Taking Taxis in Medellin, Colombia and Latin America

Most likely the best way for you to get around any city in Colombia or Latin America will be in a taxi. I’m going to go over the best rules to follow for taking taxis based on my Colombia experience. However, based on my other travel experience, the general rules apply to just about every other Latin American country and will give you a good overview of taxi etiquette no matter where you’re heading in Latin America.

First of all, in order to be 100% safe it’s recommended that you call a reliable taxi company and give them your location so that they can send someone from their fleet.

If you find a taxi driver you really like and trust, get his cell phone number and give him a call whenever you need a ride. I would generally not trust any taxi driver who does not work for a taxi service, or who you did not meet through a taxi service. But, even if you do meet someone who you think you can trust always be cautions and on alert. If you go out with the taxi driver as a companion make sure you don’t drink too much, and keep on eye on your cell phone and wallet. Most taxi drivers will be available as companion or tour guides for about 20,000 an hour. Keep in mind that after they pay the taxi fee and gas, most taxi drivers make between 30,000 and 50,000 pesos per day (in Medellin Colombia).

Specifically in Medellin, I’ve found that best taxi service to be available at this local number 444-000. You can even speak to a dispatcher in English. However there is another taxi service called “flota bernal”, which has a number of 444-8882. You can also find other taxi fleet numbers in the local phone book or just ask someone. The phone numbers for taxi fleet services are usually made easy to remember on purpose.

The Do Nots of Hailing Taxis

• Never take a taxi that is not yellow.
• Never hop in a taxi that already has two guys in the front seat.
• Never let someone hop in the taxi while you’re being taken somewhere. If this happens tell the taxi driver “no”, or just get out and catch another taxi

Other Things To Watch Out For
Be cautions when haling taxis off the streets. Sometimes hailing a random yellow taxi off the street is necessary but use you’re judgment, if you something doesn’t feel right just hail a different one. Generally speaking younger guys will try to hustle more then the older taxi drivers. When hailing a taxi off the street and not through a taxi service you should take a look at the drivers face and demeanor. If you’re not sure about it, just wave him off and stop another one.

There are generally three ways taxi drivers will try to hustle a little extra cash out of you. The first playing a taxi meter, or “metro”, trick on you. They either don’t erase the meter from the last customer, or they start it way before they get to your location. In Medellin the meter should start around 2000 pesos, but it may not be the same in other Colombian cities, this is something you have to find out on your own. Don’t ever fall for the meter is broken trick either. If the meter isn’t working, just get out and get into another taxi. Sometimes the taxi driver will start the meter the correct way, but he’ll turn it off as soon as you get to your location and round off the taxi fair to get a little extra out of you, don’t fall for this one either.

The second is by taking the long way to your destination, or even taking you out of your way to run up the meter. Most taxi drivers won’t do this, especially those that pick you up from the taxi service, but you should be on the lookout for that. The third and final way is that they will tell you that they don’t have change for your bill. When this happens you can ask them to get out and find some change “consiga cambio”, it’s their obligation to find a local store, small kiosk, or even gas station for them to find some change.

In order to avoid change problems, try to always have small bills and coins to pay for the taxi. It’s not a good idea to pay with a 50,000 peso bill for a small taxi ride, because most likely the driver will not have change for such a big bill.

In order to avoid being hustled, always make sure they restart the meter. All you need to say is “el metro” and point to it. In Medellin Colombia the meter starts at 1,900. Keep in mind that the driver might start the meter as soon as he gets to your location so if you make him wait a minute or two the meter will already be running so if you notice that it’s a 2,000 or a bit higher and the driver has been waiting, that’s the reason. Currently the meter starts 1,900 pesos approximately one dollar. If the fair falls under 3,900 pesos you have to pay the minimum or “minimo” which is 3,900 pesos, approximately 2 dollars.

Finally, all taxi’s have two form of identification, a fleet number that the fleet uses to identify them and a license plate. If you ever run into a problem with a driver, make sure you get both numbers and call up the taxi service to file a complaint against the driver. This is the main reason you should always try to call a taxi service, because in the event of a situation, you can file a complaint to the service and possibly get some type of compensation.

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