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Although trains are great, a car is sometimes the best way to see Europe —
with the wind in your hair and the freedom to turn down any road and
visit vineyards, medieval hamlets, and crumbling castles. With a car, you
can make your own schedule and get away from the set time structures
of trains. Using a car is the only way to explore any small region in depth.
Of course, driving a car also has its downfalls. For example, you have to
deal with aggressive drivers, navigate nerve-racking and confusing city
traffic on occasion, and find and pay for parking whenever you stop.
Likewise, you can’t relax and do research on the trip between towns
when you’re behind the wheel, and the gasoline prices in Europe are
shocking. Regardless, unless you walk or bike through Europe, you can’t
get any closer to the land and have the true freedom to go where you
want than you can renting a car.
Obtaining an International Driver’s Permit
If you plan to drive in Europe, you may want to bring along and carry, in
addition to your regular driver’s license, an International Driver’s Permit
(this permit isn’t required; it merely translates your data into several
languages). The permit costs $10 from AAA (call 407-444-7000 to find
the office nearest you). You don’t have to be a AAA member to get the
pass, but if you are, ask for any free info and maps that they can send
you to cover the countries in which you’ll drive.
Knowing when to rent a car
If you want to cover lots of ground, concentrate on the cities, or go solo,
taking the train is better than renting a car. However, if you’re exploring
a single country or region, planning to visit many small towns, and you’re
traveling in a party of three or more, rent a car. Splitting the cost of one
car rental is cheaper than train tickets when you’re traveling with a group,
and renting a car allows you more flexibility if you’re traveling with kids.
Tuscany, Provence, southern Spain, and Ireland are among the most
scenic and rewarding areas in Europe to explore by car.
Avoid renting and having a car in cities. I can think of no aspect of
European travel less exciting or more stressful. Plus, parking fees gobble
at your travel budget. Between hotel charges and garage and lot fees,
you can expect to pay anywhere from $15 to $70 a day just to park your
rental. Save renting the car for exploring the countryside. Arrange to pick
up your rental car the morning you leave the first city on your driving
itinerary and to drop it off as soon as you pull into your final destination.
The best trips mix and match modes of transportation. For example, you
can take the train to Florence, and then spend two or three days driving
through the vineyards and hill towns of Tuscany to Rome. Rail-and-drive
passes can sometimes offer you bargain rates. I recommend breaking up
your metropolis itinerary with some jaunts through the countryside to
smaller towns to ensure that you don’t miss out on a big part of the continent
in your travels.
Saving time and money on rental cars
Car-rental rates vary even more than airline fares. The price depends on
the size of the car, the length of time you keep it, where and when you
pick it up and drop it off, where you take it, and a host of other factors.
Asking a few key questions may save you hundreds of dollars.
Follow these tips to get the best deal on a rental car:
- Rent in the United States. You can get the best rates on car rental if
you rent ahead of time directly through a U.S. company. If you’re on
the road and decide that you want a car, contact a friend or relative
back home and ask him to cut the deal and fax the confirmation
directly to your hotel — the money you save is worth the hassle.
I list the numbers for the major rental companies, plus those that
specialize in European travel, in the appendix.
- Shop around. You may think that the rental-car companies offer
similar rates, but nothing is further from the truth. For the same
four-day weekend, you may hear $50 from one company and
$130 from another. I find that Europe specialists Auto Europe
(800-223-5555; www.autoeurope.com) and Europe By Car
(800-223-1516; www.europebycar.com) invariably offer the
best rates. Make sure to find out what your rental rate includes —
or excludes — such as a collision-damage waiver (CDW), taxes,
mileage (you definitely want unlimited), and any other restrictions
that may apply.
- Shop online. As with other aspects of planning your trip, using the
Internet can make comparison shopping for a car rental much easier.
You can check rates at most of the major agencies’ Web sites. Plus,
all the major travel sites — Travelocity (www.travelocity.com),
Expedia (www.expedia.com), Orbitz (www.orbitz.com), and
Smarter Living (www.smarterliving.com), for example — have
search engines that can dig up discounted car-rental rates. Just
enter the car size you want, the pickup and return dates, and the
location, and the server returns a price. You can even make the
reservation through any of these sites.
- Be flexible. When giving the rental company your dates for pickup
and delivery, inform them that you’re also open to other dates as
well, if changing your dates means saving money — sometimes
picking up the car Thursday instead of Friday, or keeping it over
the weekend, saves you big bucks. You may also save money if you
rent for a full week rather than two days. Finally, check whether the
rate is cheaper if you pick up the car at a location in town rather
than at the airport.
- Know your restrictions. Most rental companies restrict where you
can drive. With some companies, you must stay in the country of
rental (usually only smaller, national outfits mandate this rule).
Likewise, most don’t allow you to take a car that you rented in
England to Ireland or the continent. Few let you drive from any
Western European country into Eastern Europe, so if you’re planning
to drive to Prague, make sure that you make arrangements
with the rental agency before you leave.
- Check any age restrictions. Many car-rental companies add on a
fee for drivers under 25, while some don’t rent to them at all. If
you’re under 25, research which companies will rent to you without
a penalty.
- Lease for longer periods of time. Companies don’t always remind
you of the leasing option, but if you want a car for more than 17 days
(up to 6 months), tell them that you want to short-term-lease the
car (Auto-Europe and Europe By Car both offer this option). Leasing
a car gives you a brand-new car and full insurance coverage with no
deductible. You can also get around a technical loophole for those
too young to rent under official company policy if you lease. The
minimum age for renting a car ranges from 18 to 27, but it’s usually
21 to 25. Anyone over 18, however, can usually lease a car.
