Refused Transport On Miami Taxi (“Your Ride Ain’t Long Enough”)

After docking in Miami and clearing US immigration and customs, we stepped out of the cruise port in hopes of grabbing a taxi to our nearby hotel. But after two drivers refused to transport us when they found we were only going to a hotel less than two miles away, we ended up resorting to Uber.

Miami Taxi Drivers Don’t Like Short Rides

The immigration process into Miami was tedious, with only two agents clearing a boatful of passengers (thank goodness there were only 700 passengers onboard, not 5,000…).

When we finally got through that line, we stepped outside where taxis were lined up waiting to transport folks to the airport or their hotels. I’d imagine that many of these guys (and they were all men) had been waiting hours for a ride. So yes, the prospect of only diving 1.8 miles around the corner to the Hyatt Regency was understandably not savory.

I got into the first car and the driver asked me where I was going and I told him.

He shook his head and said no.

While I could have yelled at him or refused to get out of the car, I had no desire to subject my son to an angry driver in a city I was not familiar with.

The second driver was nicer about it, but he laughed and said, “Your ride ain’t long enough” and refused to even open the car door for me.

That’s not how taxis should work…taxis are given preferential privilege to transport folks and part of the licensing requirements should be that they cannot turn down a short ride if they want to enjoy access to places like the Port of Miami.

And by that point, I realized why I despise taxis more than Uber.

I know it’s a horrible life to be a cab driver…your core business has been eaten by Uber and Lyft and when you wait around all day for a ride, a $10 ride is heartbreaking. But if you don’t like the profession, there are other jobs available… especially in a city like Miami.

So I took an Uber to the Hyatt Regency. Not only did I save money, but the Venezuelan driver was far more pleasant.

Bottom line: taxi drivers are going to act like taxi drivers and this situation is not unique to Miami. There’s a reason why people dislike cabbies as I was certainly reminded here.