'Getting to and from the airport' Transportation

Elaine (1) from Ireland (Contact Member) - 06/07/09 16:32

Can anyone tell me the best way to get from downtown Montevideo to the airport and back again? without a car obviously....

I have a guide to the buses in Montevideo but Carrasco airport seems to be just beyond its boundaries. Are there any normal buses that go there? and where can I take them from?

Also I heard someone mentioning a cheap airport taxi with a fixed fare...is that to go TO or FROM the airport and how much is it?

Comment #1 Patrick from Rural east Colonia departmento (Contact Member) - 06/15/09 22:07

From the airport can be the expensive half of the journey as the airport cabs are much more luxy/roomy that the cramped MVD cabs.

OTOH if you find an MVD taxi offering reasonable rates to Carrasco, you could probably exude some charm and negotiate a good return rate too :-)

Patrick.

Comment #2 Lee from Pocitos (Contact Member) - 06/16/09 07:05

If I go to the airport to pick someone up, I take an MVD cab to the airport have him wait and return. The total cost for that and a tip for the driver is less than just the cost of an airport taxi to MVD (Pocitos). Sometime they turn off the meter while waiting.

The Pocitos Plaza Hotel advertises some buses that cost US$2.50.

Comment #3 Tips on Uruguay from Montevideo (Contact Member) - 06/17/09 14:20

The DM1 bus goes from Tres Cruces bus terminal and drops you right outside the terminal in Carrasco Airport. I think it leaves every 15 or 20 minutes so I think its the best way of getting there.

Taxi's from the city to the airport are cheap enough (about 300pesos, 10-12 dollars). However returning is another story because the airport is in a different "departamento" of Cannelones and the taxis are much more fancy and therefore charge MUCH more.

There is a bus, I think its the 706 (Copsa Company) and it also goes from the airport to Tres Cruces for 25 pesos.

Hope this helps

Comment #4 Elaine (1) from Ireland (Contact Member) - 07/02/09 16:14

I also just realized that the easiest way to probably have checked this was go to the tres cruces website. If you search Montevideo to Aeropuerto it tells you what companies leave at what times and the journey is only 25minutes.

*be warned that on Sundays not all the bus times listed are running, I've been caught off guard by that one before! Its best to ring to company to double check (phone numbers are beside the times listed when you search)

• Tres Cruces Bus Station: Search Routes and Departure Times

Comment #5 Expat In Uruguay from UK (Contact Member) - 02/23/10 08:31

"DM1 bus to the airport"

Some people might find the DM1 bus the most convenient as it makes stops in Pocitos so you don't have to go to Tres Cruces to catch it.

It stops at Ellauri and Hector Miranda (at the stop directly in front of Punta Carretas Shopping), at Rambla Mahatma Ghandi and Solano Antuna, at Rambla Peru and Manuel Pagola, and on Avenida Luis A. de Herrera and Placido Ellauri (in front of Montevideo Shopping)...there are many other stops but these will probably be the most relevant for expats or tourists. It drives in to Carrasco airport right up to the door.

To see timetable go the the CUTSCA website (link below), click "productos y servicios", then "servicios diferenciales" and then DM1. You see their Mon-Fri hours and their Saturday hours. It doesn't seem to run on a Sunday.

• CUTSCA Bus Company Website

Comment #6 Dan from Norwalk, CT (Contact Member) - 02/24/10 15:08

"cost of airport cabs "

The airport official website has a link to the company that owns the cabs servicing the airport, which lists the fares... It's $650 (uruguayan pesos) from Carrasco to Pocitos. This is like U$32 for a 15-20 min ride... Kind of expensive, if you ask me, considering the distance.

Comment #7 Patrick from Rural east Colonia departmento (Contact Member) - 02/25/10 13:12

"Airport taxis"

Airport taxis seem to be expensive everywhere but the ones at Carrasco airport are like cut-price cats compared with the not-so-jolly pirates you meet at the international airport at Buenos Aires. The last time I tried to negotiate a price with one of them I had to explain that I only wanted to ride in his cab... not buy it :-)

Comment #8 Dan from Norwalk, CT (Contact Member) - 02/26/10 15:07

""Airport Taxis" "

^

LOL!!! :-)) (it's "robo a mano armada", as the saying goes!)

Comment #9 Doug (1) from Montevideo (Contact Member) - 02/26/10 20:52

"Call 141"

When arriving into MVD call for a Montevideo radio taxi (#141). The dispatcher will ask for your name and give you a cab number. Tell them you'll be waiting outside of "Llegadas Internacionales". You may have to wait 10 or 15 minutes but the rate is between U$10 and $15 as opposed to U$30-35 when you pay for one of the white airport taxis.

Going to the airport WITH BAGS...? Forget the bus. Take a radio taxi back for the same U$10-15 rate.

Comment #10 Dan Wetherbee from Denver, Colorado (Contact Member) - 04/30/10 11:31

"Cheaper Taxi rides from airport"

Here's what I have experienced in traveling to and from the airport.

Althoufh BUSES are definitely cheaper at 25 pesos (about $1.25 USD) there are many drawbacks, such as schedules, bus stop locations, longer traveling time, and carrying suitcases (especially if it is a full bus). For those who want to try the bus, there are buses originating and terminating at the Tres Cruces and Rio Brancho terminals. There is also a very cool Montevideo web site (attached) which will identify which buses routes connect whatever destination and origination points you mark on their map. For me, if I cannot find a dirct bus it is not worth the time and hassle of going to one of the bus terminals and transferring.

TAXIS FROM the airport (unmarked vehicles) to the city charge around 600 pesos (about $32.00 USD) which I consider expensive (highway robbery comes to mind). I just learned (as Doug (1) from Montevideo reported) you can dial 141 and have a local taxi (black & yellow vehicles) pick you up at the airport. No phone? I have been told you can also go to the upstairs ARRIVALS area and simply grab a cab that is dropping someone off. I asked a cab driver and an airport security guard if this was true and both confirmed it as OK but I have not personally done it yet. Sounds like a good way to select a cab large enough to carry however many suitcases we may have.

We have friends arriving on Monday. I plan to take the DM1 bus to the airport and see if we cannot catch a cab dropping people off for the return trip.

I wonder, has anyone ever tried to negotiate a flat rate with a local taxi?

• Bus Routes (Montevideo) online

Comment #11 Yenka from Montevideo (Contact Member) - 04/30/10 11:59

"Taxi from the airport"

In April it began to levy a new tax on taxis from the airport ... yes ... if they seemed expensive, now add 80 pesos to one who knows that tax!

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