How to take a taxi in Spanish
A la Puerta del Sol, por favor.
“To the Puerta del Sol, please.”
When: The moment you sit down in the taxi
The moment
You flag a taxi outside your hotel in Madrid and need to reach the Puerta del Sol before your dinner reservation. You want a rough price first, then to pay and get out.
A1 · Unit 3 · Getting around
The lines
Just say where you are going
Drivers expect the destination and nothing more: "A la Puerta del Sol, por favor." Start with "a" plus the place name and you sound completely normal.
A la Puerta del Sol, por favor.
“To the Puerta del Sol, please.”
When to use it: The moment you sit down in the taxi
What you’ll hear back: Vale, ahora mismo. (Okay, right away.)
Asking the rough price
Add "más o menos" when you want a ballpark rather than an exact figure: "¿Cuánto cuesta más o menos hasta el aeropuerto?" It works for any destination.
¿Cuánto cuesta más o menos hasta el aeropuerto?
“Roughly how much is it to the airport?”
When to use it: Before you set off, to avoid surprises
What you’ll hear back: Al aeropuerto son treinta y tres, tarifa fija. (To the airport it's a fixed thirty-three.)
Words for this scene
| Spanish | Say it | English |
|---|---|---|
| Pare aquí, por favor. | PAH-reh ah-KEE por fah-BOR | Stop here, please. |
Pare aquí mismo, por favor, en la esquina. Stop right here, please, on the corner. Tip: Say it a little early; the driver needs a legal spot. | ||
| ¿Puedo pagar con tarjeta? | PWEH-doh pah-GAR kon tar-HEH-tah | Can I pay by card? |
Perdone, ¿puedo pagar con tarjeta? Excuse me, can I pay by card? Tip: Madrid taxis must take cards, but ask before setting off. | ||
| Quédese con el cambio. | KEH-deh-seh kon el KAHM-byoh | Keep the change. |
Son once con veinte. Quédese con el cambio. That's eleven twenty. Keep the change. Tip: Rounding up to the next euro is a normal Spanish tip. | ||
Your objective
Tell the driver where you’re going, ask roughly how much it will cost, and say how you’ll pay.
- where you’re going
- the rough price
- how you’ll pay
Lines that get it done
- A la Puerta del Sol, por favor.
- ¿Cuánto cuesta más o menos hasta el aeropuerto?
- ¿Puedo pagar con tarjeta? · Can I pay by card?
In the live scene the objective stays on screen, and the Replay afterwards says whether you got it done.
Check yourself
1. You get into a taxi in Madrid. How do you tell the driver where you want to go?
- A la Puerta del Sol, por favor.
- ¿Dónde está la Puerta del Sol?
- La Puerta del Sol está lejos.
- Voy a la Puerta del Sol mañana.
Show the answer
A la Puerta del Sol, por favor.
A plus the place plus por favor is all a driver needs.
2. How do you ask roughly what the ride to the airport will cost?
- ¿Cuánto cuesta más o menos hasta el aeropuerto?
- ¿Cuánto tiempo hay hasta el aeropuerto?
- ¿Cuántos euros tiene usted?
- ¿Es caro el aeropuerto?
Show the answer
¿Cuánto cuesta más o menos hasta el aeropuerto?
Más o menos turns the price question into a request for a ballpark.
3. Your street is coming up and you want the driver to pull over. What do you say?
- Pare aquí, por favor.
- Espere aquí, por favor.
- Siga aquí, por favor.
- Vaya aquí, por favor.
Show the answer
Pare aquí, por favor.
Pare means stop; espere means wait and siga means carry on.