Taxis, Hong Kong

I thought what is shown on the meter would be what I'd be paying. Apparantly not. The taxi driver pointed out to me that there is an extra surcharge of HK$2 for each passenger.

The sign was written in chinese and it was hand-written. One can only wonder if the surcharge is official.

Getting a taxi at the airport is definitely not a problem in Hong Kong. The interesting thing though is to know which colour taxis you are suppose to take. There are three coloured taxis -
The red taxis are what they call urban taxis. They are allowed to travel to most places in Hong Kong except south of Lantau.

The green taxis are New Territories taxis that serves New Territories and certain locations on Lantau. i.e. Disneyland hotels.

The blue taxis serve all destinations on Lantau and also the airport.

My family was heading to Disneyland and had wanted to save some time and the effort of transiting from MTR to MTR. Thus, we hopped into a green coloured taxi. Along the way to the Disneyland hotel, I'd the opportunity to soak in the entire Hong Kong atmosphere. Tall skyscrapers that are residential than commercial, lofty mountains, lovely seas and smooth well paved highways.

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My original plan was to go to the Big Buddha first, so I took a taxi from the airport to Tung Chung. This was very easy - the taxi station at the airport cannot be missed. There are several rows of taxis and you just need to find one in the colour you need - the colour of a taxi indicates which area it belongs to. As Tung Chung is located in Lantau, I needed a blue taxi - blue taxis serve Lantau. Green taxis serve the more rural parts of the New Territories, while red taxis serve Hong Kong Island, Kowloon and all of the New Territories. The red taxis are the most expensive.

The fare was about 25$ and it was an interesting experience because it was so very different to Germany. The taxi driver was friendly, but he did not really took notice of me - he was speaking on his headphone during the whole duration of the drive, and I did not have any idea what he was talking about. This would never happen in Germany, where taxi drivers usually have a chat with their customers. This is not a complaint, it did not annoy me in the least that it was different, it was just an interesting observation.

I was a little nervous if my taxi ride would go alright and if I would find the right taxi, but it was very easy and I had no problems at all. The taxi driver was also very nice because he looked for a place where I could have breakfast near the Cable Car Terminal, and drove me there.

1] Red
Red taxis run through Kowloon (Kowloon Peninsula, Shatin, Tseun Wan) & HK Island. Fare starts from HK$15 for first 2km. HK$1.4 per 0.2 km.

2] Green
Green taxis run through the New Territories (except Shatin, Tseun Wan). Fare starts from HK$12.5 for first 2 km. HK$1.2 per 0.2 km.

3] Blue
Blue taxis only run on the Lamma Island. Fares starts from HK$12.5 for first 2 km. HK$1.2 per 0.2 km.

Additional charge
- Baggage per piece (except light personal hand baggage carried inside vehicle) HK$ 4-5
- Wheelchairs & crutches carried by disabled passengers: Free
- Every animal or bird $ 4-5
- For every hiring arranged through tel booking $ 4-5

Toll
Cross Harbour Tunnel HK$10
Eastern Harbour Crossing HK$15
Western Harbour Crossing HK$15
Lantau Link HK$30

All taxis in HK are clean and 99% air-conditioned in the summer. There is a card stuck in front of the front seat which is with the driver's name, plate number and driver's photo. Fare chart & regulations (rights) are also stuck on the side door.

English Proficiency
Not every driver can speak very well English & some are not English speaker. If you find the taxi driver cannot speak even understand English, try to seek the other's help. Or ask someone to write the place you'd need to go in Chinese first.

But if you are lucky, you will find the taxi driver can speak quite well English & introduce a bit about HK.

Freud
Fraud in HK is not very common among tourists. The fare is calculated by the mile meter and you can ask for the receipt. But if you find there is something wrong, don't argue with the driver but write down his name & plate number. Report to the Tourist Board or Customer Council. However, I've never had such bad experience, neither my foreign friends.

Discount
In fact, there is no bargain or discount in fare. But there is a taxi company is called "Taxi 70", it charges 30% less per trip. But you have to call to make reservation: (852) 82002846. I am not sure whether the drivers can speak English.

Hong Kong has over 18,000 taxis operating with 3 distinctive colours; Red body - Hong Kong Island and Kowloon; Green body - New Territories; Blue body - Lantau

Prices from 28th Feb 2008: Flagfall $HK16 - and includes first 2 kilometres, every 200 metres thereafter $1.4 and each minute of waiting time $1.4. Luggage $5 per item (excluding light personal luggage carried in passenger cabin). Passenger responsible for toll charges and depending on destination, return tolls also to be paid by passenger. Taxi drivers are not required to change $HK500 and $HK1,000 bank notes. Slightly different fares for New Territories and Lantau taxis.

Approx fares from Chek Lap Kok airport including bridge and/or tunnel tolls
Hong Kong Island
Central (City Hall) $340
Causeway Bay (Sogo) $340
Aberdeen (Aberdeen Centre) $380
Kowloon
Tsim Sha Tsui (Star Ferry) $270
Kwun Tong Station $320

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I have never seen so many taxis in one place. I think there is virtually a taxi for every person in Hong Kong. I loved it. I took a taxi every evening, or more to the point, early in the morning, everyday from the InterContinental Hotel to the BP International House Hotel. It's a $15.00HK flagfall. It is a very inexpensive ride. However many of the taxi drivers do not speak english so always have a map on hand and know where you are going. If you're taking a taxi from a hotel somewhere have a hotel employee tell the driver where you are going if at all possible. There is also no need to tip the driver however they do like it. I found that my daily trip coming back from the Inter Continental to my hotel would cost about $17.00 or $18.00HK so I would just automatically give him a $20.00HK. Besides walking this was my ideal way of getting around. I found out talking to a driver that there are 18,000 taxi's between Hong Kong Island and Kowloon and although that may seem like alot that is not nearly enough to service the 7 million people in Hong Kong plus tourists.

I was charged the following taxi fares during my trip in HK, this might help you do a rough estimation with your transportation budget if you need to travel by taxis due to big party and luggages...

1. From Airport to BP International Hotel in Jordan = HKD 300 (My friend was charged HKD 310) including toll and luggage fees.

2. From BP International to Disney Hollywood Hotel = HKD 200

3. From Big Buddha to Airport = HKD 145

4. From Big Buddha to Disney Hollywood Hotel = HKD 200 (not so sure about this one, my friend couldn't remember exactly...)

Blue taxis start (Lantau Island) at HKD 12.00 and Red taxis (Kowloon area) start at HKD 11.00. There are surcharges for luggages (think its HKD 5 per piece) and you also might need to pay for toll, etc.

There are lots of taxis in Hong Kong and the prices are pretty good . The cabs are all metered. The rate starts at about $2.00 and goes about 20cents for each 200meters. It cost us $7.00 for two to ride about 20 minutes from our hotel to Temple St market.