Spanish phrases for taxis in Mexico City, airport included

The Spanish phrases for a taxi in Mexico City that matter most are not the ones for hailing a car. They are the ones that get you to the right colonia, confirm you are in the right car, and settle the fare before it moves. There are four kinds of ride, and each starts with a different first line.

The UK advises the better regulated "sitio" taxis from authorised taxi ranks, or asking your hotel to order one: ¿Me puede pedir un taxi de sitio, por favor? Canada adds that taxis from designated stands carry a company logo and the plate number on the side. For a radio taxi, the city's tourism page says the dispatcher can tell you the number and type of car before it arrives: ¿Qué número de taxi es, y qué carro?

Mexico City's airport (AICM) tells passengers to use only the authorised taxis at the international and domestic exits of both terminals, and publishes the list of authorised companies. You pay at a sales point before you reach the car.

1. Find the sales point. ¿Dónde venden los boletos de taxi?
2. Give the colonia first, then show the full address on your phone. Un taxi a la colonia Juárez, por favor. The airport's rules speak of a zona de destino, a destination zone; the colonia is the quickest way to name one.
3. Ask the price, and about discounts. In June 2026 the airport announced discounts of 5% to 50% proposed by the taxi groups, with the table to be displayed at the sales points. Days later Nueva Imagen, Porto Taxi and Sitio 300 said they would not apply any discount. Asking costs nothing: ¿Cuánto es a esta dirección? ¿Tienen algún descuento?
4. Pay at the counter. Canada says that to pay an airport taxi by card, it is safer to book and pre-pay inside the terminal or at the designated boarding area. ¿Aceptan tarjeta?
5. Keep the boleto. The airport's rules for authorised taxis define it as the receipt for the service and for your rights as a user, and require drivers to display their Tarjetón de Identificación on the dashboard. Then: ¿Dónde se toma el taxi?

Item H on the same list forbids drivers to enter the terminal walkways to offer the service, so a driver who approaches you in the hall is breaking the rules: No, gracias. Forget the usual advice to insist on the meter: here the boleto fixes the fare.

Last checked 20 October 2026, against reports from March to July 2026. The airport's position, as Crónica reported it, is that app platforms "no cuentan con autorización para operar dentro de la zona federal", so you leave the terminal building and walk to a pickup point on the road. The details keep changing:

The rule: follow the pickup pin in the app, not an article, and allow time to walk with your bags. If the driver messages or calls:

• Ya voy saliendo. Llego en cinco minutos. — I'm on my way out. Five minutes.
• Estoy en el punto, junto a … — I'm at the pickup point, next to …
• Llevo una maleta negra y una chamarra roja. — Black suitcase, red jacket. Chamarra is Mexican for jacket.
• No lo encuentro. ¿Me manda su ubicación? — I can't find you. Can you send your location?

If the walk with luggage is the problem, the airport also points to Metrobús Line 4, which links both terminals with the Centro Histórico and Reforma for 30 pesos, from 4:30 (5:00 on Sundays) to midnight.

Uber's Mexico page asks you to check the plate number, the make and model, and the driver's photo. For the letter names on Sheet 2, more in the five Spanish sounds that give you away.

For a street taxi, the city's tourism page sets three tests: the plate starts with A or B and matches the number painted outside, the carta de identificación is displayed inside, and the driver matches its photo. It adds that taxis not yet in the pink-and-white paint are likely to be the least regulated. If the ID is missing: ¿Me enseña su identificación, por favor? If the answer is vague, No, gracias.

A colonia is, in El Colegio de México's dictionary, one of the urban zones that form around the centre of a city.

Entre … y … names the two streets at either end of your block. It is not in the postal format on Sheet 3, so ask your host for it before you travel: ¿Entre qué calles está?

With the read-back template, leave out what you don't have, and show the written address on your phone as well.

If treinta and trece still need a second's thought, the numbers in starting Spanish from zero come first.

In a street taxi, ask first: ¿Puede poner el taxímetro? The city's page says daytime fares run on the meter and increase by 20% between 11pm and 6am. The page is undated, so treat it as a guide.

Canada warns that credit card fraud occurs in taxis hailed on the street, including licensed ones, and advises small bills rather than a card inside a taxi. If you only have a large note, ask before the ride: ¿Tiene cambio?

The UK notes that unlicensed taxi drivers have robbed and assaulted passengers, including in Mexico City, and Canada that thieves often work in cooperation with, or pose as, taxi drivers. To end a ride early, keep the Spanish short: Pare aquí, por favor. Me bajo aquí. / Esta no es la ruta. / Voy a llamar al 911.

The emergency number is 911, and the Mexico City Tourist Police are on +52 55 5207 4155 (WhatsApp +52 55 4891 1166). Uber Mexico has trip sharing with trusted contacts and a button to call local authorities. DiDi has live location sharing, a 911 button that connects to the police, and optional audio recording.

Lonely Planet's Mexican Spanish phrasebook is written for Mexico, is in a 7th edition from September 2026, and comes with a pull-out fast-phrases card. If Mexico is one stop of several, the Latin American Spanish edition adds a "Listen For" feature: phrases you may hear. That is the half of a taxi ride a phrase card cannot give you.