This weekend I had my first opportunity to ride on the water taxi in Rotterdam.  I had seen these blue boats with yellow roofs buzzing across the water plenty of times but had never ridden on one myself.  It was fantastic!  Not only was it loads of fun but it was really convenient as well.  A trip from the Euromast to the Luxor theatre, for example, took only four minutes.

If you want venture out on a water taxi yourself, you would do well to take a look at the water taxi website as all the information you need is available there, including a map of the departure/arrival locations.  If you use their “calculate rate” option on the website be sure to add 7.5% to the price for the increased fuel surcharge.  You’ll also need to bring cash along to pay for the ride.

When it comes to reserving a water taxi you have two main options.

Reserving a Water Taxi

This is the best option when you really need to be somewhere at a specific time or if you have a group of people that need to ride at the same time.  You can reserve a water taxi online or via the telephone.  The online process is really simple, you just fill out a small form on the website including where you want to go from and to, the number of people in your party and what time you wish to be picked up.  You will after a short wait receive a booking confirmation that confirms your booking, provides the price of the trip and explains about making payment.

When you reserve a water taxi, you are subject to fee if you are late.  At the moment this is one Euro per minute that you are late, so it is well worth being on time!  You will also be subject to a five Euro reservation fee but to ensure that your taxis are bobbing in the water waiting for your arrival, I think it is well worth it.

Calling a Water Taxi on the Spot

You don’t have to have a reservation to use the water taxi in Rotterdam.  To call one on the spot you just head down to your departing location and there you will find a sign with a telephone number and the name/number of the location that you are at.  When you call the number you will be able to say where you are, where you want to go and how many people there are with you.

The cost for one person travelling alone is significantly higher than if you are travelling with a group and there is a chance that you will have to wait some time for a taxi to become available but if you don’t want to reserve the taxi in advance, this option can work for you.

Have you ridden on a water taxi?