Don’t get taxi scammed to/from airport.

[ttnc4me]

There are many vehicles / drivers that lead you to believe they are official taxis when they’re not. 
The official website is here:

https://sanjuanpuertorico.com/taxis/

 

It’s $21 to get to /from the airport to the port and vice versa plus $1 per bag and varying lesser amounts for shorter distances. No matter the number of passengers in one vehicle! 

Anyone charging more are not official and are simply trying to make extra money off you. 

 

The official dispatch will have a large receipt pad and give you the amount in writing up front. 
The more you know… Enjoy your trip!

https://sanjuanpuertorico.com/taxis/

 

[ttnc4me]

Edit: It actually includes up to 5 passengers, not unlimited. 

[njhorseman]

@ttnc4me, thanks for posting this.

 

FYI, while the information about taxis you've posted appears to be accurate the website is not an official government tourism site. It's a private for-profit commercial website owned by a company  named Cupeles Communications, Inc.. They make money from the advertising on their websites. Here's a bit about them:

https://cupeles.com/about/

 

 

If you're at the official taxi stands at the airport or piers there's no chance of being scammed because only licensed taxis are allowed to pick up there and the dispatcher will give you the voucher shown above which has your total fare clearly stated. This system of fixed tourist taxi fares has been in place for many years. 

 

If you're going from the airport to a hotel there's also the fixed fare system in place and the taxi dispatcher will give you a voucher with the proper fare .

 

Here's the official voucher you get from the airport dispatcher, which show the fares to various areas of San Juan and to other locations in Puerto Rico:

https://dev.aeropuertosju.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/04/Taxis-Tarifario.pdf

 

Alternatively Uber is permitted to pick up and drop off at the airport. At the airport  different locations than the taxi stands are used...and when you book through the Uber app you also get a fixed quote so there's also no  chance of being ripped off. Uber can be much cheaper than a taxi, although not likely so for a party of 5 as shown in the above example as you'll need an Uber XL vehicle.

Edited March 19, 2023 by njhorseman

[unclegrandpa]

Is the price the same from the cruise terminal to the airport? I was trying to use Uber a year ago. The Uber price was not fixed. It went up after people started disembarking. I tried to get a regular taxi. The driver first told me 20 dollars. When we came to the airport he raised it to 30 dollars. He eventually agreed to take 20 dollars. However, he kept insisting it was always 30 dollars. I am not sure if it was an official taxi company or not.

 

I had this happen to me in several places. Therefore I prefer to use Uber unless they are more expensive.

[njhorseman]

10 hours ago, unclegrandpa said:

Is the price the same from the cruise terminal to the airport?

Yes. Look at the receipt in post #2. It's for a trip to the airport from the OSJ cruise terminal. Note the base fare of $21.

10 hours ago, unclegrandpa said:

The Uber price was not fixed. It went up after people started disembarking

Uber uses dynamic pricing. Fares change according to demand so when passengers are disembarking fares will increase. However once you make a booking that is accepted the price will be as stated.

[ttnc4me]

On 3/19/2023 at 3:36 PM, njhorseman said:

If you're at the official taxi stands at the airport or piers there's no chance of being scammed because only licensed taxis are allowed to pick up there and the dispatcher will give you the voucher shown above which has your total fare clearly stated. This system of fixed tourist taxi fares has been in place for many years. 

Sort of. At the airport, we never got a voucher shown above and I have no idea who we rode with as there was just a long line to get taxis and a guy routing people to waiting vehicles from that line right outside the terminal. We paid $41, but didn't feel entirely shafted since Uber was quoting $47 at the time, but still not good since it should have been less. 

The issue is that where the "official" stands are are a blur - especially at the port.  We were accosted by no less than 4 other individuals (charging more) on our way to search for the official taxi stand once exiting the ship. So many vendors yelling and so many people milling around that it's chaos. Hopefully this post will help some seek out the actual official licensed provider and save some money. 🙂