in light of the many abuses mentioned,what do you ask think of asking taxi drivers how much before getting in?
in europe would it seem as impolite?
should you expect an answer or would they just say it depends on the meter

Hi

Yes I do this every time. I have a rough idea how much it should cost (ask your hotel when booking) and just negotiate on price. I've read heaps on taking taxis from official taxi ramps, meter types, blah blah blah! They still try to rip you off. I gave up in the end. By negotiating there's no aggro. One kind lady taxi driver on Mykonos actually gave me money back! And no they didn't see it as impolite. They should know roughly how much the fare should be. I'd be wary if they appear to be evasive. My response would be "I'll give you ... to take me to ..."

Hope this helps

If the fare system operates on the meter they may make an estimate for you - but will still charge what's on the meter. (Imagine trying to do this in NYC - no taxi would take you anywhere if you wanted them to guarantee the fare.)

Hi CC,

The cab should have a meter. It is OK to ask, "how much?", but you will get an estimate.

I agreewith Ira about the meters but in at least one instance (Budapest) I am certain the meter was faulty. I think you can always ask about the cost; be prepared to say "No" and wait for another taxi, too.

Of course, I think the basic problem here is if you don't know how much it should cost, what good does his answer do? If you are concerned about dishonest taxi drivers (and frankly I was when returning to Prague a second time), I first emailed the hotel and asked how much it should be. Then I knew what I was talking about. In fact I wrote that amount on a paper with the address of the hotel and offered it to a taxi driver and asked if that would be right. The first one said "no" and walked away. The second one agreed. And that's what it was.

Oh, incidentally, the driver left the mater on, and although he clicked it off when we got there, I noticed that the amount was pretty much the same as the quote. Adding for a little luggage, etc., I gave him a little extra tip. I really think the quote was lower than it would have been otherwise, and the traffic was heavy.

By all means ask "how much" if you can speak the language enough to get your point across or have done like Patrick points out and call ahead for approx. fees. You can also try negotiating for a set price, sometimes they agree to it.

To me, asking "how much" implies either that I'm not sure I have enough to cover it, or I think you're going to cheat me. I really think that if you go into a situation expecting to be cheated you are challenging the other person to cheat you.

The best way to avoid abuse is to take a lisenced taxi and look like you know what you're doing.

I agree with Grasshopper..so many factors are also involved.. for example if you take the taxi during rush hour and get stuck in the traffic the fare would be much higher, or sometimes there is a road construction going on etc..,The best thing to do is to take a legitmate taxi.

how do you look like you know what you are doing?

also just because a taxi is legit doesnt mean he cant charge you double.

taxi meters have zone buttons that the driver can press to start charging you at a higher rate, when for example you go beyond the city periphery on your way to the airport or to charge the night rate.

how will you know if he presses it 20miles early? or it might be on the doubling mode from the start of the journey.

asking how much before you get in the cab means that you will have the option of saying no. once you are in the cab as described by DejaDeb, your options have dissapeared.

what i was wondering about was how taxi drivers in different places would react to the question. Patrick's experience in Prague is that 50% of taxi drivers would not be interested in this type of customer and would wait for a easy target.

ChevyC. thus it is wise to know the Italian phrase "don't use your finger"
because they might press the zone button. "C" was right!

Taxi meter systems don;t all work the same - some may have zones - a lot just have straight meters. You best bet is to have som eidea of the range of fares (depending on traffic etc) and it it looks wrong ask questions. I've never been in a cab that didn;t have an official price list available if you asked (ie so much per piece of luggage, extra after 10pm etc.).

Your other choice is to take a car service vs a cab - and then you can negotiate a fare in advance.

I only ask "how much" in Mexico when a taxi does not have a meter. And I know ahead of time approx. how much the fare should be.

For Europe, again I'd know how much it should be by asking the hotel ahead of time usually, then go by what the meter shows.

The other trick is you'd most likely need to speak the local language enough to ask this question and understand the answer.

I guess I'm slow today, but if you ask the hotel ahead of time how much it should be, then you get in a taxi, he takes you there and the meter shows double that amount, what do you do? Argue with him (in your own language) that you won't pay that much? Accuse him of not resetting the meter or punching something in wrong? Tell him he took the wrong route? Frankly, if you aren't going to verify that amount you found out from the hotel BEFORE you got in the cab, the only good I can see it doing is telling you afterwards that yes or no you did or did not get ripped off.

By the way, as I mentioned I was concerned in Prague. At the smaller rail station where we got off, there is no official taxi line, and there is no way to know what is an official taxi. They are all types, all colors, and hall have seemingly real emblems. Catching a taxi in Rome or Paris at the airport or major rail station is a totally different thing.

This thread reminds me of when we were in Portovenere and had the hotel arrange 2 taxis to take our group of seven to the LaSpezia train station early in the am. We asked the two cab drivers for the cost before getting in the cabs. They pointed to the one cab that had a meter and said they'd use the meter.

When we arrived at LaSpezia in 10-15 minutes, our friends in the "metered" cab said that the cab driver tapped the lever on the meter numerous times en route, each time adding to the fare.

I don't remember the fare, but it was MUCH MORE than our negotiated fare had been when we had arrived at LaSpezia to take taxis into Portovenere at the beginning of our stay.

So, what can one do - just shrug it off and don't let it ruin your trip!

i know what i will be doing....use public transport whenever possible

It's just a case of knowing the rules. In Paris, for example, there are some minor fees that increse the fare from what shows on the meter. This leads some tourists to think they are being cheated.

I do as Patrick did in Prague. Not only get an estimate from a third party, but also write down the amount quoted by the taxi driver to avoid misinterpretations. I do it everywhere, except in London.