General Havana Information - Real Havana: Explore Cuba Like a Local and Save Money - page 97

By far, the cheapest taxi options in Havana are the privately owned taxis called
taxis particulares . As mentioned earlier, these are the old American cars, from the
1950's or 60's, which are used as communal taxis. These taxis will not drop you
off directly at your destination; they simply follow routes, like buses. You can get
on and get off at any point along the way. The cost to use these taxis is a flat
price of 10 pesos (MN), per person, for any routes inside the city.
Learning to use the taxis particulares will not only improve your understanding of
the city and allow you to experience authentic Cuban transportation; it will also
save you tons of money . I explain the most common taxi routes below, in the
section Havana Taxi Particular Route s .
Interesting Fact: In the city of Havana, state-operated taxis are commonly referred
to by locals as Cinco Cinco taxis, which means “five five” taxis. They are given
this name because the telephone number to reserve a taxi in Havana is 855
5555. As a tourist I would not recommend reserving a state taxi ahead of time,
considering it is so easy to find one in almost any location.