Car rental for large family

We traveled with a group of 6 adults last summer for 3 weeks through Germany, Italy, Switzerland and France. We had a Ford Tourneo. We had planned on a minivan, which we drive at home. But when we arrived and the rental car agent saw our group and luggage, he said “You won’t fit.” And “upgraded” us to a full size van.

Thankfully my brother drives one of these every day for work, and we paid for him to be a second driver. If you don’t have ALOT of experience driving a vehicle this size, it will NOT be fun. Definitely get the zero deductible insurance. We had a scrape getting out of a parking garage.

Driving (and parking) in Europe, especially Scotland, is WAY different than in the US. We’ve driven in Ireland in a small car and that was very stressful at times. You will find VERY narrow roads where both vehicles have to pull in side mirrors and hug stone walls to pass each other. Parking is generally street parking or underground parking garages, which may be too low for a full size van. Open parking lots, like in the US, are rare. Add the fact that you’re driving on the opposite side of the road, and it’s likely to be very stressful.

You won't find any underground car parks in the areas you mention. BUT, you WILL encounter single track roads with passing places, and even on 'normal' roads you will find them much narrower than those you are used to. We do not generally have a shoulder on our roads except for on motorways (highways) and in the areas you mention there are no motorways. That said many people manage to drive here without issue! This video will be helpful in explaining how single track roads work.

isn31c is our expert on public transport, so hopefully he will be able to advise you. But the mountains of the Highlands mean that trains run up the east or west side of the mountain ranges. So there are trains north of Edinburgh to Inverness and north of Glasgow to Fort William and Oban. But there's nothing cross country from Fort William to Inverness. There are Citylink buses (coaches) than bridge that gap from Fort William to Inverness.

I would say you'd probably want to consider 3 vehicles to fit 10 of you plus luggage. 'People carrier' type vehicles typically sacrifice trunk (boot) space for an extra row of seats.

If you can accomplish it with 2-3 seven seaters I think you'll be fine. The roads are generally good, it's more parking, but a Galaxy is not going to be a big challenge to park (I'm not familiar with US roads, more UK and Australia, so do take note of what travel4fun says about the differences). Not sure if Edinburgh is your first stop, but definitely go without a car while you're there, and then hire one when you go to the highlands. We hired near the airport and drove out to the Cairngorms (and did a day trip to Inverness) - it's a fairly easy drive.

Personally I'd avoid a nine seater if possible.

Thank you all, this is very helpful!

I’m tentatively thinking that we would rent a car in our destination- likely Inverness or Ft Williams- and return it there before taking the train back to Edinburgh. So we won’t have to contend with space for luggage which would be an additional hassle!

Is it fairly simple to arrive in a larger area by train, and get to our rental house via cab or similar? We’ll likely be looking at a larger home/estate rental in the countryside.

You will need two or three taxis to accommodate your party and luggage. There is no Uber in these areas. Costs will be hefty if going any distance from the urban centres of Inverness or Fort William (no 's'). Car rental in Fort William will be very limited as none of the big players (Avis, Hertz etc are there). Better choices at Inverness airport.

Update: we’re now considering Aberdeen as well, as we’re reading that may be a better option to avoid the midges in August. So any advice for driving in that region is great too!

I would say you'd probably want to consider 3 vehicles to fit 10 of you plus luggage. 'People carrier' type vehicles typically sacrifice trunk (boot) space for an extra row of seats.

I would agree about using 3 cars rather than 2. Not only will it give you more room, but you could go with smaller vehicles, which will make a big difference when driving. As Skyegirl said, the roads are narrow and there is no shoulder, so the smaller the vehicle, the easier it will be.

Also, Arnold Clark rental (who I've rented with twice and loved them) has two Inverness locations; one at the airport and one in town at 46 Harbour Road. So you could conceivably take the train there, head to your lodging, dump the luggage and then get a cab to the in-town AC office and pick up the cars. I would definitely suggest booking ahead of time. You can book directly or go through Celtic Legend, who works with them. The big difference is that with CL, you do not have to pay anything until you pick up the car. If you go through Arnold Clark, then you do have to pay either a deposit or the entire amount, depending on when you reserve it. Regardless, it will be fully cancellable (or should be) so you can always keep checkiong back on the prices to see if they go down. I saved several hundred pounds on my trip earlier this year by doing so.

ETA: If you go with Aberdeen, there is an Arnold Clark rental office there as well. Also, the roads are somewhat better in the Aberdeen area than they are in the Highlands. :-)

Hi, uncpauper,

Just to add to Mardee's post, I just returned from hiring a car from Avis at Aberdeen airport. I had looked in to hiring from Celtic Legend/Arnold Clark, but it turned out that not only was the Arnold Clark office a half hour's drive from the airport, but I would have had to pay Arnold Clark 35 pounds to take us back to the airport upon my returning the car. The fact that Avis was almost $300 cheaper, and was right there at the airport clinched the deal for me.

Hiring a car at Aberdeen airport was so incredibly easy and unstressful that we have decided to always fly in to Aberdeen. The airport staff and the Avis staff are extremely helpful. I had originally ordered a Peugeot 2008, but when I arrived I was offered a Crossland. I realised that a vehicle that size was going to be inappropriate for the single track roads which I was planning to take, so I downsized to a Corsa, which I have to admit was really fun to drive, especially on the B869!

One problem that you may encounter at Aberdeen is that possibly Avis will not have large enough vehicles to suit your needs. If you decide to go with Avis (or one of the other companies which have offices at Aberdeen airport), you may want to contact those offices directly to find out if they can accommodate your requirements.

Whichever arrangement you decide on, have a wonderful time in Scotland!

Mike (Auchterless)

p.s.: You had mentioned hiring a private tour company to take you to the destinations which you want to see. It may end up costing you more, but at least you would all be together, in a vehicle driven by someone who knows the roads. You wouldn't need anyone in Edinburgh, but once you got outside the city, it may be easier to have all of you stick together.

Thank you all again so much for the advice! It’s extremely helpful.

As the trip planning has evolved, we’ve found a large place (actually a castle!) near Doune that looks like a perfect fit for us, and will be relatively close to many things we want to do.

We will likely take the train from Edinburgh and rent the car from Stirling, so we at least don’t need to fit our luggage.

So I suppose the lingering question is whether a car claiming to fit 5 passengers actually will! I’d love to avoid renting a van and splitting us into 2 cars instead.

2 kids are in carseats though which can be another challenge.

Hmm, depends on the model of car. Some have a hump down the centre of the car, which makes sitting in the middle seat in the back a bit uncomfortable as your feet and knees end up higher than you'd like. Also with two child car seats it could be a bit cramped for an adult in the back with the two kids. You might have more choice of vehicle at Edinburgh airport. There is an Arnold Clark rental office in Stirling. Might well be worth checking with them what they can offer/recommend.

Thank you, Skyegirl! I was pleasantly surprised by the selection offered by Enterprise in Stirling (at least online!) so it does seem we could get a bigger car, but I’m hoping to rent the smallest one that reasonably fits us! Just not as familiar with these models- the hump in the back is a good tip and something to watch for!

Very few cars on the U.K. market will fit 2 car seats plus an additional person in the back. I think you will need something like the size of a Ford Galaxy to carry them all comfortably plus luggage.