Beirut Airport
As featured in the article Beirut Airport Transfers
Arrival at Beirut Airport
If you arrive to Lebanon by air, you will certainly arrive at Beirut International Airport (Rafik Hariri International Airport).
Beirut Airport Service
At your arrival, enjoy the rapid service of the Internal Security System, and watch how fast you pass the airport formalities. It’s in the Lebanese blood to be impatient, and you feel the officers waiting to print the “arrival” stamp on your passport more impatient than you are.
Beirut Airport Taxis
If you have booked a taxi agency to pick you up at the airport, they will most certainly be waiting for you with your name outside. If you have rented a car, the car rental agency personnel will be waiting for you in the same fashion. As an alternative, if you are on your own, you can take one of the airport taxis (taxis with airport logo on the side) which are parked next to the terminal at the arrival gate. These are regulated by the airport authorities, and they have a unified official rate. If you want to be completely on your own, and you go out of the airport, tens of taxis will be passing by at each step, waiting for a sign to ask you if you want a ride. If you decide to take one of these, you will most probably have to convene with the taxi driver on the appropriate fare that he will charge you for the ride.
Beirut Airport Taxi Transfer Prices
There are no set prices for taxi transfers that you pick up out of the airport, and there are no taxi meters, so the tariff that you will be charged depends on you and on the taxi driver, thus you have to tell the taxi driver where you are going, and ask him how much he will charge you for the ride, but another alternative is to tell him where you are going and give him the price you expect to pay, and as an alternative in the middle, he can give you a price and you can bargain. As a rough estimate, if you’re going inside Beirut, begin your bargaining with 10$ and reach 15$ as a maximum, and if you’re going within a range of 25km from the capital, begin your bargaining with 20$ and reach 30$ as a maximum.
Taxi Service Alternative
An alternative to taxis is what is called “service” which are shared taxi cars. These charge 1$ per passenger for the ride, but they operate within fixed perimeters, thus if you’re going much farther from your initial departure point, you may have to take 2 or more taxi “service” rides. Service Taxis usually do not operate directly outside of the airport, and you will have to walk a distance of 300 to 500 meters before you can find anyone, or better said, before they can find you. If you’re travelling alone, and if you’re going anywhere inside Beirut, this could be a viable solution for your transfer since they cost much less than taxis, but they do not deposit you exactly where you’re going, and you may have to walk some distance after they deposit you. The way to proceed with service taxis is to first make it clear for the taxi driver that you are not hiring him as a taxi, but as a service. They usually approach you when they see you waiting on the street, and you have to tell them where you’re going, they either ask you to jump in, or they go their way without further looking at you. Another way to make sure that you’re dealing with a service taxi is to make sure there is at least another passenger in the car when they pick you up, and pay him directly when you jump in the car, this way you will avoid unpleasant surprises and discussions at your destination.
Beirut Airport Public Transportation
A final alternative is to take a public transportation bus, but this alternative will be discussed in another article “Public Transportation at your arrival in Lebanon”.
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