Tijuana airport lounge, transportation to from USA TIJ

baja nomad wrote:CBX raises parking rates (trip report)


We just got back from PVR last night. This was the first time we used the CBX border crossing. Everything went smooth and fast. No lines for us.

Round trip crossing was $24/pp. Parking is now $17/day. Plus they round up one day if you are one minute into the next. Very crowded and difficult to find a spot. People were parking anywhere they could even it was not an official space.

Although it was interesting to try it, I will go back to just crossing on foot and taking taxi. It's basically half the cost of CBX for two people including the RT taxi to airport.

CBX, as the Cross Border Xpress is known in the airport world, is scheduled to open to the public on December 8th.  The new terminal is located directly across the border fence from Tijuana’s Rodriguez Airport and connects with the Mexican airport via an enclosed pedestrian skybridge.  Travelers will be able to park on the US side and have direct access to flights departing Tijuana.
The terminal will serve an estimated 2 million annual Tijuana airport travelers that currently cross the border at the land ports of San Ysidro and Otay Mesa. The Tijuana airport serves more destinations in Mexico than other Southern California airports, and also offers direct flights to Shanghai not offered from San Diego.
“This will open up domestic travel throughout Mexico and many other destinations served from Tijuana while providing the security of parking in the US,” commented Eduardo R. Contreras, a Mexican national visiting San Diego.
CBX will offer short- and long-term parking lots, retail shops, duty-free stores, and complete Customs processing and screening. CBX users will be charged a toll of $15 per crossing, in addition to parking fees.

Designed by the late Mexican architect Ricardo Legorreta, famous for his use of colors, the facility will house U.S. customs and immigration inspection facilities, as well as a sit-down restaurant, a sports bar, a VIP lounge, a coffee shop and a duty-free shop. There will be close to 900 parking spaces available to the public, as well as spaces for local and intercity buses, as well as taxis and Uber vehicles, Valle said.

Don't know if you have Uber but it is much cheaper than a taxi (and very reliable). Fare from the border to SAN is $30 max (depending on traffic). We never take cabs anymore if Uber is available; generally less than 50% of a taxi fare.

International Car Rental is the 1st choice for your car rental needs to Baja Mexico, Rosarito, Ensenada, San Diego, Los Angeles, and Las Vegas. We now have 2 offices to serve you! Our San Ysidro office is located conveniently at the last U.S.A. Exit directly off the 5 & 805 interstates and is just steps away from the San Ysidro International border, MTS trolley, and Las America’s Premium Outlets. Our new Otay Mesa office is located at 2495 Roll Dr. Ste #102 San Diego, CA 92154 in the Plaza Mayor shopping center directly across from the Otay Mesa border crossing.
International Car Rental was envisioned and created as a car rental company that allows vehicles to be driven in California and/or Baja California, Mexico! Unlike the major competitors with their confusing policies, we make it a hassle free experience. Our offices and bilingual staff specializes in catering to you and your specific needs. Enjoy a day trip, weekend getaway, or family vacation on either side of the border with a car from International Car Rental. For your convenience, we are open 7 days a week, offer 24 hour drop off, shuttle service to/from the San Diego & Tijuana airport, and much, much more!

Otay Mesa border crossing is the best way to get to Tijuana International Airport. It is not the best way to get to Rosarito and Ensenada but it is your best border crossing choice for driving to Tijuana airport, Tecate and Mexicali.

The border crossing at Otay Mesa is just 2.5 mile east of Tijuana Airport. But most important, driving to the airport from Otay Mesa is easy and fast. Go over the map or watch our video Driving to Tijuana Airport Through Otay Mesa.

(1) The CA-905 East will take you through the Otay Mesa border. At the border crossing entrance, drive through slowly.

(2) You have to wait for the traffic signal to go through. At either side of the border you might be asked to pulled aside for a random luggage and id inspection. After you clear customs check point start driving, stay on your far left and at about 800 feet you would need to make a right turn at the stop sign, Bellas Artes Blvd.

Make sure you make a full stop. There is usually a police officer waiting for someone who forgets to make a complete stop. See map 1 of 4.

(3) Now drive for about 1/2 mile on Bellas Artes Blvd and make a right turn at the 2nd traffic light. Actually, you can only go left or right because this is where bellas Artes Blvd ends. So you have to turn right, see map 2 of 4.

(4) Now drive for about 2.5 miles on this road known to me as Carretera Aeropuerto, others refer to it as Carretera Internacional but the map describes it as Via de la Juventud Oriente. If you have to ask anyone for directions just ask for carretera al aeropuerto, this is how it is most commonly known on the streets.

To get to the Tijuana Airport terminal or to the Tijuana airport parking garage you would need to drive for about 2.0 miles and make a u-turn at the 3rd traffic light. This 3rd traffic light is hard to see and very easy to miss so make sure you always drive on the right side of the road. The first traffic light is next to a group of car rental building, the 2nd traffic light is right in front of the airport terminal and the 3rd traffic light is by the airport traffic tower.

There is one lane and it is on the far left of the road. If you miss the traffic light, don’t panic, just keep driving for about 3/4 of a mile and make a u-turn at the turn-around (traffic circle). See map for 3rd traffic light, map 3 of 4 and map for traffic circle. map 4 of 4.

