Details:

• Full Name: Movil Tours S.A.
• Coverage: Primarily Lima and Northern Peru
• Website: www.moviltours.com.pe

Brief History:

Movil Tours S.A. was founded on May 12, 1988. Its founders, the Matos family, had been in the transport industry for many years prior to the formation of Movil Tours, running a handful of vehicles along routes in the Amazonas department of Northern Peru.

The family-run company slowly expanded both its fleet and its routes, offering cargo and passenger services from Lima to Chiclayo and Trujillo on the north coast of Peru.

Movil Tours later became the first Peruvian bus company to offer a modern bus service along the inland route from Chiclayo to Moyobamba and on to Tarapoto. Movil Tours remains a family-owned company.

Movil Tours Domestic Coverage:

Movil Tours runs from Lima along the north coast of Peru, with stops at Chimbote, Trujillo and Chiclayo. From Chiclayo, the company cuts inland to Bagua, Pedro Ruiz (for Chachapoyas and Kuelap), Moyobamba, Tarapoto and Yurimaguas. Movil Tours is currently the best bus company operating along the Chiclayo to Tarapoto route.

The company also has buses from Lima to the central and northern highlands. Highland destinations include Caraz, Huaraz and Cajamarca further north.

Southern destinations are limited to Cusco and Puerto Maldonado.

Movil Tours International Coverage:

Movil Tours was one of the first Peruvian bus companies to offer a service along the Interoceanic Highway between Puerto Maldonado and Rio Branco, Brazil. Movil Tours passengers can now reach Rio Branco from Cusco via Puerto Maldonado.

Comfort and Bus Classes:

Movil Tours offers its passengers five different classes of bus. The cheaper options are quite basic, while the cama and super cama buses are comparable to those of top-end companies like Cruz del Sur.

• Normal (Servicio Económico): small bus, one floor, simple seating
• Semi Cama: one or two floors, partially reclining semi cama (half bed) seats
• Mixto: two floors, 160-degree cama bed seats on the first floor, semi cama on the second floor
• Cama: two floors, cama bed seats on both floors
• Super Cama: two floors, cama bed seats on the first floor, luxurious 180-degree super cama seats on the second floor

Onboard Services:

With the exception of the economy service (which has no onboard attendant or meals), all Movil Tours buses have the following onboard services:

• onboard attendant (terramoza)
• bathroom
• air conditioning
• movies
• meals (breakfast, lunch and dinner depending on length of journey)

Cama and super cama buses have an all-round higher level of service. Additional extras may include blankets and pillows.

Safety Features:

Movil Tours is a midrange bus company (with the cama and super cama classes pushing into the top-end category). As such, the company pays more attention to safety than many of its low budget competitors.

Each bus has two drivers for long distance journeys, who rotate every four or five hours to guard against fatigue. All seats have safety belts and all buses are equipped with speed readouts and GPS monitoring.

Most Movil Tours buses stop only at designated terminals (reducing the risk of onboard theft and hijacking). This is not always the case, however, so keep an eye on your carry-on luggage. There is always a risk of theft onboard.

According to bus accident statistics released by Peru’s Ministerio de Transportes y Comunicaciones, Movil Tours registered three accidents between July 1 and December 31, 2010, resulting in one fatality and twenty-one injuries.

In the overall bus company rankings for the given period, Movil Tours ranked at 33 (with number one being the worst offender). Cruz del Sur had a slightly worse ranking at 31.