Uber in Tokyo
Aug 5, 2014, 11:10 am
#31
Join Date: Aug 2002
Location: SUV
Programs: UA *G MM
Posts: 7,018
Note that Uber has a default 20% tip in the system for UberTAXI, which you can adjust, so you might want to do that in Japan.
Sep 20, 2014, 3:22 am
#32
Join Date: Sep 2009
Programs: UA GS>1K>Nothing; DL DM 2MM; AS 75K>Nothing>MVP
Posts: 9,341
Tried Uber again today. Apparently the number of cars has increased significantly. Wait was only 5 minutes. In the past it was more like 15. No Taxi or TaxiLux, but I got a black car. It was a very nice nearly brand new Ranger Rover nicely decked out. The fare was about 30% higher than a hailing a taxi on the street.
Also the driver said that some companies in addition to MK have signed up. I also learned that MK has a fixed fare to/from Narita of Yen 17k plus tolls. You have to book this directly through MK. The Uber fixed fare to Narita is higher.
Also the driver said that some companies in addition to MK have signed up. I also learned that MK has a fixed fare to/from Narita of Yen 17k plus tolls. You have to book this directly through MK. The Uber fixed fare to Narita is higher.
Sep 20, 2014, 10:02 am
#33
Join Date: Jan 2003
Location: Yokohama (near HND, TYO)
Programs: meltdowngraded from "F" and "C" , Accor Plt, BW Dia, ihg G, UA 0.9999MM
Posts: 1,569
Sep 21, 2014, 8:25 pm
#34
Join Date: Sep 2009
Location: 1A
Programs: UA GS, NH Diamond, Hyatt Lifetime Globalist (formerly Courtesy Card sadly), Amanjunkie, CLEAR
Posts: 3,713
Tried Uber again today. Apparently the number of cars has increased significantly. Wait was only 5 minutes. In the past it was more like 15. No Taxi or TaxiLux, but I got a black car. It was a very nice nearly brand new Ranger Rover nicely decked out. The fare was about 30% higher than a hailing a taxi on the street.
Also the driver said that some companies in addition to MK have signed up. I also learned that MK has a fixed fare to/from Narita of Yen 17k plus tolls. You have to book this directly through MK. The Uber fixed fare to Narita is higher.
Also the driver said that some companies in addition to MK have signed up. I also learned that MK has a fixed fare to/from Narita of Yen 17k plus tolls. You have to book this directly through MK. The Uber fixed fare to Narita is higher.
Sep 21, 2014, 9:06 pm
#35
Join Date: Sep 2009
Programs: UA GS>1K>Nothing; DL DM 2MM; AS 75K>Nothing>MVP
Posts: 9,341
Feb 5, 2015, 12:07 am
#36
Original Poster
Join Date: Mar 2007
Location: TYO / WAS / NYC
Programs: American Express got a hit man lookin' for me
Posts: 4,596
Uber is now gently pushing the envelope by piloting an UberX-like product in Fukuoka. They are getting around Japanese regulations (I suppose) by offering rides for free in the name of science (!)
http://asia.nikkei.com/Business/Comp...aring-in-Japan
http://asia.nikkei.com/Business/Comp...aring-in-Japan
Feb 5, 2015, 4:20 pm
#37
Moderator, All Nippon Airways and Japan
Join Date: Sep 2005
Location: TYO
Programs: NH SFC (*G), JL JGP (OWE), AS MVP, WOH E, IHG SE
Posts: 3,908
Interesting. I do indeed see one car this morning near Fukuoka operating under the "Minna no Uber" banner -- and it appears to be free.
Mar 5, 2015, 9:57 am
#38
Join Date: Jan 2005
Programs: Dirt
Posts: 949
Uber has been ordered to stop "Everyone's Uber" service in Fukuoka: http://www.bloomberg.com/news/articl...pilot-in-japan
Nov 27, 2015, 1:08 am
#39
Join Date: Mar 2014
Location: SJC/BUR
Programs: Hyatt Diamond, IHG Platinum, Hilton Gold, Club Carlson Gold, Starwood Gold
Posts: 1,088
UberBlack vs UberTaxi
Wondering which will be cheaper in Tokyo for a typical Shinjuku-Shibuya type run... UberBlack or UberTaxi?
UberBlack: BASE FARE ￥103 ￥67 PER MINUTE ￥308 PER KILOMETER
MIN FARE￥823
CANCELLATION FEE ￥1,029
UberTaxi: Use Uber to request and pay for a taxi, at standard taxi meter rates. Dispatch fee varies by taxi company.
My back of the envelope math tells me that UberBlack might be like 10% more expensive, but at night when there's a taxi surcharge they might be about the same. Any insights?
