Barcelona Taxis

[TMaine]

I have been reading some negative experiences regarding taxis in Barcelona. Mainly that people feel they are being taken advantage of on fares. Many of the reports suggest that when the cab approaches the destination, the driver manipulates the meter and the fare suddenly jumps to a much higher fare. Has anyone experienced this or have any advice or suggestions to avoid this?

 

Does anyone know what can be expected for a fare from the airport to the Atrium Palace Hotel? Thanks!

[ghstudio]

While they may be doing something that is taking advantage, it's more likely that they are adding legal surcharges as they do in many cities around the world. Rates are usually posted inside the cabs in major cities and they list "night surcharges", pier surcharges, etc.

 

I don't think that you are any more at risk in Barcelona then you are in NYC, London or Paris.

[potterduck]

They can give you a quote before you get it, they should have a fairly accurate idea of the cost.

 

Last week we were quoted 38-40€ for the port to the airport. On arrival the meter read about 26€, he then added the supplements and it came to 41.5€ but he still charged 40€. That was for 4 passengers plus luggage.

[mo&fran]

Our experience has been the meter only covers transportation There is a surcharge for any baggage they have to handle.

[keela1eva2]

Some years ago I was advised to write the name and address of the Hotel and give this to the Taxi Driver. This seemed to work in that we were driving around trying to find the hotel. At the end of the journey and I think most times this was added for the baggage which seems to be common place in Europe

 

Sue

[Michidoeme]

There are all kinds of official surcharges in Barcelona : airport and/or port pick-up, luggage per piece, Sunday/holidays, evening/nights, etc. Therefore fare on meter can be misleading. A list should be hanging in the cab.

[travelberlin]

I believe they work with taximeters. This year we paid euro 10 from the Ramblas to the Port. This is not much for a taxi drive in Europe.

[ab0si]

2011 Barcelona taxi rates, surcharges, et al

 

http://www.taxibarcelona.cat/Portals/0/pdfs/pdfs/Adhesiu%20Tarifes%202011.pdf

[mrobstad]

Cost me 35 to hotl and 25 to cruise port. Felt ripped off compared to NYC.

[Hlitner]

Cost me 35 to hotl and 25 to cruise port. Felt ripped off compared to NYC.

 

The 35 is not too far out of line depending on your hotel location and traffic. But if your hotel was anywhere in town the 25 Euro fare to the port was a rip-off.

 

Hank

[mskaufman]

We used taxis multiple times in Barcelona and didn't have a problem. We paid what was on the meter and there were add-ons when we went to the ship or to/from the airport. Around town they were quick and reasonably priced.

[Kerry's Girls]

We also never had problems with cabs during our two trips to Barcelona - and we used cabs a lot. I can understand how someone who doesn't know that there are surcharges would think they're being ripped off - since there's a metered fare, then you see the driver touch the meter and there's suddenly a higher fare - but I always had an idea how much our total fare should be and it was always around what I expected - no rip-offs, just drivers making an honest living.

 

Best,

Mia