During your stay in Italy, there is a good chance you may want to occasionally use a taxi. Taxis exist in most, if not all, parts of the world, so you may think there is nothing specific to using taxis in Italy to warrant reading about it.
To a large extent, this is correct. However, there are a few things about taxis in Italy that many foreigner do not realize and this often causes issues, ranging from overpaying, to finding yourself stranded and more.
So today, I want to address how taxis in Italy work, starting from what a taxi is (not necessarily the same as back home!), to how to call them rules for car seats and more. I hope you find it helpful!
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What is a taxi in Italy? Getting to know the basics
The word taxi, in Italy, has a very narrow meaning: a taxi in Italy is ONLY a public service car, with a specific license, fares, licenses and rules of conduct.
In Italian, we do not use the word taxi for private companies.
A private company that operates a taxi-like service or limo service (driving people from one place to the other for a fee) is not a taxi: we call it NCC, Noleggio Con Conducente (car with chauffeur).
This is important to know as the to services are less similar to one another than it may seem.
- Official taxis operate with a meter system. They have set minimum and maximum charges, they follow specific rules of engagement for instance about luggage charges and areas they can cover.
Taxi cabs all have the same appearance, they have a ‘taxi’ sign on top, and you can call them last minute. Think of yellow cabs in New York or Black Taxis in London back in the day.
Taxis are linked to a specific municipality and while using them in between towns or cities is sometimes possible, for small distances, it is usually exceptionally expensive. They are very much a local means of transport
| Service | Taxi service | Limo / chauffeur service |
|---|---|---|
| Licenced | Yes | Yes |
| Metered | Yes | No |
| Requires car seat for kids | No | No |
| Offers car seat for kids | No | Only some companies |
| Available on the spot | Usually yes | Usually no |
| Good for inner city trips | Yes | Yes but expensive |
| Good for out of town trips | Depends, very expensive | Yes |
| Cost | Medium | High |
- NCC are private companies offering a chauffeur / limo service and they follow a completely different system. They give individual quotes to clients in advance and, if you book, you then pay what is agreed. Cars are usually more luxurious than standard taxis, they are often black and, in most cases, have a well dressed chauffeur at the helm.
Need to know: in practice, this means that in Italy you do not have many taxi companies to choose from and we do not have Uber as you may know it elsewhere. In Italy you either call a taxi or you call an NCC. More about both in this post!
Safety first
Only accept to ride on licensed vehicles. Familiarize yourself with the appearance of official taxis and always check NCC license before accepting the ride. Never informally agree a fare: go by what the meter says and ask for a receipt at the end of the ride. Always wear seatbelts as this is a legal requirement.
Calling a taxi in Italy
As I mentioned above, taxis in Italy are only official ones.
The official livery of taxis in Italy is white and cars have a ‘taxi’ sign on top, as well as official writings on the side that identify them as taxis.
You can call a taxi in several ways:
Go to a taxi stand
these are called ‘stazione dei taxi’ and usually you have one in any bigger center, sometimes many, if you are in a large city.
In most cases they station at the train station, in main piazzas and outside the airport, but in smaller center they may not always be populated as demand is not high enough. In that case usually you find a sign with a number to call.
Taxis at a stand follow a strict first come first served order both for clients and cars: the first car on the line is the first one to get the client – always find the first one as the other won’t be allowed to take you or they’ll be ‘skipping the line’, which is against the rules.
You can find taxi stands by searching on the web ‘taxi stand in [name of town]
Use a taxi app
we have several apps that call taxis. Since taxis are only the official ones, ALL APPS CALL THE SAME CARS. The difference is just the mark up each applies!
Taxi apps I use are weTaxi, itTaxi and FreeNow.
You can also use uber app but uber also calls standard taxis, it just adds their commission on top (so it is very much NOT convenient and never a saving). It does however also call Uber Black which can be handy, so I’ll talk about it more at length later in this post
Ring one
One of the best way to call a taxi in Italy is by ringing the official operator.
Each city has one or several companies you can ring to get a taxi and they are usually the most efficient way to get a cab. however, it is not always easy if you do not have Italian as operators usually do speak English but refuse to do so, so without Italian you may get hanged up on!
If you want to try in Italian, the sentence is:
Salve, Vorrei ordinare un taxi in [give your address].
(salve is a generic word to say hello. You can find all Italian greetings here)
Usually this is all it takes to have them send you one!
Each city has a different taxi number to call. Some that can be handy are:
Hail one
Contrary to popular belief, you can hail a taxi in Italy. It is just very unusual for them to be free to pick you up as usually they are busy or on the way to pick up someone who has booked, so you may see they do not stop for you.
The one place you cannot hail them is near a taxi stand. in that case, they must go to the stand and respect the line.
How big are taxis in Italy?
Taxis in Italy come most commonly in two sized: standard car or mini Van.
Standard cars have space for up to 5 people at most, including the driver. Vans can take up to 9 people including the driver.
If you need space for more than 9 people in Italy you need a mini bus and these are not part of the taxi service, you need a private minibus company for those.
Vans are getting more and more popular but they are still not the norm so it is possible to need to wait a little longer for one.
Do taxis have seatbelts?
All taxis have EU compliant restraints both in the front and back seats. Wearing seatbelts is mandatory.
