Quite tricky, isn’t it?
But to let it not be creepy,those are the things you should take care of so that you be not fooled by the taxi drivers.
The most Greek taxi drivers do not follow the greek law or the rules made by their association. On the other hand using a taxi in Greece is a cheap way to move yourself around.
For the same distance a British taxi driver could charge 30 euros, a Dutch even more, while a Greek driver will ask about 6 or 7 euros.
I strongly recommend the means of public transport but we will write about it in another chapter. Stay tuned!
So, first, you have to enter the taxi and ask in simple english the destination you want to reach. If you are not sure on how to spell it, it would be a nice idea to have it pre-written on a small piece of paper that you will show to the driver. After the driver has understood the place to go, he must switch on ther counter machine. Most of the times this machine is put on an easily seen place close to the gear box. If he does not, ask him to do it. You must be sure of what you say and no matter how much he may insist he has to switch it on. If not, he has the right to ask you a creepy amount of money when you reach your destination.
There are though some prefixed prices, most of them concern moving from or to airport (talking about Athens or Thessaloniki) or by a village to another (talking about islands). Ask him if your destination has a prefixed price. Of course it can’t be prefixed a hotel-to-any-bar destination.
There is also a price list in the taxi, you can ask for it.
He is not allowed to smoke, but you neither. If he smokes and you feel your well-being disturbed, you can ask him not to smoke. On the other hand you have to ask for his permission if the one who wants to smoke is you.
He is not allowed to pick up other people from the road (even if they go to the same direction as you do) without your permission. Really don’t expect anyone to respect this rule. He will just stop an pick them up. Don’t be annoyed. It’s the way it works. Only in the case that you are in a terrible hurry, let him know from the beggining.
Another thing you can do is to ask another person (a friend, your receptionist, a walker) the approximate amount of money that a taxi will ask (given the destination). Then enter to the taxi and ask the driver the same. If the amount is about the same, then go on. Otherwise let him know that a friend of yours has advised you about it. You can also ask him to stop and get out if you smel the creepiness around you.
Girls! you have nothing to fear. The driver will take you safely to the place you want to be. Don’t flirt with them; they are not the right persons to flirt with. If you really like him you can ask his mobile phone number while getting out. Boys, dont be amazed if he comments on the girls on the road.
He may be a swearing guy, using bad words, of course in greek, so you just don’t care.
Most of them speak a few words of english. They listen to woeful greek music and have a nihilist view of life. Hey! just think of driving 8 or 10 hours per day for all of your life in the horrible trafic jam. Best times to use a taxi are the night hours. Definately not the traffic hours! If you use a taxi at 8 in the morning when everybody go to work, prepare for a British charge!
You can call a taxi by phone, in this case you have to pay more. You can get telephone numbers by any hotel around.
I think I have given you all the tips already. But don’t be afraid. Most of the times they will be useless. But you must be prepared for the worse if you really want to hit something in the right way!
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