We'll be traveling to France in early July. We've heard of many people who have experienced long delays for picking up a reserved car at an airport, including the times that cars simply aren't available despite your having a reservation.
Is there a better chance of getting a car if we take a train out of Paris? We could go to Quimper or Annecy.
I can imagine that there's a better chance of actually getting a car in a town where there's a lower demand. I can also imagine that cars from smaller markets are being sent to Paris to meet the higher demand. Does anyone have recent experience with this?
Posted by
Paris
7303 posts
Car rental prices are high, but the situation is not as bad as you describe.
However, from a practical standpoint, if your first destination is more than a 2-hour drive from Paris, it makes much more sense to take the train than to drive. Probably cheaper too if it's only two of you, because gas is nearly $9/gal and highway tolls are $0.15-$0.20/mile.
Regarding your examples, I would NEVER consider driving from Paris to Quimper. I did it once, never again! The train is almost 3 hours faster, and the scenery is wholly uninteresting. Paris to Annecy is a bit more varied and a tiny bit shorter, but still, the train is almost 2 hours faster.
Posted by
OP
Florida
498 posts
Thanks balso. I was unclear. Yes, we intend to take the train out of Paris. What I want to avoid is being in Quimper or Annecy and not be able to get a car. The rest of our trip depends upon it.
We do know people in the U.S. who have experienced what I described. My inquiries have led me to think something like that is true in France as well. I only mentioned Paris as a comparison point. The real question is: Can I count on rental car availability in Quimper, Annecy or similar smaller cities?
Posted by
Paris
7303 posts
I frequently use Hertz in Quimper (I am actually typing this from Quimper!). For the past year or so, they haven't had any availability issues even at very short notice. I wouldn't worry.
Posted by
Chicago
8554 posts
We. once drove a car from Amsterdam to Paris with no drop fee because it was a car that needed to go home to Paris. We had prepared to pay the huge fee as we needed to drive up the Rhine, to Alsace, then to stay with friends in Provence and the back up to Paris stopping in Burgundy along the way -- so we decided to just suck it up and were thrilled when they found a car that would have no international drop fee because we were driving it back to home base.
Although airports can be a hassle if cars are slow coming in, your odds of getting a car are always better at airports than at small rental agencies in Nowheremuch.
Posted by
OP
Florida
498 posts
We've driven in France on several previous trips. Aimee, we use Gemut.com, who in turn arranges rentals with the major car rental companies. Last time we picked up our car in Quimper through Hertz.
kerouac2, our rental period will be about 10 days. I don't know if that's long enough to get respect from the companies, but I hope so..
balso, your posts are reassuring, since you're talking about Hertz in Quimper, which is right on the money for our plans.
We will, off course, reserve in advance and it looks like there will actually be a car there once we arrive.
Just out of curiosity, does anyone have first hand experience of car availability in Annecy (like balso's in Quimper)?
Thanks everyone.