Bus Tickets from Málaga to Faro

The bus didn’t have the ALSA brand on the side of the bus but it had a small sign on the front side among two other names. It took us some time before we found out that this bus was the actual one.

I arrived at the bus station in Malaga 45 minutes before departure. I confirmed the platform with the lady at the ALSA counter. She confirmed platform 8. I waited at Platform 8 from 30 minutes before departure until 30 minutes after departure. I then went to ask the lady what the status of the bus arrival was, when she informed me that the bus left on time. The bus did not leave from Platform 8. I was forced to get a 500 euro taxi to Faro.

The pick up information and location was very confusing. There was no sign that the bus would come to the ALSA bus hut. I was told to arrive early, but there was no staff and the bus showed up exactly at the departure time.

This bus ride was the worst of my life. The bus was 1hr30min late. The bus drivers used the route to drop fellow Bulgarian friends off which added on an extra 3hrs to our trip. The bus drivers were verbally abusive to us and others. The bus was in a horrible state; seats were missing, food and drinks everywhere, like it hadn’t been cleaned ever. There was no apology for the late arrival, we felt extremely unsafe on this bus.

The bus driver was verbally abusive and they used the trip to drop each other home making it over 3 hours late!

The weirdest trip ever. My spouse and I were the only passengers in the whole bus, and since we were already there, the operators, who didn't speak either English or Spanish, made us get on the bus 20 minutes before the scheduled departure time, and we left. On our way, the "copilot" started smoking on the bus. I have asthma. We asked him to stop smoking. They made strange stops. A couple got on the bus in Seville. Then, at some point on the road in Spain (not a town), they stopped and picked two bulky packages. The other couple dropped from the bus in Tavira, and the bus operators stayed there for about half an hour without giving us any explanation. They were just smoking, maybe going to some restroom? and talking with another Russian. Then one of them took the mysterious packages and gave them to someone in Tavira. We finally left, but they took a very long way to Faro that didn't make any sense. And they didn't have the kindness to give us the opportunity to use a restroom (that they gave to themselves). An unpleasant and scary trip.