laBlaCar is a major carpooling service that links drivers with passengers headed in the same direction. It’s ideal for travellers looking for a taxi alternative, who want to reduce their expenses by sharing the cost of the journey. The platform was developed in Paris, France, by Frédéric Mazzella. Being used in 22 countries, BlaBlaCar is more like a global community of more than 1000 million drivers and passengers. It’s safe and easy to use — read on to find out everything you need to know about this service, its phone booking app, and how to find and arrange a ride.
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What Do BlaBlaCar Offer?
Planning on going to another city or country by yourself and looking for a simple way to cut your costs? Buses are affordable but often packed, slow, and inconvenient, while private transfers are usually expensive. So, BlaBlaCar is here to help you find a middle ground! This world-leading carpooling platform allows you to quickly find a driver or passenger who’s travelling the same way and is happy to share the cost. Apart from money, you’ll save time and maybe even make a few new friends.
If you haven’t used BlaBlaCar services yet, and you’re wondering just how it works, there’s no need to worry. We’re going to provide you with all the needed information.
How Does It Work?
If you’re searching for a trip, even at the very last minute, it’s easy to find a driver using BlaBlaCar’s platform. Visit their home page and choose the country, after which you have to type in where you’re leaving from, where you’re going, and when. However, you should sign up first — do that by clicking the “Sign up” button in the top right corner. Use your e-mail or Facebook account to create your profile in no time.
Then, after selecting the cities and date of your trip, you’ll see a list of all the drivers with the same destination that can share a ride with you. Each driver has their own profile that helps you find out more about them — you can see their bio, reviews, driving skills, what type of car they’re driving, and so on. Of course, the prices will be listed as well.
When you choose your driver, click “Continue” to get to the payment section. You will see the total cost of your journey and be able to pay via MasterCard/Visa credit card or PayPal. On the right side, you can see a “Ride summary” with information on your journey and driver.
Finally, after you click the “Pay” button, your reservation will be sent. You will receive a confirmation e-mail, after which you’ll be able to get in touch with your driver. Feel free to ask him about the pick-up spot or anything else you might want to know.
If you’re offering a ride, the process is quite simple, too. Click “Offer a ride” in the upper right corner, fill in your departure point, where you’re headed, and where you want to drop off your passengers. Choose your route, date, time, number of passengers, and price. Finally, you may add a comment in case there’s some additional info you would like to share, after which you can publish your ride. After your journey, BlaBlaCar will send you the money to your bank or PayPal account.
BlaBlaCar Phone App
The BlaBlaCar phone application is available on both Apple Store and Google Play Store. We recommend downloading the app and using it instead of the website since it’s the simplest and quickest way to find your ride and book it. You can use it to search for a ride, offer a ride, chat with your passengers, and pay. The process is completely the same as the one on the website, and the app works perfectly.
Prices
BlaBlaCar prices are established by its users. There are no fixed rates, and the price of any journey depends solely on its driver. And the fact that the platform is available in over 20 countries is also relevant in this section. For this reason, we cannot provide you with approximate rates in general, but we can pick several popular destinations and check out the estimates.
For example, a BlaBlaCar ride from Barcelona to Madrid costs approximately €38. The price is similar to a train ticket cost, but the BlaBlaCar transfer is certainly more convenient. Transfers between Paris and Marseille have an estimated price of €40, while the price for a ride from Rome to Milan is about €31. To find out the rates for any other destination, feel free to use the BlaBlaCar website or phone app.