9 Things To Know When Taking A Taxi Overseas

31.03.2024 - 13:51 / forbes.com

Culture shock can affect your life in unexpected ways when you move overseas. Something as innocuous as taking a taxi can suddenly become a stressful experience.

Country to country, the protocols for hailing a taxi, arranging payment (whether you negotiate a price with the driver beforehand or use the meter), how you travel (whether you’ll be the sole passenger or the driver will pick up more passengers en route), and more can vary.

Navigating these differences while staying safe and getting a fair price as you journey from A to B can be complex. While well-traveled folks might advise you to avoid taking a taxi overseas altogether, sometimes they’re the only option.

Here are some guidelines to help make the most of taking a taxi overseas.

Every country has a different approach to pricing taxi rides.

Most North Americans are used to taxi meters, which determine prices by measuring time and distance covered. Rates vary from area to area.

In much of the rest of the world, taxi meters are not a given. Even if you’re in a country that has them, they may not be working properly.

It’s good practice to check with the driver when you get in his taxi and then verify yourself that it’s working.

The alternative—assuming the meter works properly—can land you in a situation where the driver just charges whatever he wants on arrival, and it usually won’t be a fair price.

Getting a ballpark idea of how much you should spend on the average taxi ride in the place that you’re visiting can help you avoid being ripped off.

Instead of using the meter, some cities assign flat rates for specific routes. In Medellín, Colombia, for example, a ride from the José María Córdoba International Airport to the city center always costs 110,000 Colombian pesos (about $28).

Most taxi drivers here won’t try to get more out of you, but it’s good to know the flat rate in case one does.

In other cities, like Panama City, Panama, the price of the journey is determined through a negotiation between you and the driver. Ask around to find out roughly how much you should pay to go from neighborhood to neighborhood.

If you have to negotiate your fare with the driver, make sure you come to an agreement before getting in their taxi.

If you look different from the average person from that country or don’t speak the local language well, there’s a good chance that the driver will inflate the price drastically (what we refer to as “gringo pricing” in Latin America).

Don’t accept a ride or get into a taxi without knowing the driver’s fee, in case he plans on charging a ridiculous amount. I’ve heard stories of drivers becoming aggressive if the passenger tries to negotiate at the point of arrival at their destination.

When negotiating the price, if