Something new is afloat in Miami: water taxis.
Different from the narrated floating tiki bars, pirate ships and other tour boats that bring sightseers to the homes of Miami’s rich and somewhat famous, these vessels have a practical purpose: Get from points A to B with as little fuss as possible.
Before January, that wasn’t an option — and Max Vlessing, an entrepreneur who was born in Holland and moved to Miami about a year ago, thought it was time to resurrect the idea.
“The reason why I started it is because there are no water taxis in Miami,” said Max Vlessing, owner of Water Taxi Miami.
Make that were no water taxis.
After more than a decade without, Biscayne Bay now has two vessels ferrying passengers between downtown and Miami Beach.
Biscayne Xpress Water Taxi, based on the north end of Miamarina at Bayside, started service Jan. 15. It has room for 42 passengers. The 38-passenger Water Taxi Miami had its first sailing Jan. 26, departing Miamarina’s south side near Hard Rock Cafe. Each go to the Miami Beach Marina and downtown’s Riverwalk station; Water Taxi Miami also stops at Sea Isle Marina in downtown just north of the Venetian Causeway.
While neither company sounds all that happy about the other’s existence, they have similar goals: Give people an alternative other than sitting in traffic. Appeal to locals as well as tourists. Make people aware that they are open for business.
“Competition’s good,” said Kevin Pagan, who owns Biscayne Xpress along with a charter fishing boat also based at Bayside. “I’m not knocking anyone. I think there’s enough for everybody.”
Monday afternoon was fairly slow for both, each departing Bayside between 2 and 3 p.m. with just three passengers, all tourists.
At 2:15 p.m., three women vacationing from New York hopped aboard Biscayne Xpress with fruity drinks and plans to take in the views — but not disembark at any stops.
Water Taxi Miami, 35 minutes later, departed for Miami Beach with a 24-year-old Brazilian killing time before her flight and a couple of Australian tourists who wanted an easy route to South Beach.
For Sue Nikolovski, of Melbourne, previous bus trips to Miami Beach proved complicated and long. The water taxi route promised a quicker, easier transit. She learned of Water Taxi Miami from her daughter, who lives in South Florida and spotted a Groupon for the service last week.
“It just is another experience,” Nikolovski said. “The bus took forever.”
The Groupon is one of Vlessing’s efforts to get publicity. He’s also partnered with Bayside sightseeing giant Island Queen Cruises. Pagan is working with Half Price Tour Tickets and DecoBikes, among other local partners.
Bob Christoph, manager of Miami Beach Marina, said he was surprised when two water taxi companies emerged — but thinks there is enough demand for both. He said event-specific scheduling and familiarity with the market over time should help.
“I think we’ve seen a much more vibrant whole urban area here and hopefully their time has come,” Christoph said. Previous water taxi services in Miami-Dade failed more than a decade ago.
With a downtown that now boasts more than 65,000 residents, Miami has more built-in customers than ever before, said Alyce Robertson, executive director of Miami’s Downtown Development Authority.
“Certainly it’s a different downtown that they’re being tried in,” she said. “I think there is a different environment today that will give them a good chance of success.”
Water taxis offer commuters a new form of transportation - Business - MiamiHerald.com
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