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I’m a huge fan of the hop-on, hop-off or trolley type tours. But I like to save my money whenever I can while visiting a new city. In San Antonio, the city’s VIVA bus lines were the perfect answer for an inexpensive way to get around town. While it isn’t a tour bus, VIVA will easily get you to all the highlights in San Antonio.
VIVA has three important routes for tourists: Culture, Missions, and Centro. You can access information from the official website. All buses stop in the Alamo, Hemisfair Park, La Villita, Rivercenter (easy access to the Riverwalk) and Tobin Center for the Performing Arts. You will be able to change buses at these points as well.
Things to Know about the VIVA San Antonio Buses
The bus fare is $1.30 per person, but an unlimited day pass only costs $2.75. If you’re planning on taking the bus more than out and back, buy a day pass. Free WiFi is provided. General areas are announced, which is great for those of us visiting. I also found the bus drivers to be really informative and helpful. The buses are climate-controlled, which was very handy on my 100+ degree day!
My favorite part is that each stop sign has a location number. If you text it, the upcoming bus time will be texted back to you. This is very useful for knowing how long you have to spend exploring a stop!
PRO TIP: The bus drivers cannot give you change. Either use exact cash or buy your ticket using the app.
VIVA San Antonio Route 40 – Missions
If you’re going to the Missions (which you should!), you’ll take VIVA’s Route 40 bus. Starting at the Alamo, the Missions bus will take you out of the downtown area so that you can fully explore the Missions. Since the buses run every 30 minutes, it gives you enough time to do a quick run through (you’ll want to spend at least an hour at Mission San Juan).
VIVA San Antonio Route 301 – Centro
The Centro route takes you through the heart of downtown – from Centro Plaza to Sunset Station. I rode this bus to get an idea of the lay of the downtown area. You’ll take this bus if you’re going to Market Square, which is where I found most people were going. The Centro route also showed me a new place – Sunset Station. Fans of Selena will recognize this as one of her favorite performing spots and where she got married. One of the gentlemen working there was kind enough to let me in for a quick photo!
VIVA San Antonio Route 11 – Culture
The Culture route connects you to the cultural sights—the San Antonio Zoo, the Japanese Tea Garden, and the theaters. You should also take this bus out to The Pearl one evening. The San Antonio Zoo is a great place to visit if you have kids or like exploring zoos. They host many events, and we did a lot of activities with Cub Scouts when the boys were younger!
No need to rent a car if you’re visiting San Antonio! You’ll get around just fine with the VIVA buses. You can also take Via Bus #5 from the San Antonio airport to downtown – not only is it accessible, but you can use your day pass later on for the VIVA routes. The ride takes about 30 minutes, about twice as long as a shuttle or taxi but at a fraction of the price. For reference, I paid around $15 for a Super Shuttle ride.
Looking for the best things to see and do in San Antonio? Check out this post!
Happy travels!
Annick, The Common Traveler
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Raised as a third culture kid living in South America and Europe, Annick caught the travel bug early. As an empty-nester, Annick enjoys sharing her tips for traveling for those with champagne taste and beer budgets.
YOUR 2/21/2024 UPDATE OF YOUR 9/18/2018 ARTICLE ABOUT THE 3 SAN ANTONIO VIVA BUS ROUTES 11 CULTURE, 40 MISSIONS, AND 301 CENTRO IS COMPLETELY WRONG! VIA TRANSIT SUSPENDED THESE 3 ROUTES IN APRIL 2020 AND PERMENATELY RETIRED THEM IN JUNE 2020. NONE OF THIS BUSSES HAVE EVER RUN IN THE LAST 4 YEARS AND PER VIA TRANSIT ADMINISTRATION THERE IS NO THOUGHT OF EVER REOPENING THEM. SAN ANTONIO HAS HAD AN ON AND OFF BUS THAT CAME AND WENT UNDER IN THE PAST 4 YEARS. IT NOW HAS A NEW ON AND OFF TOLLEY WITH A COST OVER $50.
Thank you for letting me know. Lots of things changed with Covid. I will update shortly.
WHAT HAPPENED TO VIA VIVA BUS ???
I’m not sure what you mean. Are there issues with the Viva bus?
The Viva Bus sounds like such a convenient way to explore San Antonio… like you shared, you won’t really need to hire a car. And $2.75 for an unlimited day pass is incredibly affordable! Such a great way to save more, which can be spent on other things like entrance fees and good food. Very good to know that there isn’t change on the bus, so will totally know to prepare exact amounts.
The best way to see any new city is using public transport or by foot. $2.75 is really a great price for a full day pass on a bus and visit all the various tourist destinations in San Antonio. A scenic and nostalgic ride where you can enjoy all the main sites the city has to offer. The team itself looks amazing.
Wow! What a great way to move around town! And so cheap….usually the hop on, hop off buses are so expensive, that I prefer to walk or to buy bus or underground train tickets. It’s nice to see someone thought of getting closer to people 😌 thanks for sharing this! Incredibly practical!
For 2.75$ you get a full day bus ride seems like a joke but is this really true. It is super cheap deal and that too with free Wi-Fi and climate controlled too. Also I liked 3 routes of bus like Centro, Cultural and Missions because it is great way to plan our trip according to our interests.
$2.75 is really less to have a full day pass on a bus and visit all tourist destinations in San Antonio. I’m always looking for cheap and comfortable public transportation, especially when I travel solo and Viva looks like the perfect option considering that its not only cheap and well connected but also climate controlled, gives free WiFi access and has friendly staff. Thanks for bringing this to my notice!
I was so happy to find it!
Thank you for sharing the cheapest way to go around San Antonio. This seems a very charming city for the summer, and it looks affordable. Hope to visit it as well!
I like VIVA, too! You don’t have to drive and find a space to park. Just sit and enjoy the city. Too bad we didn’t have enough time last summer we went there, so we didn’t do any hop on hop off tour.
Parking can be a nightmare!
Thank you for the information on the buses….but does the Via Bus #5 go from airport to Wyndham La Cascada??
Since the Wyndham La Cascada is just two blocks from the Riverwalk, you’ll probably get close. I would call the hotel to verify.
I honestly thought this was San Antonio in Ibiza or even Mexico upon first reading! I’ve never been to Texas when in the US sadly, so don’t know the extent of the Spanish influence there. The Viva bus is so cheap, and I’d definitely go for that day pass, what a bargain. I loved Selena, but didn’t recognise that’s where she got married!
A lot of Spanish influence in San Antonio!