Taxi travel in Paris
 

I'm planning a trip to Paris in mid-September and will have to use taxis from time to time because of limited mobility. I am staying near the Pompidou Center and I was wondering if there are many cab stands in that area. From my VRBO I assume I can also call the taxi -- is one preferable to another ? Also, will they understand English? When I get in the taxi I will have destination written on paper. Are taxi stands pretty common near museums for my trip home ? I have read in the Forum that taxis are priced similarly to Uber. It would be easier for me not to have a complicated process, so should I stick with taxi travel ?

These are a lot of questions, but the information will be very valuable.
Thank you all for sharing your wisdom !

Uber might be easier, as you simply enter the destination into the app... and the driver will come to you.

Taxis are easy to find. However, since the Pompidou Center is in a pedestrian zone, you might have to go to a nearby street.

Calling a taxi will add about 7 euros to the fare.

The additional 7 Euros mentioned above is a "pickup" fee or some kind. You get hit with this whenever you call a taxi to pick you up rather than you walk up to a taxi waiting for riders. I take taxis to make connections between points not well connected by public transport during the time the surface traffic is not hopelessly grid locked. I found many Paris taxi drivers to be grumpy. I had to listen to the continual cursing by the taxi drivers. They usually don't speak English, and they are not like London taxi drivers with extensive knowledge of the city. Having a written street address would be essential for going to places other than the major landmarks.
Taxis get very hard to find on a rainy day.

Parisien taxis have apps, also (like G7), or you can book online. That is such a dense area, I'd just go to a taxi queue myself. G7 says they only charge 4 euro, not 7 euro, for "immediate bookings" rather than advance ones.

This is the app/website for booking G7.
https://www.g7.fr/en/

by phone, their regular phone number has English speakers answering
+331.41.27.66.99.

There is a taxi stand right near the metro stop at the north side of the Pompidou on rue Rambuteau (I believe that is Rambuteau metro stop). there is also one south at the square where la Tour de St Jacques is located. I think those are the closest ones.

Like the OP I am going to have to use a taxi or Uber in Paris. If we download the app for Uber will it be in English while visiting Paris?

The upcharge for ordering a taxi is 4€. If you call to arrange for pickup at a later time, the charge is 7€.

There is no upcharge for taking a taxi from any of the official taxi stands.

https://cimg4.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fod...66ed127d8.jpeg

Make sure to wear your seatbelt. They saved us on this Parisian taxi ride.

I don't know about Paris but we used Uber in Rome and it was in English.

The problem we had was connecting with the driver once he was on our way. Eventually we saw him across the street.

This might be helpful to locate taxi stands: http://taxismap.paris.fr/

I was in Paris a couple of months ago with my daughters. We needed a taxi from the Hotel Jeanne d'Arc in the 4th to the Gare du Nord. The hotel called G7 to order a taxi and were told it would be 30-40 minutes. One of my daughters used her Uber app and we had a taxi at the door within 10 minutes. This was my first experience with Uber, but it was certainly a positive one. The car and driver were nice, and the fare was about the same as predicted by worldtaximeter.com . Obviously, this is a one-time, anecdotal report, but I wouldn't hesitate to check Uber if you need a taxi in Paris.

We used Uber a lot last December.....weather was cold, rainy and windy. It was easier to get an Uber than walk the 3 blocks to the bus stop or metro when the weather wasn't cooperating. It was always quick, easy and reasonable.

We were there last month and used it less but had good experiences.

I always call G7 to get me back the airport from wherever I'm staying in Paris. The 4 euro fee is nothing, now that cab fares to and from CDG are standardized.

The drivers always arrive at least 5 minutes before I've scheduled them, the cars are clean, and the drivers are courteous. I use them all over in other parts of France as well when I need a taxi

Thank you everyone, this information is really helpful. Thanks especially to Christina for the heads up on a taxi stand on Rue Rambuteau since that is where I am staying. I think I will also try the Uber app. BTW, I used the small van service to and from CDJ. It was easy to book from Viator (which is associated with Trip Advisor) and cost less than $20 door to door (with help with my luggage !).

The Uber app is in English if you have it set to English, wherever you use it, including Paris. I use a mixture of taxis and Uber in Paris, depending on whether there is a taxi stand nearby or whether there are plentiful taxis in the area to hale on the street.

Marija, was that your taxi? Oh my. I am glad you are all right!

In Paris there are several taxi type apps you can use; Uber, ChauffeurPrivé, Taxify and G7 Taxi. My French friends like Taxify and say it’s cheapest but I haven’t tried it.

I mostly go back and forth between Uber and ChauffeurPrivé, I’ll look at both and choose the one that quotes the lowest rate. You will find that often the same driver drives for both companies.

I find both really easy to use although the time to wait seems to be getting longer.

Probably a dumb question - but I've never taken a taxi anywhere...... Can you pay with a debit/credit card in a taxi? Or doe you have to pay cash?

Most taxis do accept credit cards. And, of course, if you have set up the Uber app, you have specified a credit card to charge already.

Thank god that internal combustion engines will be banned in Paris by 2030 and diesel in 2024. Maybe we will live that long before we choke on all of the fumes.

ParisFlaneur, have you heard of the bus system in Paris? The buses will be all electric in about 5 years.

And no need to tip cabbies everyone says. Americans may feel compelled but locals don't it seems.