Beirut - Post Report Question and Answers
Are local buses, trams, trains or taxis safe and affordable?
USG personnel are limited to using the transportation methods provided to them, additionally movement has been very restricted beyond normal levels over the past year. There are limited opportunities to briefly leave the compound. - Oct 2020
All of these transit options are off limits for USG personnel. - May 2019
Call a taxi, don't hail one. - Jul 2016
Generally, they are both safe and affordable, but some taxi drivers will try to overcharge foreigners. At the beginning, it is better to use a reputable taxi service that you call and book in advance. As you become more comfortable with the routes you take and the way the local taxi and shared van system works, it may be possible to start to use them. The shared vans are very cheap, but they are not always very safe as the drivers careen from one side of the highway to the other trying to pick up and drop off passengers quickly - there are occasional accidents and infrequent casualties from this system. There are no trains that operate. - Feb 2015
There is no good public transportation. There are reputable taxi companies you can use (I like Charlie Taxi) and there are also shared taxis called (service taxis) and mini buses. I often used service taxis with no problem at all. It takes a while to get used to them and to be confident enough to demand the correct price but once you get the hang of it, it's not too bad and really cheap. - Jan 2014
Very safe and very affordable. Buses cost about 80 cents (1250LL). Services (shared taxis) are 2000LL (just over a dollar), although sometimes as a foreigner, the driver will charge you "Service-sen" (2 service fees). - Apr 2012
Again, all transport for the US Embassy is in bodyguard-driven armored cars. Others reported very positive experiences with taxis and intercity buses to the ski slopes, Syria, Jordan, and even Turkey. - Sep 2010
There is no train. Buses are used primarily by poor Lebanese and foreign workers and are generally privately owned. Taxis are prevalent in town, but you have to watch out so you don't get car-jacked in the red-plated ones. Embassy employees can't take any of these, so I don't know the cost. - Jul 2010
Embassy personnel are not allowed to take public transportation. - Jun 2009
Unknown. We can't take public transportation. But I hear buses and taxis are pretty readily available. I don't know how safe they are, though. - Jun 2008
There are buses and taxis. I have no idea of the bus routes though they are very cheap to ride. The taxis during the day are very cheap. - Mar 2008
