½ûÂþÌìÌÃ

Agree- most are rip off merchants.,,

Use Google maps on your smart phone while you ride - you'll soon catch him out if he takes you for a long ride...

You should use either uber or grab bike, grab taxi. They are generally cheaper and more reliable than local taxi companies. If you ventured out to smaller cities such as phan thiet or nha trang then uber isn't available but you can still use grab bike or grab taxi. The app allows you to set your intended destination and the price you should pay getting to that destination without worrying about price gouging. I paid 30k for grab bike which covered 9 km. And if I used grab taxi I would have paid 160k for the same distance. Uber charges about 108k for the same distance. While "sieu re" another feature on grab taxi that is similar to uber charges 59k for the same distance. As far as I know Hanoi and HCMC are the only cities that offer uber. Also, uber service is limited in early morning and late at night since the drivers don't work as hard as the taxi drivers .

markthomaslee wrote:

axis are not cheap to get around the city, but they're certainly good and better than those bicycle and motorbikes in big cities like Hanoi and HCMC

When I look at it, taxi drivers in Saigon are all the same. What matters to them is only about money, and they thought all tourist has a lot of money

We figured out some of taxi drivers are smart ! they can make your ride longer to appear at their running meter. Be sure you remember some any streets on the way to your hotel or have a map of the city

If you don't know where to go, the taxi driver will love that. Most taxi drivers in Saigon are dishonest. Be careful when taking a taxi especially at night

We only take taxi from Mai Linh and Vinasun, drivers are still the same as the others but at least is a reputable taxi.

I disagree. While I very, very seldom need a taxi, I never really had any problems. Yes, maybe there was once or twice an issue about something. I often don't drive the shortest route myself as I know the streets and in rush hrs or traffic jam navigate around it, so do taxi drivers.

However, if you pick up a cab around Ben Thanh or Pham Ngu Lao, then probably the chance is a lot higher.

One of my working colleagues travels everyday by taxi from D.7 to D.1 and back, maybe once or twice a year he mentions something negative. He even once had forgotten a shopping bag inside and the driver searched for him until he found him with the help of the security.

Last weekend we went to a wedding in Hoc Mon. One group came with a taxi from D.2 to Hoc Mon and the taxi waited there for 4 hrs to drive them back, one way cost VND 600K by taxi meter and he made no attempt for a flat rate or anything.

But maybe you just had a lot of bad experiences or misunderstandings. Nevertheless I think it is wrong to say MOST taxi drivers are dishonest, while I would agree that most of them are bad drivers...

thanks dude.

markthomaslee wrote:

thanks dude.

You are most welcome buddy