My un-unique experience getting from delhi airport to my hotel

PeakXV

Bingo! Unless there has been a substantial rate increase very recently ..... you hired one of the "unofficial official" prepaid taxi wallah deals.

It's easy to get side-tracked their with all the hooting and hollering when exiting the airport and most taxi touts will answer "yes right here sir" to your queries as to the exact location of DTP Prepaid.

A good tip no matter what taxi you do manage to get in is - always keep a bit of an intermittent conversation(with a slightly terse overtone) going with the driver - too much silence and the driver may be more inclined to "cook up a surprise" to raise some additional trip revenue.

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Don't go to India ~ Pre-trip Warnings & Misconceptions?

double-dolphin

just stop a local and ask where the hotel is, that would work in calcutta atleast. people here are only too glad to help. or go to the cops, they have their kiosks all over the place. it's generally a good idea to have stuff like route maps with you before you get to a new place. mostly cops feel very very happy when asked to give a cabbie a tough time

julesa

we got ripped of a new jalpaiguiri, having been dropped off by a jeep and picked up by a bicycle rickshaw to take us the last kilometre or so to the train station.

the jeep driver negotiated our fare, and we got the driver to repeat "50 rupees", although he was clearly not happy to discuss the fare ahead of payment. anyway he took us around the long route for about 20 minutes, pedalling his poor heart out and saying something about a traffic accident ahead.

needless to say, when we got off he wouldn't accept 50 rupees. i knew it was a con so i argued, although neither of us understood eachother. i offered 100 rupees and he still wouldn't accept. by this time a crowd had gathered and in trying to discuss the fare, i heard someone say 20 rupees but it was obvious i wouldn't be paying that today.

i'm not sure what you're supposed to do in that situation but i eventually threw my hands in the air as if to give up and walk away, when everyone erupted with "neh neh neh neh" and he reluctantly accepted my 100, or 150 rupees - i can't remember.

what do you do? it's just not worth getting into a fight over 100 rupees. obviously that was his best fare of the day, bar his coming across any further suckers.

Brisso

Had exactly the same scam in the same town - first 20rp then "direct route is closed for festival" - and 60 rp for the long route - I split the differnce and gave 40rp - he seemed only slightly crestfallen

PeakXV

I may have waited till the jeep driver left and negotiated my own fare one-to-one. It eliminates any baksheesh surcharge possiblities & the opportunity for those taxi/rickshaw wallahs, who can become "accidently-on-purpose" forgetful and/or noncomplient given the smallest window of opportunity, to weasel out on the deal.

machadinha

It's funny, one of the few times I really lost it I think was arriving late at night in New Jalpaiguri (going F this and F that, which doesn't earn you much credit with bystanders btw, or better said: It will instantly make you lose any helpful sympathy you might have gotten otherwise.)

It's quite a ride to Siliguri (in that sense, the above times don't strike me as exorbitant, although the prices do -- I'm always surprised with people thinking Rs. 100 is "nothing" anyway, but I don't mean to discuss it here) -- anyway there were no buses anymore and the drivers sure knew it, asking ridiculous prices. You're just in their hands at that time -- and of course as always what I had figured to be "just a short walk" going by my guidebook map was really quite some ways. I'm not at all surprised if it would take a bike rick 20 mins., although I don't think it's worth 100 Rs. You know those guys suffer though.

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ba9rn

It's just possible that the driver did not know where the hotel was (though it does indeed sound like a scam).

When we arrived in Mumbai airport, our prepaid driver got almost to Colaba OK, then started pulling over to ask directions. I suggested that he took us to the Gateway of India, which he said he could find! I remembered (from research) that the Gordon House hotel was behind the Regal Cinema and as soon as I saw that I was able to direct him to the hotel. So my experience was definitely not a scam (though it felt like it initially).

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Brisso

The scam where your fare to Pahargang stalls at CP must be a common one. My experience was that another 50rp suddenly refreshed the driver's memory.

fernandw

i'm in singapore waiting for the delayed flight to take me to New Delhi. I will be taking a prepaid taxi to Paharganj. It will be interesting to see what i will be facing.

