# Using Taxicabs



## PatrickMurtha (Feb 26, 2011)

Any advice on this subject? The U.S. State Department says it can be dangerous. I haven't take a taxi yet in Culiacan, and as an Americano with iffy spoken Spanish (hopefully quickly to improve!), don't want to get taken advantage of.


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## circle110 (Jul 20, 2009)

I would ask someone there in Culiacan because every place is different. Here in Guanajuato there are no concerns and I take normal street taxis all the time.

However, in Mexico City my fiancee's family doesn't want me to take a cab alone unless it's a "taxi de sitio" or one of the services where you call for them to send a cab for you.

In general, outside of Mexico City it's not dangerous but it's best to check with the locals.


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## PatrickMurtha (Feb 26, 2011)

circle110 said:


> I would ask someone there in Culiacan because every place is different. Here in Guanajuato there are no concerns and I take normal street taxis all the time.
> 
> However, in Mexico City my fiancee's family doesn't want me to take a cab alone unless it's a "taxi de sitio" or one of the services where you call for them to send a cab for you.
> 
> In general, outside of Mexico City it's not dangerous but it's best to check with the locals.


The Mexperience website, which I just checked, agrees with you. The taxi dangers for expats and tourists seem to have been concentrated almost exclusively in Mexico City.

I think traveling from the taxi stands is probably safest, so I will find out which are the nearest to me.


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## RVGRINGO (May 16, 2007)

A friend, a doctor, took a taxi from his downtown convention center to his hotel, only a few blocks away. The taxi took him up an alley, where waiting accomplices took his wallet, watch, shoes, suit and even his underwear; leaving him naked. That was in Chicago.


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## DNP (May 3, 2011)

PatrickMurtha said:


> The Mexperience website, which I just checked, agrees with you. The taxi dangers for expats and tourists seem to have been concentrated almost exclusively in Mexico City.
> 
> I think traveling from the taxi stands is probably safest, so I will find out which are the nearest to me.


What works for me is this: I find a taxi driver I like, get his cellphone number and use him exclusively. After a, while they learn where you go most frequently.


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## ReefHound (Aug 9, 2010)

DNP said:


> What works for me is this: I find a taxi driver I like, get his cellphone number and use him exclusively. *After a, while they learn where you go most frequently*.


In a place where express kidnappings are common, often by someone who knows you, this sounds like a recipe for disaster.


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## DNP (May 3, 2011)

ReefHound said:


> In a place where express kidnappings are common, often by someone who knows you, this sounds like a recipe for disaster.


So, what do you advise?


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## AlanMexicali (Jun 1, 2011)

*Taxistas*



ReefHound said:


> In a place where express kidnappings are common, often by someone who knows you, this sounds like a recipe for disaster.



Taxistas that hang in Zona Turista outside clubs have a reputation in Mexicali for getting you anything one might need, if you know what I mean.


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## tepetapan (Sep 30, 2010)

Finding a taxi driver you like and getting his cell phone number is what people do everywhere. 
The taxi drivers love having repeat clients and riders love having someone they trust drive them around. Good advice.


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## PatrickMurtha (Feb 26, 2011)

I took two cabs today, both from "sitios." It worked out fine. Although, interestingly, given that the Wikipedia article on "Taxicabs of Mexico" says that Mexico boasts "very low fares compared to that in more economically developed countries (about 90% lower)," I found that the rates were double what I paid in Korea for equivalent distances, and with a tip thrown in -- there is no tipping in Korea -- I paid about 2.5x as much (and for vehicles much inferior in appearance and cleanliness, but these are very different countries). The buses are a much better deal, so I'm going to have to learn all the routes.


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## RVGRINGO (May 16, 2007)

Tipping a taxi driver is not done in Mexico, unless you have lots of baggage and the driver carries it into your destination for you.


