The Seoul Metropolitan Government on Dec. 1 launched Taba, a taxi-hailing app for foreign tourists. Shown on Dec. 5 is the app being used to hail a cab in the capital's Jongno-gu District. (Cao Thi Ha)

By Cao Thi Ha 

Foreign tourists can now hail taxis conveniently through an app.

The Seoul Metropolitan Government on Dec. 4 said it officially launched three days earlier Taba, a cab-hailing app Taba exclusively for foreign tourists.

Since last year, the city has supported collaborative projects between tourism startups and private companies in taxi-hailing service development to allow foreign tourists to more conveniently use cabs in the city. Domestic taxi-hailing services pose challenges for non-Koreans due to limitations such as authentication procedures available exclusively through domestic mobile telecom companies and payment methods centered on domestically issued cards.

Instead, Taba allows foreign tourists to do authentication using their phone numbers registered in their home countries and make payments with overseas cards. By the end of the month, the app will enable authentication through simple log-in in social media accounts and email.

Once a user enters the desired destination, he or she can check the distance and fare reflecting real-time traffic conditions. Depending on needs, a customer can choose from recommended, shortest and toll-free routes and the desired type of taxi including medium, large and luxury.

The app also has a feature introducing over 200 major tourist attractions in Seoul. Selecting one of the spots simply requires by hitting the "Go Here Now" button at the bottom of the app automatically sets the attraction as the destination.

The app is available in English, simplified and traditional Mandarin (Chinese), Japanese and Thai. The city will add Vietnamese, Indonesian and Russian will be added within the first half of next year.

To mark the app's launch, users can get 5% off their first taxi ride when using the app, which can be downloaded through both Google Play (https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.globaleur.taxi) and the Apple App Store (https://apps.apple.com/us/app/taba-seoul-taxi/id6466561408).

shinn11@korea.kr