Do taxis carry baby seats? Do I need a car seat in a taxi?
Taxis in Italy do not carry nor demand car seats. While seats are mandatory in private cars, public service cars are exempt from the rule and you can get on without a seat.
They also do not carry them. If you need to use a car seat, the best way is to bring your own or book an NCC with one instead.
Need to know: not all drivers are happy with the use of seats and no driver will help you install a seat, for liability reasons. This is why I recommend finding an alternative option.
Can I pay taxis by card
All taxis accept cards by law. That said, having cash can sometimes be handy, especially in two scenarios:
The machine doesn’t work (really): occasionally, there are connection issues and this actually happens. In this case, which is rare but not totally unheard of, they physically cannot take the card and will usually offer to drive you to the closest ATM to withdraw money.
If there is a connection issue, this usually affects several cars so if you are at a taxi stand, you can quickly gauge if the issue is real or not.
The machine ‘doesn’t work’ (except it does): taxi drivers do not like card payments and always prefer cash. Some are very vocal about it and lie about the machine not working to force you to pay cash.
To avoid an unpleasant situation, I recommend you tell them before boarding you will pay by card so if they are odd about it, you can make your decision before using their service.
Get a receipt both for card and cash payments: both are legal and both must stay above board.
How much are taxis in Italy
Taxis are metered and the cost of the ride is whatever the meter says.
Some stretches (for instance Pisa station to the tower or Rome airport to city center) have flat fees: I recommend you research taxi rules at your destination if going between airport and town or, in Naples, station to port, for instance.
All other times you pay what the meter says: never ask in advance how much it will be (you can be guaranteed the quite will be higher if agreed off meter) and do not take the cost showing in the app as the actual cost: all is an estimate and the meter is the only thing to go by.
Calling an NCC in Italy
Limo service in Italy (NCC) word very much like most other places in the world. If you need a chauffeur, you need to book them in advance and agree a quote.
Limo services are excellent if you want someone waiting for you at the airport or if you need to go from one town to the other or anyway out of municipality destinations.
They are also available for inner city stretched but the cost is astronomical so they are not a popular way to travel inner city.
Need to know: limo service is not used by locals, it is very much a wealthy foreigner and VIP type of service and has a price tag that reflects just this. If you do not have your own car and hope to rely in them for instance to visit the Tuscany countryside without a car, make sure you budget carefully for it.
Some NCC services are operational almost nationwide: once I use regularly is Welcome Pickups, which I find excellent.
In some areas there are also local companies so it can be handy to do a specific search for the area you’ll stay in, to get the best quote.
Do NCC (chauffeur services) offer car seats for kids? Do I need a baby seat for my child?
NCC services are exempt from the use of car seats.
There is not general rule about them carrying them either: some do, some do not. Always ask and agree it in advance should you need one. The already mentioned Welcome Pickups allows you to request one at the time of booking.
Uber in Italy
Uber operates in limited places in Italy and differently from what you may know from back home. Here:
Uber calls a standard taxi – the very same official taxis any other app calls, with the uber commission on top.
The Uber app is one of the most expensive as their mark up is very high – please be aware that since taxis are metered, whatever fare you see on uber is just an estimate, you will have to pay whatever the meter says, like with all other apps.
Uber Black, which is basically an way to get an NCC.
Uber black is very expensive here but sometimes when there is a shortage of taxis, it can be a lifesaver.
Is it easy to find taxis in Italy?
It depends. At time of high demand it is very hard to find a taxi. High seasons in big cities (Rome, Florence etc) means taxis are busy and often too few for the demand they receive. This is also the case if there are big events such as concerts etc.
In general, I recommend not to rely on taxis as a main mean of transport especially if visiting in high season.
Taxis in Venice
Taxis in Venice operate just like taxis in the rest of Italy except their are boats!
Or rather: inner city Venice is completely car free as the city has canals instead of roads, so the taxi needs to be a speed boat! Despite this difference in nature, the calling of one is just the same as everywhere else, just a different type of transport!
You can get a water taxi from one of the stands, booking online or asking your hotel to ring one.
From Venice airport and to Piazzale Roma, which is the one spot in Venice where you find cars, you also have standard car taxis: hey cannot however physically enter Venice beyond Piazzale Roma area so they are only useful if you are staying near there and need to get to areas outside Venice island. You can read here >>> how to get around Venice where I also share the websites to book water taxis.
Taxi scams
Taxi scams are less common than the web suggests but they do happen. The most common one is to say that the meter doesn’t work and therefore they give you a quote. Never ever accept this and make sure the meter is on when you start the ride.
Good to know: there are some surchaerges, for instance if you travel at night it is more expensive. This means the meter doesn’t usually start from zero: check what the amount is and ask for an explanation in case you have any doubts.
The other scam is giving you the wrong change. If paying cash, pay attention to what banknotes you give and keep them in sight until they give you change. What may happen is this: imagine you pay with two 50s; they owe you 20 change; they take the money and go ‘you didn’t give me 50, you gave me a 50 and a 10, you owe me 10’
Most taxi drivers are honest, these are the exception, do not be scared: but do pay attention as bad apples happen everywhere occasionally
I hope you found this overview helpful and it helped getting some clarity of how taxis work here. Safe travels!
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