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## PatrickMurtha (Feb 26, 2011)

RVGRINGO said:


> Tipping a taxi driver is not done in Mexico, unless you have lots of baggage and the driver carries it into your destination for you.


Good to know. Online sources are a little fuzzy about this.


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## TundraGreen (Jul 15, 2010)

The sitios are convenient but not the cheapest way to ride. I have found that the sitios are not as flexible on price and generally are at the upper end of the scale. Stopping a taxi on the street in Guadalajara, you can generally negotiate a slightly better price than the sitios will give you. You do need to agree on the price before you get in the taxi, and it helps to know what the going rate is for the particular trip/distance.


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## PatrickMurtha (Feb 26, 2011)

TundraGreen said:


> The sitios are convenient but not the cheapest way to ride. I have found that the sitios are not as flexible on price and generally are at the upper end of the scale. Stopping a taxi on the street in Guadalajara, you can generally negotiate a slightly better price than the sitios will give you. You do need to agree on the price before you get in the taxi, and it helps to know what the going rate is for the particular trip/distance.


My spoken and listening Spanish will have to improve a bit before I'm up to "negociacon." However, I think that will happen reasonably fast.

Happily, my reading Spanish is more advanced, so I'm having no real problems with signage or printed instructions. After a year in Korea, where I learned the alphabet but was frustrated to accomplish more -- the grammar is resolutely non-Western, and the sound system is impenetrable to my ear -- it is a joy to be back in a country with a European language.


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## TundraGreen (Jul 15, 2010)

PatrickMurtha said:


> My spoken and listening Spanish will have to improve a bit before I'm up to "negociacon." However, I think that will happen reasonably fast.


You don't need much spanish to negotiate with taxi drivers.
You: Buenos/as dias/tardes/noches. Quiero ir ...
You: Cuantos cuestan?
Then an exchange of numbers. You do need to be able to speak and understand numbers. Most drivers are very friendly about it and will just laugh if your counter offer is too far outside of what they want. Several times I have gotten a really good price and I felt like it was partly due to the driver finding it a novelty to be dealing with a northerner who was enjoying discussing price. Once I got a water taxi for three of us for 90 pesos. The owner asked me to pay before we got near the boat, because he had another customer who was already in the boat and she had paid $7 usd for one person; her rate: 90/person; our rate 30/person. On the other hand, I have a friend who was sailinag the coast of mexico for most of a year and would never discuss price with taxis. He just got in and at the end of the trip he paid what they asked and gave them a tip on top of it. I am sure they were happy to have the extra money, but I think I have had more interaction, and in some cases, made more friends by understanding the local customs and doing it their way than by just spreading money around.


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## PatrickMurtha (Feb 26, 2011)

TundraGreen said:


> You don't need much spanish to negotiate with taxi drivers.
> You: Buenos/as dias/tardes/noches. Quiero ir ...
> You: Cuantos cuestan?
> Then an exchange of numbers. You do need to be able to speak and understand numbers. Most drivers are very friendly about it and will just laugh if your counter offer is too far outside of what they want. Several times I have gotten a really good price and I felt like it was partly due to the driver finding it a novelty to be dealing with a northerner who was enjoying discussing price. Once I got a water taxi for three of us for 90 pesos. The owner asked me to pay before we got near the boat, because he had another customer who was already in the boat and she had paid $7 usd for one person; her rate: 90/person; our rate 30/person. On the other hand, I have a friend who was sailinag the coast of mexico for most of a year and would never discuss price with taxis. He just got in and at the end of the trip he paid what they asked and gave them a tip on top of it. I am sure they were happy to have the extra money, but I think I have had more interaction, and in some cases, made more friends by understanding the local customs and doing it their way than by just spreading money around.


Sound and helpful advice, thanks!


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## JoParsons (Jun 25, 2011)

DNP said:


> What works for me is this: I find a taxi driver I like, get his cellphone number and use him exclusively. After a, while they learn where you go most frequently.


I love it!!! Thanks.


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