SYD airport taxi

[Chucksta]

I heard the fare for a taxi can range from $30-50 depending which driver u get!

What instructions should I tell the taxi driver to get from QF domestic airport in sydney to the SYdney Hilton on George Street?

thanks

Chucksta

 

[Dave Noble]

Hilton Hotel, George Street. Go via Redfern.

Dave

 

[serfty]

What time of the day?

Ask the driver to take O'Riorden St to go to/from the city/airport & it can cost a lot less than that. (At 5am I went from Menzies hotel to Dom airport last week for $25.50) This is quite OK when the traffic is light such as that time of the morning or Saturday afternoons.

If driver goes from the city via Circular Quay, Eastern Distributor and all the way around on General Holmes Drive" under the runways and back around it can cost more than $40. (I had this happen to me one day from the "Four Points" when I was not concentrating - talking to other people in the back seat, on seeing the Opera House I woke up and asked the driver where he was going. He simply ignored me & forged ahead; not much I could really do by then :evil: ...)

 

[dragonman]

Catch the train - much cheaper, quicker and if you get off at Town Hall you are there.

 

[Dave Noble]

Catch the train - much cheaper, quicker and if you get off at Town Hall you are there.

It is a bit cheaper, but outside peak hours, not enough to make it worthwhile. I used to live a cpl of hundred yards from Town Hall station . The Taxi fare to Town Hall off peak was $18-$20 whilst the train costs $12.20. The saving of $8 not really worth the extra time spent travelling ( 23 mins travel time to Town Hall plus average 7.5 minutes waiting time )

If there are 2 or more people travelling, then taking the train is definately a bad move

Dave

 

[serfty]

Dave is correct; possibly for two passenger, but certainly for three, a Taxi is generally the better option for one way trips (and I loathe using taxi's in Oz). It is $12.20 for a one-way Dom-City fare, bought one last week.

One reasonable option if the circumstances are right are are day return train tickets at $17.70, Off peak returns for travel after 9am cost $16.30.

 

[simongr]

The only downer on Taxis can be the massive queue depending on the time of arrival into Sydney. The "trick" of going upstairs to see if you can grab a cab that has just dropped osmeone off might be worth a try - but I am not sure if the cabs still do it -they can get large fines if caught.

 

[Optics]

The only downer on Taxis can be the massive queue depending on the time of arrival into Sydney. The "trick" of going upstairs to see if you can grab a cab that has just dropped osmeone off might be worth a try - but I am not sure if the cabs still do it -they can get large fines if caught.

I can think of a couple more "downers" with Sydney taxis, such as driver not knowing where to go or how to get there (probably not an issue with this trip), cab and driver being dirty etc. Melbourne is no better, give me Brisbane taxis anytime.

 

[simongr]

I have a driver that picks me up - havent had a SYD cab for about nine months now - mind you the fare is a little steep for me now that I have moved further out - $100 each way - used to be $70 from Concord. Mind you he didnt bill me when I forgot to cancel when flying back from the US got postponed by three weeks and he took a little welcome package to the airport when he picked up my parents.

Could be a little expensive to get a ride to the city

 

[dragonman]

It is a bit cheaper, but outside peak hours, not enough to make it worthwhile. I used to live a cpl of hundred yards from Town Hall station . The Taxi fare to Town Hall off peak was $18-$20 whilst the train costs $12.20. The saving of $8 not really worth the extra time spent travelling ( 23 mins travel time to Town Hall plus average 7.5 minutes waiting time )

If there are 2 or more people travelling, then taking the train is definately a bad move

Dave

Agreed that for multiple people the taxi is better. I would say though that I live closer to the airport than the city (centennial park) and I am happy if I can get out of the taxi for $25 so you are doing very well.

 

[Mal]

I actually don't mind training it into SYD if I don't have much luggage. Especially during the peak taxi times where I'll beat any taxi ride by quite a few minutes.

I did that last time I was in SYD for work. Worked out much easier than waiting around for a taxi for ages (the taxi queue was horrendously long).

