Is it better to pay taxis in Aruba with cash, or do drivers accept cards or payment apps?
My cab ride from the cruise pier turned into a surprise when the driver shook his head at my attempt to pay with Visa. He only wanted AWG. Cash is still the default for Aruba taxis. I ended up booking the same route later via Uber Aruba, and was able to pay with Amex one time (rare!), though I usually used Mastercard through the app. Summary: street taxis = cash; app rides = card.
I tried paying with my Citibank Mastercard at a San Nicolas taxi - driver refused it; no POS available. Taxi services in Aruba are still largely cash-only. Only airport shuttles and some modern fleets tied to beach hotels offered POS. I used SUNdollar CarShare once with card, but for most rides I kept AWG 100 in my pocket. Easy fix: plan ahead and know which services let you pay digitally.
During my two-week work sabbatical, I used apps like AppTaxi and Aruba’s version of Uber - it let me pay via my Chase Visa linked to the app. But for street taxis, cash was still king. In-app taxi payments in Aruba work fine, but impromptu rides demand cash. I always carried around AWG 100 in bills for emergency pickups. In short: app-based rides work with card, but street cabs do not.
Every taxi I flagged by Eagle Beach only accepted cash - no card machines visible in the cabs. Taxi payments in Aruba are overwhelmingly in Aruban florins or USD cash. One driver mentioned they were experimenting with a POS terminal in Oranjestad, but it didn’t work when I tried. I always kept AWG 50-70 on me for resort transfers. If you download the local AppTaxi or Uber Aruba, only pre-booked rides accept card - but street cabs don’t. Cash keeps the exchanges smooth and fair.