The role of the taxi before a trip

Booking your taxi before a trip takes the most stressful part of flight day off your hands: deciding how and when to get to the airport. With the transfer settled the night before (address, time, terminal, passengers and luggage), the whole countdown is organised around a single fact: the time the taxi comes to pick you up. Everything else, closing the suitcase, checking your documents and shutting up the house, can be done calmly because you know exactly how much time you have.

This guide is not a packing list (for that you have our last-minute preparations before travelling), but a way of organising the hours before your flight with the transfer as the reference point.

Ideally, do not leave the taxi to the last minute, especially if you are flying very early, at busy times of year or with children. How far ahead it is worth doing it is explained in how far in advance to book a taxi to the airport. When you book your airport taxi, have these details to hand:

• Exact pickup address, with the entrance number or a reference point if it is a housing estate or a hotel.
• Terminal or flight number. If you do not know which terminal you are going to, check which Barajas terminal you need to go to.
• Number of passengers and suitcases. For five people or more, or with a lot of luggage, a 7-seater taxi is the right choice.
• Child seat, if you are travelling with young children: tell us their age and we will confirm availability.
• A contact phone number on which you can be reached that morning.

The price is fixed when you book, according to your area: from inside the M-30, €33; the rest are on our fares by area page. You can pay online by card when you book, or pay the driver by card or in cash.

You work backwards from the time of your flight:

1. The time you want to be at the terminal. As a guide, two hours before European flights and three before international ones. If in doubt, in when to get to the airport we explain it by type of flight.
2. Length of the journey. It depends on where you live and the time of day: leaving in the early hours of a Sunday is not the same as on a Monday at rush hour. When you book, ask the dispatch centre what margin it recommends from your address.
3. An extra cushion for the unexpected: a lift that does not come, a traffic jam or a suitcase that will not close.

With those three pieces you have your pickup time. Fix it and organise everything else around it.

Beyond comfort, the taxi has specific advantages on the first leg of any trip:

• Door to door. From your front door to the terminal, with no changes and no stairs with suitcases.
• No parking. You do not have to look for a space at Barajas or pay to leave the car for every day you are away.
• Fixed price. You know what you are going to pay even if there is traffic.
• At any time. A 24-hour service, including for early-morning flights, when public transport is not running or is impractical.
• Time for yourself. The journey stops being a chore: you can make a last call, check your email or simply rest.

Keep these in your bag or rucksack, not in the suitcase that goes in the boot:

• ID card or passport, and a visa if your destination requires one;
• boarding pass (on your phone, charged, or printed);
• your phone charger and any medication you need during the trip;
• your wallet with a card and some cash;
• your cabin liquids already prepared for the security check.

If the outbound taxi saves you stress, the return one saves you even more: you arrive tired, with suitcases and sometimes at odd hours. With airport pickup you give us your flight number, we check the terminal and confirm the meeting point. You can book it at the same time as the outbound journey and forget about it until you come back.