I usually opt for public transit into the city when I land at an airport, but my flight to Boston was scheduled to arrive late in the evening and a cab or some sort of car service was going to be the only option for getting to the place I’d be staying that night.
I could have taken my chances and tried to book an Uber-type ride once I landed, but I decided to book ahead and take Blacklane up on its offer to try out their service.
The Berlin-based on-line ride booking service uses professional drivers, partners with established chauffeur services, operates in more than 180 cities around the world and offers service to and from more than 300 airports.
Reservations can be made in advance, the fare is fixed and includes taxes, tolls and tip.
As promised – and reconfirmed via email before my trip started and again when my flight landed (with the name and phone number of my driver) – my driver, a veteran of the industry who had been Anthony Quinn’s regular Boston driver back in the day – was waiting for me in a town car in the spot designated for limos outside my terminal at Boston Logan Airport.
I quizzed him on the way into town.
Had he tried offering his services via any of the Uber-like companies?
Yes, he said, but no more.
He didn’t like the high fee those companies took as a booking fee for each ride and he’d had experiences with customers from those companies who disrespected him and his extremely well-maintained car.
Of all the companies now offering book-online car services – and there are now oodles of them – what did he like about working with Blacklane?
They were fair and super-organized, he said, and only worked with professional drivers. And he marveled at the fact that they were running this world-wide business out of one office in Germany and yet, day or night, kept in close contact with each driver and fully accessible to customers.
If my personal budget for airport transportation was a bit larger, I’d definitely use Blacklane’s service on a regular basis. (The fare was about $15 more than I’d have paid for a cab and, given some of the news reports lately, I would not have taken an Uber-like service alone, late at night heading to an unfamiliar destination).
But, I’m putting the Blacklane website into my list of favorites and will definitely add them to the options I consider in the future when a bus or a train isn’t an option for getting into town from the airport.
And I’m happy to pass along the discount code they gave me – 9JMT1SQC – for $10 off one ride.
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Yes, T does go quite late, but I was headed 5 miles beyond a T stop.
Having grown up in the Boston suburbs and attended college in the city, I’m guessing your arrival must have been really late. I thought the T ran until at least 1 AM. (At least it did 30+ years ago when I was a student.)
It is nice to have another option though, and their price from BOS to my home town is comparable to the limousine service my parents regularly use. Thanks for the tip!