Taxi! The low-down on Australian cabs

We have got into the habit of always catching a taxi from the airport where ever we land now in an Australia city (unless we have a hire car), as is always the easiest option, I think, that will take you (and not all the other people on the transfer bus first!) direct to your accommodation — which after a long, long flight is really all you can think about.

At Sydney airport, for example, the taxi rank is all very civilised, with an orderly queue and attendants there to help you — if you have children with you they will make sure that you have a cab with a 'capsule' (car seat) for example.

We have never had a problem catching a cab when arriving in Sydney.

The fare into the middle of the city is around AUD$30 dollars, which is pretty reasonable, I think (when you compare how far £13 wouldn't get you in London taxi for example!).

We also found it relatively easy to catch taxis around and about in Sydney, which we used quite a lot more on our most recent trip with Alex, as you don't always want to be getting on and off trains and buses with a baby (or least I can't be doing with it!). And to zip across one side of town to the other never costs more than $10 or so (a fiver or less) so always seems a perfectly acceptable cost to me.

Taxis in Australia are typically all either good size sedans or estate cars, and most have air con. There have only been 2 exceptions to our great taxi experiences across Australia:

• The first was in Melbourne, when having arrived at the airport very late at night after a flight from Cairns, we had possibly an ex-rally driver hurtle us to St Kilda at break-neck speed (rather alarming and was glad the roads were empty!). All other cabs we caugh tin Melbourne understood the speed limit (don't worry!).
• The second was the challenge of trying to find a taxi in the rain in Sydney. Now I am not talking a bit of a shower here, I am talking torrential downpour which, while we were having lunch was fine (we were inside), but once we thought — 'hmm, better be heading back to the hotel now we have a plane to catch later' became mission impossible to find a taxi! When we eventually found a taxi (I think by this point I was resorting to practically leaping onto any passing taxi going slow enough), we just made it to the hotel to grab our suitcases (I stayed in the cab to make sure we kept it!), and then with minutes (literally) to spare we arrived at the airport totally drenched through for our flight to Perth. I will love the Qantas check-in staff for ever for letting us open up our cases and pick out dry outfits to wear on the 5-hour flight, even though we only just made it to check in on time.

So, in summary, my point is — catch taxis — they are usually readily available, affordable, direct and more often than not the drivers are friendly. Just don't always bank on catching one in the rain!