or must you hail them all in the street?
If you want a yellow cab, you have to hail them in the street.If you want a livery cab, you have to call the livery s cab company first, give them your location, and the cab will come and take you to wherever you need to go.
There are two different classes of taxi cabs in NYC:Yellow cabs which must be hailed from the street. With a yellow cab, the cost is determined by a meter that counts both the distance and the time traveled (also certain surcharges can apply that are added on by the meter.)orCar Services which look like ordinary cars but are licensed to pick up passengers. Car services are not allowed to stop for passengers on the street (though sometimes they break this rule in the outer boroughs) but must be called by phone to get them to come. Some are very luxurious and cater to mostly people who work in upper level jobs in the financial district (these are often called black cars ) others are more ordinary looking cars. Car services charge a set fee that must be negotiated by the passenger. As when you call or when you first get into the car what the charge will be. It is customary to tip in both yellow cabs and in car services.EDIT: in response to what some other people have written, the term Gypsy Cabs applies to car services that illegally stop for passengers in the outer boroughs, as I mentioned above. But they are the same thing as the car services that you call. They are, in fact, the very same companies! They are just doing something illegal. As for staying in a hotel - the doorman at the hotel is responsible for hailing a cab for you, and will gladly do so. At larger hotels in central locations, this shouldn t be a problem at all. I don t know about some of the small hotels in more marginal areas that have sprung up lately. And, of course, in any borough other than Manhattan, it is basically impossible to hail a yellow cab. If you stay in Brooklyn or Queens (for example) you will need to call a car service. The car services are usually pretty reliable, however.
You can do both. In Manhattan, there are yellow cabs everywhere that you can hail on the street. In the outer boroughs it s mostly gypsy cabs and car services. Gypsy cabs you can just hail; car services you call in advance and tell them where you are and where you need to go. *Insider tip for you: If you re in Manhattan and having a hard time catching a cab, go into a nice hotel (The Marriott in Times Square, for example) and come out as if you re staying there. The doorman will hail a cab for you. (Lots of yellow cabs go to hotels first.)
If you want to take a yellow cab, you will need to hail them in the street.If you need to arrange ride, and don t want to hail a yellow cab, you will need to call a car service. May I recommend two of the best in the city.Carmel Car Service, which you can call by dialing 1-212-666-6666 or toll free at 1-800-922-7635.Dial 7 Car and Limo Service, which you can call by dialing 1-212-777-7777 or toll free at 1-800-777-8888.I hope this information is very very helpful.Good luck
I ll just add one thought to CrysV s suggestion: if you do go into a hotel, you will be expected to give the doorman a tip for hailing a cab for you. Also, they keep a close eye on who goes in and out, and may see through your deception. Of course offering a tip when you ask for a cab will smooth things over...
hail them, they are all over the place
Hail them!