Car rental question

Where are you getting your quotes? Have you checked autoeurope.com? They are a consolidator and will find the lowest prices amongst the different car rental companies. We rented a car for 4 days in Tuscany last September and paid far less than the quotes you have gotten. Do you have a GPS? If not, can you borrow one from someone? I think it is better to take a GPS you are familiar with than it would be to rent one there. Of course if renting a car with GPS is the only option I would go for it.

I had a great experience with http://gemut.com/. They beat AutoEurope and Hertz, yet our car was thru AutoEurope at Hertz. Go figure. Very nice people, 24x7 English language support.

That seems way to high for rental. we just got back and rented a VW Golf directly from Avis in Rome and paid $480 for 8 days. I have heard that rentals are more expensive if you pick them up at the airport or train stations. Try Directly on AVIS's website or AutoEurope.

Thanks for your advice. Autoeurope was not the lowest quote and when I requested a GPS, they stated that they couldn't guarantee the GPS and that it was up to the acutal rental company as far as availabilty is concerned. I don't want to take the chance that we won't have a GPS - traveling through Tuscany without one is not fun. We don't have one - funny thing is none of our friends have one. Do you think there is a penalty for renting less than a week? Will keep trying. Won't be there until September, so we have time. What do you think is the best rate for four days? Thanks again.

We paid $310 through Gemut.com last fall for 5 days, no GPS. Where are you going in Tuscany? We did not have a GPS and did not get lost. Used a Michelin Guide. Rented in Siena, dropped off in Orvieto.

I would suggest that you purchase your own GPS (with European maps) and learn how to use it before you go. This will eliminate the sometimes outrageous charges for "extras".

The drop off place at FCO is signed but it's easy (at least for me) to miss. I had to do a few laps to find it.

I am in the same boat as you but I have to have an automatic car. I got an quote from Avis for 5 days for $753! I then found a car through Argus for $450. I put down $57 and will pay the rest when we pick up the car in October at FCO. As for the GPS we bought one with European maps two years ago as we were touring France. I paid $125 for it on Amazon and it was worth every penny. We also brought along maps and really never got lost. We will be doing the same for our Tuscany trip in October. I would suggest that if you do need an automatic car instead of a manual car that you start looking now. I first started looking in January and the charge was only $350 for 5 days through Auto Europe. The bad thing about them was that you had to pay upfront and I was not comfortable doing that. Fast forward 5 months and now the rate is $100 more. I looked at lots of car rental places and alot of them did not even offer automatic cars. If you don't need an automatic there are lot's of cars out there for much cheaper. Keep looking!

We will be renting a car for a week, also with pick up and drop off at FCO. Need an intermediate (tall husbands) but going with manual. Just got an AutoEurope quote of 745 for full insurance, zero deductible. Are rates you folks are quoting including insurance?

Hi - I did rent from economy car rental once just to find out that they are an internet company based in greece. I rented in spain for a small price but when i got to Barcelona, the car rental desk was not to be found. I tried to call them but they would not answer the phone. I eventually took a taxi to my hotel. The next day, I had to find the car rental desk off site of the airport. A very bad experience. I have booked this year from autoeurope who I have rented from before. Best prices, garanteed in dollars and great service over the phone. Heading off to Rome next week.

My friend and I are going to Italy in October/November and we, too, need a car, preferably an automatic but everything is quite expensive especially automatics. In browsing around I saw that Ryanair also has rentals on its site...they looked less expensive also. It's worth a try. Good luck, Mary

I've had good experiences with holidayautos.com (owned by Travelocity). I recently booked a 4-door manual for 8 days in October/November, pick up at Termini and drop off at MXP. Total cost is less than $340 (prepaid), including all taxes, CDW, premium location charges, and theft insurance. It works like autoeurope in that you don't know the name of the rental company until you book. FYI, you may need to call if you want a one-way rental in Italy (the website doesn't list every one-way option). Previously, I used holidayautos to rent for 12 days in France for around $350 all inclusive and had no issues.

I think each person in car, even if not driving, will need international driver's license you can get same day at triple A.

No, non-drivers do not need an international drivers permit. Only drivers.

I was making statement based on what car rental agency stated, maybe they were afraid that one of us would try to drive without it, who knows.

You do not need international drivers licence to drive in Italy or in France. I just called autoeurope who confirmed it to me. I visit Europe once a year and have always been satisfied with autoeurope's service. They have great guys on the phone and will help you with the car rental companies if something goes wrong,

We are in Italy right now and yes, before you rent a car they ask to see your International Drivers License.

Sophie, the person at autoeurope who told you that Italy does not require an IDP is wrong. There is a chance you would not be asked for one but if you are and do not have one you are subject to a hefty fine on the spot. Not worth the risk. http://europeforvisitors.com/europe/driving/international-driving-permit.htm

Sophie, again you have posted wrong information. You did so on another thread. It is the LAW and MANDATORY to have international drivers license in Italy. Do you work for them as you seem to be pushing Autoeurope.

I got a quote of 24 Euros a day with Priceline.com for an "Economy" car (a Fiat Panda) - that was the cheapest I found.

Gail, why are you accusing Sophie of being a shill for AutoEurope? Six other posts above are just as favorable to AutoEurope. I disagree with them, but maybe they really like that company.

I don't know what rental company asked you for your IDP. My husband's company does business in Italy and he and many of his colleagues have rented plenty of cars over the past few years and have not once been asked for their IDP when picking up a car. Generally, the rental companies only care about their cars, they don't care if you get pulled over and fined for not having the proper licence, that's your problem not theirs. So don't be fooled into thinking it's not required just because you or someone you know rented a car in Italy before and "didn't need one"...that just means they were never pulled over or stopped by the police...they were lucky.

We rented through autoeurope, who got the car for us from Hertz. We picked the car up in Venice and they did indeed require our IDP be produced in their office.

GPS rental in Europe is woefully expensive. It easily adds up to $ 20/30 PER DAY. Drop it and do one of the following: 1. Buy a Western Europe or Italy cartographic base (map) for the GPS you already use in US. Garmin, TomTom, all of them have Western Europe maps that will cost you no more than $ 30-50. 2. Buy a TomTom Italy app (a GPS) for you smartphone for € 29. It works like a TomTom GPS, with all the basic features (POIs, route, detours, voice command) working. 3. If you don't own a GPS, nor a smartphone, it is still probably cheaper to buy a simple model on eBay and fit it with European maps than rent it.