Hi! What do you think about renting a car to go from Cinque Terre to Arles?? I'd really like to do this, because I think it must be a beautiful scenary... I would do it in two days, stopping in some of the locations to take a look, maybe sleeping in Nice the first night and in Arles the second one, before going to Paris... Is this doable? I mean, can I rent a car in one country and leave it in another?? Is it too expensive?? Well, hope to hear your advice!!! This is an idea that just came to my mind, I need to search I little more...
thanks!
Posted by
Portlandia
3313 posts
The first consideration is that there will likely be a high cost to pick up in one country and drop in another. It costs the rental agencies to get their cars back. The drive up the Italian coast isn't as interesting as it sounds. Tunnel, light, tunnel, light. A few pretty towns along the way but mostly tunnels, light, tunnels, light. I would take the train to Nice and drive from there. Driving in Provence is beautiful.
Posted by
Ottawa
1446 posts
Take the train to Nice, then pick-up a rental car. Rental car locations are right next to the train station on Avenue Thiers. I would pick up the car only on my way OUT of Nice, AFTER I've visited the immediate area by cheap, cheap bus & train.
Posted by
Shoreline, Washington, USA
76 posts
Hah! I love Doug's post: "tunnels, light, tunnels, light." So true! I did this drive in summer 2001 with my children, and as the only driver, it was very tiring. And, if you're driving, you don't really get to see any scenery (when you're not in a tunnel) because you really must keep your eyes on the road and on the other drivers! I would definitely advise taking the train and then picking up a car in either Nice or Arles. Much more relaxing, and you'll see a lot more! That said, if you will be traveling for more than 17 days, check out Renault's lease-to-own program. You "buy" a brand new car, drive it wherever you want to (there are Renault maintenance shops everywhere) and pay by the number of days you keep it. You can pick it up in one town and leave it in another. It's a very easy process (I did everything on-line before our trip in 2001) and costs less than a long-term rental car! Ciao, and have fun!!! Jean
Posted by
Northamptonshire, England
33861 posts
Tunnels light tunnels light sums it up. I who drive many thousands of miles a year, and really enjoy driving, had no happiness driving the Ligurian coast between Ventimiglia and Genova. No fun. At all.
Posted by
Cochrane, Alberta, Canada
54 posts
In 2007 we rented a car in Marseille and drove it to Rome and felt we got good value for the money, especially since there were four of us. The drive from Provence to Italy was spectacular and we skipped most of the tunnels by staying on small roads. It took longer but the scenery was well worth it. Take a look at some of our photos on our travel blog. http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/foothills_bears/1/1268330613/tpod.html