Q: We took a taxi to the airport from north of Barcelona. The price meter showed 19 euros when we got to the airport, but the driver lifted the price to 25 euros. Why did he do that? The driver could not speak english so we did not ask him. Have we been cheated?

A: The taxi driver has most probably simply added the supplements which is normal.    Did the taxi driver press a button on the meter to increase the price to add the supplements (this is normal practise) or did he ignore the meter completely and simply request you pay 25 euros (illegal practise) ?  

When you take a taxi ride in Barcelona there is a charge for just the mileage which is the normal meter reading when you finish the journey then the taxi driver needs to add the supplements manually by pressing the supplements buttons on the meter. There are quite a number of different supplements which are added after you arrive and the cab stops. There are supplements for each baggage held in the boot plus a supplement for simply going to the airport. All the supplements are clearly displayed on the back seat windows of every Barcelona Taxi.  If you had 2 baggages in the boot plus the supplement for travelling to the airport it could easily go to 25 euros for the total journey. I therefore do not think you have been cheated. Furthermore the average price for a taxi ride to Barcelona airport from the city centre is around 25 euros.

To learn more about the types of supplements and how much they are please see the following page on our site:

Barcelona taxi supplements