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Cost of Taxis in Mexico
Taxi Fares in Mexico (Last Updated January 2008)
Note Also: For useful information about traveling in Mexico by taxi read the Getting Around page in the Travel Essentials section.
Taxi Fares in Mexico City
If you take a cab from the Airport, pay for an authorized taxi from the booth in the terminal building.
Rates are charged by Zone and include the tip, although excessive luggage can be charged extra (2 luggage bags per person is considered reasonable, more and you may be asked to pay extra). To the center of the City expect to pay about MX$180; for destinations to the far north, south or west of the city (the airport is in the east of the city) expect to pay up to MX$350.
Learn Spanish!
By investing some time to build up a working knowledge of Spanish, you'll enhance the experience of your visit to Mexico through better access to the culture and it may even help you to barter and negotiate more effectively -- including taxi fares with your driver!
Private taxis based at Hotels charge a rate per Km and can be some of the most expensive taxis you will hire in Mexico. The rate can be as much as MXP$22-30 per km.
Taxis from Taxi Ranks (on the street or outside a hotel) charge on a meter, but at a higher rate than street cabs Taxi Rank Cabs charge a fixed fee of about MXP$15-20 when you get in and then around MXP$10-14 per km. If you get stuck in a traffic jam a time-lapse charge is applied automatically by the meter.
The lowest fares (metered) are from the street cabs (only hail the NEW style cabs: white with red stripe and a licence plate begining with the letter A) who charge a fee of about MXP$7 when you get in plus MXP$4-6 per km. If you get stuck in a traffic jam a time-lapse charge is applied automatically by the meter, in increments of 45 seconds, at the rate of 1/4 of the km rate. Unless you know Mexico well and can speak Spanish fluently, you will be better off with Taxi Rank or hotel cabs - see Related Article.
Some Telephone Booking taxi firms/co-operatives agree a fixed price from point A to B, which is often very reasonable and pitched between the Taxi Rank and street cab fares. For example, a fixed fare from Xochimilco (south edge of Mexico City) to the Airport (center east) costs around MXP$130 plus a tip when you book a taxi over the phone with a local firm/co-operative. These co-operatives some of the best deals in terms of security/price. You will need to be able to speak spanish in order to book them and direct the cab driver.
The firm/co-operative will note your pick-up and destination addresses, confirm the fixed price give you the name of the driver who will take you and his/her license plate number.
Taxi Fares outside of Mexico City
Taxis charge by Zone OR are Metered OR are NOT Metered
Meter charges are similar to street cabs in Mexico City who charge a fee of about MXP$7 when you get in plus MXP$4-6 per Km. It is generally regarded as safe to hail a cab off the street outside of Mexico City but you will need to speak Spanish to direct the driver.
Zone charges will depend on charges set by the local State authorities, but will correlate to the meter charges above, plus a small percentage.
Add 25%-40% to the above prices for highly popular tourist centers such as Cancun, Puerto Vallarta, Acapulco, Ixtapa and Huatulco. Taxis from Airports, wherever you are in the country are ALWAYS more expensive.
No Meter? Agree your price! - Some taxis either refuse to switch on their meters or, especially in smaller towns and villages, will not have a meter installed. In these cases, be sure to agree your price ahead of time. If you feel the rate is unreasonable, don't be afraid to walk away and find a different cab. There are usually plenty around.