- Mention the ad. If you see an advertised price in your local newspaper,
be sure to ask for that specific rate; otherwise you may be
charged the standard (higher) rate. Don’t forget to mention membership
in AAA, AARP, and trade unions. These memberships usually
entitle you to discounts ranging from 5 to 30 percent.
- Check your frequent-flier accounts. Not only are your favorite airlines
likely to have sent you discount coupons, but most car rentals
add at least 500 miles to your account.
- Consider a stick shift instead of an automatic. You can save up
to 40 percent on the price of car rental if you rent a stick-shift car
instead of an automatic. As an added bonus, stick shifts often give
you better control on Europe’s many narrow, windy, hilly roads and
tight streets in ancient cities.
- Look into coverage you may already have. The collision damage
waiver (CDW), basically allows you to total the car and not be held
liable. Your credit card may cover the CDW if you use it to pay for
the rental, so make sure that you check the terms of your credit
card before purchasing CDW. However, keep in mind that some
rental agencies in Italy won’t accept credit-card CDW for rentals.
You must purchase it separately instead. Travel Guard (800-
826-4919; www.travelguard.com) sells independent CDW coverage
for a mere $7 a day — a sight better than the $10 to $20 a day
rental agencies tend to charge.
- Carefully consider the other insurance options. The car-rental companies
also offer additional liability insurance (if you harm others in
an accident), personal accident insurance (if you harm yourself or
your passengers), and personal effects insurance (if your luggage is
stolen from your car). Your insurance policy on your car at home
probably covers most of these unlikely occurrences. However, if
your own insurance doesn’t cover you for rentals or if you don’t
have auto insurance, definitely consider the additional coverage
(ask your car-rental agent for more information). Unless you’re
toting around the Hope diamond, and you don’t want to leave that
in your car trunk anyway, you can probably skip the personal effects
insurance, but driving around without liability or personal accident
coverage is never a good idea. Even if you’re a good driver, other
people may not be, and liability claims can be complicated.
- Remind the company that you’ve already paid. Make sure that
you know exactly what you paid for when you arranged your car
rental. Many times, the car pickup offices in Europe overlook the
fact that your credit card was already charged for the rental cost,
and they try to double-charge you. Usually, you end up with one
charge on your card from the European office for the first full tank
of gas that it provides (which is almost never included in the original
rental price).
- Inspect the car before driving away. If the rental agency doesn’t
know that something is wrong with the car you rented when you
drive it off, it’ll assume that you broke the car and charge you
accordingly. If the car’s condition doesn’t match the inspection form
that they want you to sign, point out the discrepancy. Otherwise,
you’re legally liable for the condition after you drive away. Make
sure that all locks and doors work, check the various lights, and
quickly scan the entire car for dents, scratches, and fabric rips.
- Check for repair and safety equipment. Check the trunk to make
sure that your rental car is equipped with a jack, inflated spare, snow
chains (for winter driving), and a hazard triangle (most countries
require that you hang this on your trunk if you’re broken down
on the side of the road). Likewise, check the glove compartment
for a parking disc. (Ask the rental agency about the parking disc;
they’ll explain the country’s honor-system parking lots, if the
system applies.)
- Gas up before you return the car. When leaving the rental company,
make sure the car has a full tank of gas so you don’t have to
worry about dealing with local gas stations immediately. Also make
sure that you return the car with a full tank of gas. Similar to rentalcompany
practices in the United States, if you forget to fill up the
car before you return it, the company will kindly fill it for you at
obscenely jacked-up prices. Before you return the car, find a gas
station and top off the tank.
Understanding European road rules
Except for driving on the left in Great Britain and Ireland, European road
rules are similar enough to American ones that you can drive without
further instruction. However, the following important differences do exist:
- Watch out for aggressive drivers. Most European drivers are much
more aggressive than American drivers.
- Don’t cruise in the left lane. You do not ride in the left lane on a
four-lane highway; it’s truly for passing only. Or for Mercedes with
the pedal down and their hazards blinking to let you know they
don’t intend to use the brake pedal.
- Help other drivers pass you. If a vehicle comes up from behind
and flashes its lights at you, it’s signaling for you to slow down and
drive more on the shoulder of the road, so it can pass you more
easily. Two-lane roads in Europe routinely become three cars wide.
- Be aware of speed limits. Except for parts of the German Autobahn,
most highways list speed limits of approximately 60 to 80 mph
(100–135 km/h).
- Remember to convert from kilometers. European measurements
relating to vehicles are in kilometers (mileage and speed limits).
For a rough conversion, remember that 1 kilometer equals about
0.6 miles.
- Watch out for gas prices. Gas may look reasonably priced, but
remember that the price is per liter. Remember that 3.8 liters
equals 1 gallon, so multiply by 4 to guestimate the equivalent
per-gallon price.
- Buy a toll sticker. Some countries, such as Austria and Switzerland,
require highway stickers in lieu of paying tolls (or as a supplement
to cheap tolls). If you rent a car within such a country, your car
already has a sticker. But, if you’re crossing a border, check at the
crossing station to see whether you need to purchase a sticker on
the spot for a nominal fee.
- Drive defensively. Assume that other drivers have a better idea of
what they’re doing than you do, and take your hints from them. | 
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