UberBlack: BASE FARE ￥103 ￥67 PER MINUTE ￥308 PER KILOMETER
MIN FARE￥823
CANCELLATION FEE ￥1,029
UberTaxi: Use Uber to request and pay for a taxi, at standard taxi meter rates. Dispatch fee varies by taxi company.
My back of the envelope math tells me that UberBlack might be like 10% more expensive, but at night when there's a taxi surcharge they might be about the same. Any insights?
Nov 29, 2015, 3:20 am
#40
Original Poster
Join Date: Mar 2007
Location: TYO / WAS / NYC
Programs: American Express got a hit man lookin' for me
Posts: 4,596
Generally, yes. You have to be careful because they do surge pricing now in Tokyo. It isn't always in effect late at night, but I have seen it a couple of times and it drives up the UberBlack rate to something like 1.8x normal levels, obviously way more expensive than a taxi with the late night surcharge.
edited to add: It's just after 5 pm on a Monday evening and Uber is currently surge pricing at 1.9x. The app quotes 3,000-4,000 yen to get from Ebisu to Aoyama 1-chome, more than twice the usual taxi fare. It's not like this is a difficult time to find a taxi on the street either.
edited again to add: Now it's 8 pm on a Wednesday, drizzling rain, and they are charging 2.8x! That's a flag drop of 2,300 yen!
edited to add: It's just after 5 pm on a Monday evening and Uber is currently surge pricing at 1.9x. The app quotes 3,000-4,000 yen to get from Ebisu to Aoyama 1-chome, more than twice the usual taxi fare. It's not like this is a difficult time to find a taxi on the street either.
edited again to add: Now it's 8 pm on a Wednesday, drizzling rain, and they are charging 2.8x! That's a flag drop of 2,300 yen!
Last edited by joejones; Dec 2, 2015 at 4:05 am
Dec 7, 2015, 1:35 am
#41
Join Date: Mar 2014
Location: SJC/BUR
Programs: Hyatt Diamond, IHG Platinum, Hilton Gold, Club Carlson Gold, Starwood Gold
Posts: 1,088
Interesting about the surge. I guess money talks. Obviously 1.8x had too many people going 'yes, please!'
Another thing that makes Uber in TYO deceptively expensive is street speeds.
Forgive me if this is too nerdy, but I've crunched some numbers on my Ubers in different cities and how fast the cars are actually moving.
LAX = 18 mph
SFO = 13 mph
TYO = 7 mph (and I don't remember any of these Ubers being in the rain)
NYC = 6 mph
These aren't airport trips, of course. No highway. Surface streets.
Who says there's traffic in Los Angeles?
Another thing that makes Uber in TYO deceptively expensive is street speeds.
Forgive me if this is too nerdy, but I've crunched some numbers on my Ubers in different cities and how fast the cars are actually moving.
LAX = 18 mph
SFO = 13 mph
TYO = 7 mph (and I don't remember any of these Ubers being in the rain)
NYC = 6 mph
These aren't airport trips, of course. No highway. Surface streets.
Who says there's traffic in Los Angeles?
Dec 8, 2015, 4:38 am
#42
Join Date: Sep 2009
Programs: UA GS>1K>Nothing; DL DM 2MM; AS 75K>Nothing>MVP
Posts: 9,341
Interesting about the surge. I guess money talks. Obviously 1.8x had too many people going 'yes, please!'
Another thing that makes Uber in TYO deceptively expensive is street speeds.
Forgive me if this is too nerdy, but I've crunched some numbers on my Ubers in different cities and how fast the cars are actually moving.
LAX = 18 mph
SFO = 13 mph
TYO = 7 mph (and I don't remember any of these Ubers being in the rain)
NYC = 6 mph
These aren't airport trips, of course. No highway. Surface streets.
Who says there's traffic in Los Angeles?
Another thing that makes Uber in TYO deceptively expensive is street speeds.
Forgive me if this is too nerdy, but I've crunched some numbers on my Ubers in different cities and how fast the cars are actually moving.
LAX = 18 mph
SFO = 13 mph
TYO = 7 mph (and I don't remember any of these Ubers being in the rain)
NYC = 6 mph
These aren't airport trips, of course. No highway. Surface streets.
Who says there's traffic in Los Angeles?
Dec 8, 2015, 6:49 am
#44
Original Poster
Join Date: Mar 2007
Location: TYO / WAS / NYC
Programs: American Express got a hit man lookin' for me
Posts: 4,596
I suppose Uber might be more comfortable if you are lucky enough to get one of their bigger cars, but taxis offer a significantly lower fixed rate from the airport, and most nowadays will accept credit cards.
Compare:
Taxi: http://www.taxi-tokyo.or.jp/teigaku/from.html
Uber: https://www.uber.com/cities/tokyo (scroll to bottom)
Compare:
Taxi: http://www.taxi-tokyo.or.jp/teigaku/from.html
Uber: https://www.uber.com/cities/tokyo (scroll to bottom)
