By bus
TUFESA bus line runs from ArizonaTucson, Phoenix, etc to Hermosillo. Fares are around $49 one way from Phoenix, and vary based on other cities. The Hermosillo stop is on the Ciudad Obregon route.
By car
The road from Nogales on the border down to Hermosillo is a well paved, new highway, however, due to a large amount of rain in December 2007 the highway Mexico 15 had developed many potholes, some of them very large and deep. These potholes have caused extensive damage to vehicles and tires, and have even caused some fatal accidents. The potholes are on both the north and south bound sides of Highway 15. As of April 2008 reconstruction and maintenance of the highway is taking place so be prepared to take the designated detours. The portion of Highway 15 between Magdalena de Kino and Hermosillo is a toll road, keep your receipt as this is a form of insurance. To file a claim you will need to return to the toll booth either in Hermosillo or Magdalena. If you are bringing a car in from the United States of America, or Canada including rental vehicles you will need to have insurance through a Mexican company, if you have an accident call these companies immediately, in most cases a representative from the insurance company will be dispatched to the scene of the accident, be prepared to wait for them, though no more than 2 hours, especially if you are in the middle of the desert somewhere. Also be aware that quite often when you are involved in an accident which requires a police report the vehicle will be impounded overnight. Most police officers federal and local are very courteous and helpful, some of them may be willing to forego the report in order to help you out.On your Mexican insurance forms there should be a number for the "Angeles Verdes" Green Angels which is a roadside assistance service similar to AAA in the United States. Keep that number handy when you travel, Angeles Verdes drivers are bi-lingual and are very helpful.
Going to or coming from Hermosillo from Nogales you will encounter several checkpoints. On the north bound side there is a checkpoint manned 24 hours a day by the Mexican military. The soldiers posted at the stop sign who speak to the drivers are almost always able to speak enough English to deal with American and Canadian tourists. They will ask you where you are going, where you are coming from, and may ask to see your ID. Random and suspicious vehicles will be directed to a parking area to be searched, if you are selected to be searched the process normally takes less than 5 minutes assuming you aren't carrying anything you shouldn't be. They will search through your bags, and the interior of your car. There may also be Federal Preventative Police PFP checkpoints, these checkpoints are often set up in different locations. Most PFP Police Officers will speak english, but will normally wave through any vehicles with American or Canadian plates, so long as the occupants are obvious tourists break out your straw hats, brown shoes, and black knee socks!
Hermosillo is about a 7 1/2 hour drive from Phoenix, Arizona, about 4 to 4 1/2 hours from Tucson, and about 3 hours from Nogales, Sonora. That is assuming you drive the speed limit. It is not unheard of to have the previous mentioned times to be much less when the border crossing is not congested. Also and this applies for all of Mexico The Mexican highway patrol has a modern fleet of Dodge Chargers, all of them have video cameras and many of them have K-Band radar. So bring your radar detector. Mexican regulations don't explicitly prohibit detectors nor are they sold in the country, however, that does not mean cops aren't familiar with these devices. So if you get pulled over with your detector, don't expect the cop to be so nice anymore if he notices it just like in the US. As with any cop either side of the border, be nice to them and they'll be nice to you.
When you arrive in Hermosillo be on the lookout for topes, or speedbumps. Not all topes are marked a yellow sign with a black speedbump or painted yellow, pay particular attention at night as they are not always visible, and you may leave your engine on the street.
People in Hermosillo tend to drive somewhat recklessly, particularly the bus drivers. Red lights, stop signs, and speed limits are often treated as suggestions rather than law. Be careful of vehicles coming from side streets, they normally have stop signs, but sometimes will not stop until their car is already halfway in the nearest lane. Traffic lights are like most others in Mexico, where the green light will flash before it turns to yellow, and then red. Passing through a yellow light is a violation, there is no delay from when your light turns red to the other light turning green as there normally is in the United States. When you see the light flashing green be prepared to stop. Many intersections will have stop signs in addition to the lights, if the light is green you do not have to stop, this can be confusing to some people who have never encountered this setup before.
Central de Emergencias 066
Federal de Caminos Federal Police 52662 289-7098
Sonora State Police Headquarters
North 52622 218-5564, 52622 218-6416, 52622 218-5526
Central 52622 213-4046, 52622 213-3738, 52622 213-3401
TelCel and MoviTel also have emergency numbers, check your cell phone's display screen to see which service your phone is currently using.
TelCel 117+send
Movitel *114+send
If your phone is not currently on one of these two networks use one of the other numbers listed above.
Most likely you will have to have a basic knowledge of Spanish to communicate on these lines, or ask if there is anyone available who speaks English Hablas Ingles?.
Also see the "Stay Safe" section of this entry.