The scale of rip-off varies tremendously. From a padding of the fare for a few dollars, to a massive hikes, perhaps five or ten times what a local would pay. The likelyhood is greater in countries where the currencies is not familiar (so not the Euro, or Dollar), so price comparisons are more difficult. Want to avoid being ripped off? Here some tips to minimise that chance.
1) Research Price in Advance: Clearly, you won’t be able to do this for all of your journeys, but you should be able to ascertain the cost of the most common used journies by tourists, perhaps from the main city to the airport. This should give you a good barometer to the rough cost of trips. Google the information, or Tripadvisor usually has good discussions of this.
2) Arrange Price in Advance: It’s better to arrange the price in advance, as you then know what you have to pay. It is daft getting into a cab and then paying at the destination, as then the driver could charge you anything he likes, with a lot of hassle if you choose to dispute this. If taking a taxi with a meter, then you won’t be able to do this, but you could ask for an estimation.
3) Don’t Accept the First Offer: Particularly if you are accosted at the airport or on the street. The first offer for these type of negotiations are always too high, almost a check to see if you are a mark or not. If you know a rough value for your trip (see tip 1) then you’ll be in a good place to negotiate the real cost. Obviously your negotiations will be dictated with how badly you need to go and the availibilty of alternatives.
4) Are there alternatives? Do use a bit of research to find out if you really need the taxi. There may be viable alternatives; such as train, bus or shuttle. Some people I know used a taxi to the airport from their hotel even when the hotel offered a free shuttle simply because they didn’t ask.
5) Use recommendations: If a city is rife with taxi scams (and most are not), you will be able to pick up recommendations from guide books such as Lonely Planet or internet guides – even at the airport, the information desk may be happy to recommend a certain firm. Do value these opinions highly; it may be even worth paying a little more as there is a greater chance of safety.
6) Avoid looking like a tourist: Sometimes, in fact, most of the time, this will be impossible, you’ll be betrayed as soon as you open your mouth. But you can avoid looking like a rich, dumb tourist. Being polite, smiling and friendly will always get you a long way. Don’t show off wads of cash, or excessive valuables.
7) Travel with a local: Often the best way. They already know the language and the price to pay, and who to use and who to avoid.
Got more tips or want to share stories? Do let us know.
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