If 2 people, then taxi wins hands down

 

[Febs]

The saving of $8 not really worth the extra time spent travelling

As simongr hinted - it depends on the time of day. I took the train from SYD-Town Hall once and made it to my office (near Town Hall) in under 30 minutes. I know I would've been in the taxi queue for more than 30 minutes alone, because I spent a good 10-15min in it and moved about 5metres!

A few weeks ago I caught a cab (got in around 5pm so the queue hadn't started yet), and the traffic was terrible - easily a good 45min trip (driver didn't take the CCT and I wasn't paying attention).

On a weekday afternoon, I'm a big fan of the train.

Agreed though - if 2+ are travelling, it's not cost-effective at all.

Cheers,
- Febs.

Edit: Or now that I've read Mal's post...what he said!

 

[Dave Noble]

There are ways to make the train more cost effective for a return ticket when returning on a different day

Rather than buying 2 singles at a cost of $24.40 , can purchase a single from Wolli Creek to Town Hall for $3.20 on the way in and another $3.20 for the way back. Can then also purchase a weekly gate pass at, iirc, $13.50 which allows access to the airport for a week. Total cost $19.90

Dave

 

[dajop]

Ask the driver to take O'Riorden St to go to/from the city/airport & it can cost a lot less than that. (At 5am I went from Menzies hotel to Dom airport last week for $25.50) This is quite OK when the traffic is light such as that time of the morning or Saturday afternoons.

And if you do ask to go this way, invariably the driver will tell you there is a bad accident and the traffic is really bad, or there is roadworks or ..... . If they do say this, my suggestion would be to ignore them and tell them you'd take the risk. Then if you get to your destination and there was no accident don't dare tip them.

Once going from Balmain to airport, shortly after x city tunnel opened I wasn't concentrating (think I took a phone call) and next minute I'm in the tunnel and on the easter distributor $50 later at the airport, compared to the usual $25. :evil:

 

[serfty]

That Mirrors many of my experiences dajop. The more amazing thing is when head up O'r.. st from the airport how many unhired taxis are heading the other way, back to the airport.

The most common argument I get when I mention the direct route is "Time", it's "Quicker" to take the distributor; mostly they are incorrect.

As for the fares, you need to balance the $1.68 per KM (+10% Credit/Cab charge fee) against the 72¢ per minute if the taxi is traveling slowly or stopped.

It's at least 5K longer to take the Eastern Distributor rather than O'Riorden St and Botany Road, so that's a direct $9 saving, It would take an additional 15 minutes travelling at < 30 kph using the shorter route to make the longer routing cost effective.

Note that between 10pm and 6am a 20% surcharge applies to distance so we have over $2 per km; that $9 turns into nearly $11.

More on Sydney Taxi fares here: Maximum Taxi Fares - NSW Ministry of Transport

 

[kpc]

...if you are heading to the international terminal at Syd via the Eastern Distributor, ask to go via the domestic terminal; it is shorter, and whilst there maybe 3-4 traffic lights to negotiate, it is often CHEAPER and usually faster than the other less direct way (via the M5 east)

 

[JohnK]

I don't live in the city but every time I step into a taxi at SYD airport I get asked where I am going. As soon as I say Belmore the taxi driver says "M5?". I just agree and the ride continues.

There is no way that a cab driver can tell me how to get to my destination. I guess that is one of the pluses of knowing the city you live in.

 

[shillard]

"World's greatest city" - pfffffffft.

If I get a hire car from home to NTL, it's $40.

Or I can park in the covered parking area for around $15/day.


In MEL I have a hire car driver that offers rates comparable to cabs in a clean modern vehicle - and no Hindi music or lectures about the plight of the poor cabbie ever since GST came in yadda yadda yadda....

 

[serfty]

The topic is Syd Airport taxis, but in MEL, the SkyBus is a really efficient and cost effective facility.

Max wait between 5am and 11pm is 20 minutes, for most of the day it's 10-15 minutes. Travel regularly and you purchase trip in bulk for $11 each.

 

[Chucksta]

Anyone taken a taxi from QF domestic terminal in SYD recently? How much was the fare to the CBD?

I'm staying at the Hilton in SYD and arriving around midday.

Is Redfern and Orearden the best and cheapest route?

thanks

Chucksta