What are the taxi options at Puerto Vallarta airport?

Question

I'm arriving at Puerto Vallarta (PVR) airport soon and would like to take a taxi. What are my options?

Answer 1

Official airport taxi

After you exit customs and go past the numerous taxi touts, there's an office selling "official" taxi trips. You can pay in cash (MXN/USD) or by credit card. After pre-paying, you get a slip that you give to the taxi driver outside after waiting in line. The rates are posted on this website and are about 2x more expensive than Uber.

When I arrived in December 2023 the official taxi line was quite chaotic and we've waited for 15 minutes outside in the sun. But there's probably less busy times when the wait times are lower.

Uber

Due to the presence of a "taxi mafia" at the airport, Uber drivers are not allowed to pick up passengers from the terminal. Instead, you must cross over the pedestrian bridge in the south-east corner of the airport to get to the Uber pickup spot. The bridge is wheelchair-friendly and thus it's not too hard to cross over it with suitcases.

When going back to the airport, Uber is allowed to drop you off directly at the terminal. Overall I'd say this is a superior option to the "official" taxi unless you have a lot of luggage.

InDrive and Didi

As per Reddit, the most popular local taxi apps are InDrive and Didi but I haven't tried them during my stay. If Uber doesn't work for you for some reason, I'd give them a try.

Answer 2

Unsurprisingly, the airport website recommends not hiring a taxi or any other means of transportation outside the airport terminal for security reasons. The real reason is that they try to protect the taxi companies that pay them big bucks for rental space, but in the end, it's your pocket from where that money comes from. I would recommend not hiring a taxi at the airport, street taxis are not insecure or unsafe, they may sometimes try to scam tourists charging a higher rate, but you can always negotiate the rate beforehand. UBER and Didi are also great options, with the advantage that rates are shown in the APP right from the start. Whether you choose a street taxi or UBER, you will have to cross the pedestrian bridge to the other side of the road, as the "Guardia Nacional" Police, won't allow them to pick you up from the curbside. It is easier when flying back home, as you can hire any kind of transportation, and they are allowed to drop you off right at the terminal curbside.