We plan to rent a car for about a month in St. Albans (outside of London) where we will be visiting relatives, drive around the country and return the car at Heathrow Airport when we leave. I was looking at Enterprise Car Rental both through the US site and the UK site. It appears the cost for the rental is very different between the two countries' sites. It is very expensive to do a rental with a different return site (rent from St Albans and returning the car at Heathrow) using the US site (over $6000) but using the Enterprise UK site, it is less than half the cost. So, is it ok to use the Enterprise UK site even though I am from the US? Thanks for your help.
Posted by
Royaume-Uni
2637 posts
Have you considered renting a car from Luton Airport, which is just up the road from St Albans, then returning to Heathrow? Airport-to-airport returns might work out cheaper and give you a greater choice of companies.
Posted by
Singapore
690 posts
There's absolutely no reason why you shouldn't use the Enterprise UK site. As a non-UK resident I have used it several times.
Seeing you're going to be in St Albans, though, have you considered a local company? We've used Traffic Self-Drive, based in St Albans before and found them excellent. Cheaper than the big brands, good cars, and they will deliver the vehicle to your door, which is handy if you're staying with relatives. (Enterprise offers a free pickup and drop-off service which is also good).
Posted by
Duluth 🛶
8693 posts
I've used Arnold Clark on my last two trips to the UK. Earlier this year in England, I was there for almost 6 weeks and rented directly with Arnold Clark. In 2023 when I was in Scotland for 3 weeks, I rented from them through their broker, Celtic Legend for my trip to Scotland.
Both rental experiences went extremely well. The Arnold Clark staff was a pleasure to deal with. Their agents explain everything to you and make sure that you understand the fine print. They are good about upgrading sometimes, and very courteous and helpful. I will always use them in the UK for future rentals. I know that they have a rental office right outside Heathrow, so you might want to request a quote from them. And I would get a quote using both links below; from Celtic Legend and Arnold Clark, as you may get a better deal from one.
https://www.arnoldclarkrental.com/
https://www.celticlegend.co.uk/car-rental/
Posted by
Buckinghamshire
249 posts
If you’ve not rented a car in Europe before it’s worth bearing in mind that the default is a manual transmission. If you want an automatic, you should specify a in advance and there’ll probably be a small increase in cost
You’ll encounter a lot of roundabouts. If you’re not familiar with them, then it’s probably worth watching a few online videos.
Some popular towns to visit, such as Oxford and Cambridge, have made or less declared war on the motor car. Difficult one way systems and expensive, hard-to-find parking means you are probably better off parking outside the city- there’s often a “Park and Ride” car park- and getting a bus in.
Posted by
SoCal
1462 posts
If you’ve not rented a car in Europe before it’s worth bearing in mind that the default is a manual transmission.
I have no trouble driving a manual shift in France and Spain. I have no trouble driving on the left in the UK. Combining the two? Couldn't do it.
Posted by
Northamptonshire, England
34620 posts
You’ll encounter a lot of roundabouts.
over 130 in just one city alone - Milton Keynes - and growing
Posted by
Mid-Atlantic area
7457 posts
If you’re a Costco member, check its pricing. It uses Enterprise in the UK and I’ve been able to rent automatics. One plus is you can add a 2nd driver for free. That usually costs 10£ a day.