Jose Cuervo Express — Attraction in Jalisco

B-O-R-I-N-G...from start to finish except I didn't finish...I took a local bus back to Guadalajara after the distillery tour. This is presented "online" as a slightly luxurious experience so I had high hopes...first mistake! I worked for a railway in Canada so thought this would be the best way to see how tequila is made but I was wrong. The train cars are older but that's fine...it adds to the ambience. The staff is lovely but the entire presentation aboard the train is in Spanish. I understand Spanish but it wouldn't have mattered because the microphone and speaker system onboard are so antiquated and garbled that the tequila expert could have been speaking English and it wouldn't have made any difference. Because the experience is so expensive ($3260 pesos for the Diamond car, 2nd most expensive) I wasn't prepared for the people who were there just to get drunk. No one seemed to care about the presentation (probably because no one could hear it)...they just wanted to drink more. Don't get me wrong, day drinking is awesome but that's not what I expected...second mistake!! Granted, Jose Cuervo is not responsible for the type of individuals who book their tours but that's not what their target audience appears to be...I was wrong again! It's like being at a resort except on a train 🤣🤣🤣 Then came the super painful, almost too-much-to-bear tour of the distillery hosted by a guide that seemed to be trying out for Game Show Host of the Year! I opted to take the tour in English because of the issues onboard the train and wished I'd taken the tour in Spanish...third and final mistake! He spent most of the time pandering to the Americans in the group and gave very little information as there were hundreds of people touring the facility led around like cattle. The tour was rushed, lacked passion. information and enthusiasm. It was at that point that I decided to cut my losses and found the local bus during our 3 hour lunch break because I couldn't take the thought of seeing a "Mexican" Show for 2 hours, then drinking more at the agave fields then going back to GDL in a bus. En serio, Jose Cuervo? This could have been done sooooooooo much better! But if you're looking for a drinking party on rails, this is your gig, it's extremely touristic without a pinch of authenticity...if you want to learn about tequila, enjoy the town of Tequila, there are many less expensive and better options than the Jose Cuervo Express...by a long "shot" (see what I did...

Although there are many mixed reviews about the Jose cuervo Express tour, I do have to say, as a world traveler, this was one of the best organized tours I have been on.

You definitely need to book your tickets in advance, as there are only Saturday tours. I highly recommend the VIP tour, during the sunset hour. One way you will travel via bus in the morning, which is one of the most comfortable buses that you can travel on. The other way you will be on the train on the way back during sunset. This is what we did and it was amazing!

You do need to bring the credit card and ID that you purchased your tickets with. If you forget to photocopy the ID and credit card as is requested on the instructions that you are given via email, the company is nice enough to have a photocopy machine available for you. However if you do not bring your ID and your credit card, you will be forced to have to buy your tickets all over again. This did not happen to us and we were grateful for the prior reviews that warned us of this!

Our tour guides Alex and Gustavo were excellent.

Itinerary is clear and emailed to you in advance. Alcohol is unlimited. Organization is suberb

Things to know: there is light breakfast with hot chocolate and coffee served. There is a light lunch during the agave plantation stop. Formal lunch after a tour of a museum and the distillery is on you. Then you can have some free time to explore and then can go back to watch some Mariachi. Long day with a very organized itinerary! My only recommendation would be to allowed to spend more time in the town, rather than to go through the museum.

Thanks for a wonderful day Jose...

Without doubt one of the best tours I've ever done. We did the morning train option with the elite package and were prepared for a big day so paced ourselves, but were still tipsy when getting off the train. The quality of tequila served in the bar cart definitely was worth it.

We met one family who went a little too hard in the morning and weren’t seen again in the afternoon and bus ride.

After the train you have a break from drinking for about 1.5hours as you do the distillery tour which evens you out.

We don’t recommend La Fonda Cholula for lunch. Over priced and poor food quality.

The show was way more fun than we thought it would be, The sunset in the agave field gorgeous and party that followed was incredible.

And Omar who was our English guide for the day fantastic - he knows so much about the history of the tequila families which is very interesting.

Honestly I thought this tour might be a bit of a gimmick and second guessed going, but the professionalism, seamless service and authentic experiences mixed through the day made this a tour one I would recommend to friends and family.

NOTES: Tequila - water - repeat. There is no shortage of free tequila. Pace it. Drop off and pick up are in two different locations 20 mins apart. Order uber or taxi ahead of time for your drop off location. We timed our uber for when we were pulling in to the bus depot and saw everyone struggling to get one after us. Go back to the museum after the tour and explore some more. Ask about the tequila...