carabro

The 5 people are all women - one 11 year old girl.

FainaAgain

In San Francisco it won't be comfortable to 5 people to fit in 1 cab. Do they have different cab size in NYC?

MIG

Not comfortably. It'll be VERY cramped at best. You are better off with 2 cabs.

kgh8m

It would be tight. One woman (preferably the biggest hipped one) and 3 in the back, with the girl sitting on a lap or squinched in somewhere. Honestly, it depends on the sizes of the adults. Hopefully, you're not talking about to/from the airport, because I don't think you could do luggage for 5 as well.

Don't know if there are minivan cabs roaming NYC streets - I don't remember seeing many.

Why do you need to put 5 in a cab? The Subway is not hard to navigate, is cheaper, and often quicker.

kgh8m

Meant to say the biggest woman sits up front. There is no middle set in the front of the cab, so the girl must sit in back.

HowardR

Unless you find a minivan (in a distinct minority among cabs in New York), you probably won't be able to do.

carabro

Thanks so much for this feedback!!! Good to know about the lack of a middle seat up front...

I guess we'll just split up. We are traveling with my 75 yr. old 'small town' mother-in-law and it'll be her first time in a big city. I was trying to keep the group together as much as possible - but I'm sure if we're organized 2 cabs won't be a big deal.

ckfior

Definitely take two cabs. I believe (correct me if I am wrong) that there is a rule/law that a regular sized cab cannot take more than 4 passengers. Even if the fifth is only 11 years old, the driver still may not agree to take you. Plus it will be much more comfortable for all of you to take two separate cabs. In addition, since I think you will be taking the cabs from the Penn Station area to Rockefeller Center, be advised that each of the 2 drivers will probably have their own "best way" to get there so you will most likely not be able to have the 2nd cab follow the first. Just be sure to pick a corner or a specific meeting place and both groups will be there within minutes of each other.

cd

We have had six in a cab in Chicago many times. You are crowded, but I think it just depends on the distance being traveled.

suzanne

NYC cabs are not allowed to take >4 people.

mpf

When you call, ask for a van. When we arrived at the airport and inquired at the front of the line; a van drove up from "somewhere" within a minute.

However, we also put 5 in a cab - the oldest one in the front seat, and the other 4 in the back seat. Tight, but not a problem if you are going a short distance and do not have luggage.

dcmalia

I've put 5 in a cab in NYC and it's do-able but tight. However, it IS against the law there, so I have also been in situations where the cab driver refused to take 5 and we had to take 2 cabs. Sometimes they'll relent if you offer extra tip... but ultimately, if you get stopped, they are the ones paying the fine.

nytraveler

It's not really fair to ask a cabbie to take more than 4 people since he will be fined if caught - yes - I have seen this happen.

Take 2 cabs - or depending on what you;re doing take the subway or bus. (Depending on day of week/time of day the subway is often faster and more convenient - since it can often take quite a while to find a cab - esp if the weather is bad, its rush hour - or a popular day - gridlock alert, matinee etc.)

If you offer enough up front you can get a cabbie to do almost anything - but it won;t be cheap (I once got from my midtown office to JFK tduring rush hour in 22 minutes - by going over 90 on the Grand Central - mostly on the shoulder - but I had to pay the cabbie $150 over the fare.)

Gekko

It is illegal for a NY taxi to carry more than 4 passengers, and very few drivers will allow it. You can ask, certainly, but recognize that it is against the law.

dcespedes

Your question reminded me that two years ago 5 of us (all adults) squeezed into a D.C. cab--we offered to break up into two cabs but the driver insisted we would all fit. It was the most fun, albeit cramped, cab ride ever-we laughed the entire ride back to our hotel as we continued to adjust... and re-adjust

GoTravel

It's illegal as in against the law. Don't know why people are telling you to try this.

Liz5959

From the NYC Taxi and Limousine Commision website of FAQs

http://www.nyc.gov/html/tlc/html/pas...q_pass.shtml#3

How many people can fit into a yellow taxicab?

From Driver Rule 2-43a (in PDF):
The maximum amount of passengers allowed in a yellow taxicab by law is FIVE people including the driver. An additional passenger must be accepted if such passenger is under the age of seven (7) and is held on the lap of an adult passenger seated in the rear.


• Can a passenger sit in the front seat of the taxicab if no room exists in the back seat?

From Driver Rule 2-43b (in PDF):
The Taxi and Limousine Commission's (TLC) rules state that a passenger who is unable to enter or ride in the passenger part of the taxicab must be permitted to occupy the front seat alongside the driver.

msmiller

On one of our first trips to New York, we had 5 people (4 adults, 1 child), and called for a van from within the airport. It didn't take THAT long--maybe 20-25 minutes--for one to arrive, and the driver was chatty (informative) and delivered us to our location as quickly as possible. (But I was dying to get into the city, so every minute's delay was pissing me off!)

I don't remember the exact price--but it was EASILY the price of taking 2 taxis, and you can usually hop into a cab in less than 5 minutes, much less 20 minutes!

Don't mean to take anything away from the van drivers..