Nick-H

Drivers very often don't know where a specific hotel is. Here in Chennai, auto drivers may be from another area, and not know the place you are going to, even though it may be quite central.

Their job is to find out.

If it is like Chennai, with auto stands on many street corners, these guys will give directions. Brotherhood of drivers!

Driver doesn't know where to go? His job to find out. Driver goes the long way round? His problem, not yours.

As to phoning your hotel to get directions, yes that is an excellent idea. Have your hotel phone number with you. Let him call them: On the mobile that he will have in his pocket!

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IndiaMike Mod Team (The Grumpy One)

Britishraj

Steven ber is quite correct. I would have thought by now, most people sould realise either from maps, IM, guide books and info from other travellers that New Delhi Stn. is opp. Main Bazaar. and that all the hotels in the area are within a few minutes 'walking distance.' Because of the numerous hotels in the area you can't expect taxi drivers to know all the hotels. In this respect, its far better as Steven ber suggested, go directly to New Delhi Stn. (lets hope the taxi drivers at the very least know where New Delhi Stn. is. ) and then either take a stroll to find your hotel( location from map ) or you can always take a rickshaw for Rs.10 and without doubt the rickshaw wallaa will know where your hotel is. If there are two of you, I suggest you first go to a some cafe, have yourself a Tim Horton's coffee! to relak. Leave the luggage with the other person and off you go in your own sweet time to locate a hotel. This way the hotel people will see that you are not under pressure to offload a backpack and assume you already have a hotel so possibly quote you the 'real' price. In anycase you will at least be calm, cool and collective.
I think Kullukid has brought to our attention a very valid point, I will make note. Make sure you go to the right prepaid taxi counter at the airport, and dont hand over the receipt till you arrive at your destination.
Without sounding patronising:Reprise;
Look at a map of Paharanganj before you get into a taxi. Once you have establsihed New Delhi Stn. is opp. Main Bazaar its simple to deduct dear Watson that your hotel is either on the left or right..or perhaps down some ally-way, your map will indicate.
Walk Tall.

I intended to give some advice but now I remember how much is left over from last year unused!

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chad

Yes but I told him to just get me to main bazaar and he supposedly couldn't even find that. But he sure knew where that tourist office was.

atala

Taxis cannot enter Paharganj from New Delhi Railway Station during daytime (only from the opposite site), also not Auto-Rickshaws. During night they can enter.

OP arrived at night, at 2 am, so there was hardly anybody around to ask.

Even at night when you can enter Paharganj it would have been hard to find that Hotel (I vaguely know where it is) from a car. Most people there would not know it either, since there are so many budget hotels in the area, and so many side-alleys to get to them.

The only solution here is to book with a hotel that can arrange an airport pick-up.

It is often astounding how little taxi-drivers know their city. Especially night-drivers. I think, but am not sure, that some drivers are students from far away places.

shashank.aggarwal

Its not the case in Delhi...here taxi driving is full time occupation and driver might be knew and chances of him being a student working for substitute incomes are very very remote...

Either the driver is actually not aware about the location, that said I can understand the person not knowing a particular hotel in Main Bazaar, however not knowing where main bazaar is unacceptable under any standards..it definetely means the he is scamming ...

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machadinha

? Unless they've moved, it's right smack-bang in the middle of Main Bazaar, not at all hard to find, and it's been a popular establishment for decades.

Agree with all the other considerations though, and it doesn't guarantee that individual drivers will know it, as stated before on this thread. Anyone wants to make a guess how many hotels all of Delhi has?

Last time I checked their website I think they did offer airport pick-ups btw. I don't know, on my visits there I took either the city or the EATS bus, but some members seem to consider this unwise. To each their own, I guess. I found it cheap and convenient, and a fun and interesting introduction to the city. After an X-hour flight I'm in no particular hurry anyway, just glad to be on the move again.

In any case: Nice to hear from you again, Chad, I'd been wondering where you'd disappeared to. How has India been treating you? Your original post still reads like the classic introduction to India, had me laugh at the time, and still does. I hope it does you, too, in hindsight