Italians use both the word tassì and the actual English word taxi when asking for a taxi cab. Phrases you can use are: ho bisogno di un tassì (oh biz-onyo di oon tassee) or mi serve un tassì (mee ser-vey oon tassee) which both mean, 'I need a taxi'.
To ask for someone to 'please call me a taxi', you would say mi chiama un tassì per favore (mee kyama oon tassee per favoray).
Taxi Tips
Most licensed taxis in Italy are either white or yellow, and in most major cities there is an abundance of taxi ranks catering to the tourist trade. As with any tourist hotspot, its always recommended that your taxi's meter is running or that a fare has been agreed with the driver at the beginning of your journey.
Buckling your seatbelt is a very good idea when getting into the back of an Italian taxi as many drivers in Italy, taxi drivers included, have very little regard for speed limits - and laws of the road are often viewed as more of a 'set of loose guidelines'.
Other useful phrases
Here's a quick round up of useful vocabulary you may find useful on taxi journeys:
- Alla stazione is 'to the station' - using alla (or all' if followed by a vowel) and your destination is the quickest way to tell a driver where you'd like to go.
- Via is the Italian word for 'street', but is also the word for 'go!'
- Tariffa is the dreaded word for 'fare'.
- Veloce is Italian for 'fast' and Piano is the word for slow.
- a destra is 'to the right' and a sinistra is to the left.
- Fermare is the verb to stop, and qua va bene means 'Here is OK'.