OTAY MESA — A cross-border pedestrian bridge linking San Diego with Tijuana’s A.L. Rodríguez International airport is set to open next summer, the project’s U.S. developer announced Monday.

The privately funded and operated $120-million project would create a port of entry limited to toll-paying airline passengers that is unique on the U.S. border. It consists of an enclosed 390-foot-long bridge with divided north/south corridors that will allow passengers to walk across between the United States and Mexico, avoiding lengthy lines at the San Ysidro and Otay Mesa ports of entry.

A news release from the developer, Otay Tijuana Venture, LLC, said the project will be named “Cross Border Xpress.” The statement did not discuss the price of the toll, but previous estimates have ranged from $13 to $17 per passenger.

Sheppard Mullin client, Otay Tijuana Venture, announced this week that a cross-border pedestrian bridge linking San Diego with Tijuana's A.L. Rodríguez International airport will be set to open next year. The project, which began in 2008 when Otay Tijuana Venture purchased the land in Otay Mesa, involved Presidential permits in both countries as well as unique Public Private Partnerships with U.S. and Mexican customs and immigration authorities.  It is the first project to connect a U.S. facility with a foreign air terminal.

The privately funded and operated project will create a port of entry limited to toll-paying airline passengers that is unique on the U.S. border. It consists of an enclosed 390-foot-long bridge with divided north/south corridors that will allow passengers to walk across between the United States and Mexico, avoiding lengthy lines at the San Ysidro and Otay Mesa ports of entry. The bridge will connect the airport to a 65,000-square-foot structure on Otay Mesa that will include retail shops and restaurants, airline customer service counters , and short and long-term parking facilities. It will also include an area where U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers would process passengers.

The construction of the Terminal and connecting bridge is funded in part by a loan from Bancomext (Mexico's development bank) and Banco Invex. This is the first time that  Mexico's development bank has made a loan to a U.S. based developer for a project based in the U.S. and collateralized primarily by assets located in the U.S.

Sheppard Mullin advised Otay Tijuana Venture in all aspects of the development including land use matters, corporate structuring and  cross border tax planning , as well as negotiation of the financing agreements, leases and  construction contracts.

Ground has been broken on the Otay Mesa side on a $78 million cross-border terminal that will give local ticketed airline passengers access to the Tijuana airport on the Mexican side of the international border.
The 95,000-square foot-terminal is being built by a joint venture entity called Otay-Tijuana Venture LLC, which includes Chicago-based Equity Group Investments and two Mexican investment groups, Palareo Inc. and PAP Corp.
Equity Group, a private investment firm owned by billionaire Sam Zell, has been planning the terminal since 2007.
Set for completion in 2015, the terminal will allow ticketed air travelers from the U.S. side to cross a 525-foot bridge and board planes departing from Tijuana’s Rodriguez International Airport. The facility will also allow passengers arriving on the Tijuana side to cross into the U.S. via the same facility, after passing customs inspections.
Users of the crossing terminal will pay a toll — still to be finalized — to access the facility.
Construction has been underway on the Mexican side of the border since September, according to developers. Representatives of the joint venture have said U.S. construction will take about 15 months to complete.

Construction begins on cross-border bridge connecting Tijuana Airport with the US

Imagine being able to walk across the U.S.-Mexico border in just a few minutes.

That's the idea behind a plan moving forward at the Tijuana International Airport. Developers there are building a bridge that will span all the way from the terminal to the border crossing at Otay Mesa. Construction on the project began last week.

But, if everything goes as planned, the bridge could be completed as soon as 2014.

Jan 31, 2011, 9:22 PM

The best option is City Captain Sedan Service. They have Town Cars, SUV, Van with many options. Its usually $120 each way. Visit their website http://www.citycaptain.com for more info. They also are good option to San Diego Airport, LAX. They have better rates than Super shuttle or San Diego taxis. Check their Yelp.com review voted 1 for giving great service and rate.

Jan 05, 2011, 12:19 AM

Just returned from flying out of TJ and back. Initially had planned to park my car in the Oceanside transit center and take Crucero/Greyhound on their service to the TJ airport (I live in North County and they have free long term parking there). After I parked and bought the tickets, the clerk announced that their buses were running "2.5hours behind schedule". I immediately cancelled my tickets...and drove over to San Ysidro. Parked at the border for a $6/day prepaid rate, crossed the border on foot and caught a taxi there.

Taxi ride to the TJ airport cost me US$10. On the way back, the taxi ride cost me MXPeso100 + US$2. So about ten dollars each way. Everything was efficient and this was just last week.

May 09, 2009, 10:31 PM

We're using an airline shuttle (Volaris) from the Amtrak station (downtown SD) for $20.00... Great deal.. Clean vehicles... Shuttle leave the train at 9:00 sharp...

Sep 02, 2008, 2:19 AM

Just took the Volaris shuttle from Tijuana airport to the Amtrak station downtown this evening. Also took the Volaris shuttle to Tijuana airport on Friday night.

What's good: Volaris seems pretty competent. Flights on time. Shuttle left nearly on time on both occasions.

What's bad: 3.5 hour trip (longer than flight from Guadalajara to Tijuana) from Tijuana airport to Amtrak station due to lack of U.S. Border agents processing coach/bus passengers.

What's sad: At least on this trip, Mexico better organized than USA.