I'm going to Mallorca in June with the family for the first time and need to rent an automatic car, what is the easiest way to find companies that provide automatics (preferably at the airport)?, and how (if possible) can I be sure I get an automatic vehicle (my wife won't drive manual)?.
Posted by
Portsmouth
5259 posts
Palma airport is the best place on Mallorca to rent a car as all the major players are there and they have the widest selection and longest opening hours. I usually rent a car through rentalcars.com, they're a consolidator and I've managed to secure good deals with them, pretty much all of the rentals through them have been fulfilled by Hertz. I usually opt for an automatic as I drive one at home although I have no issue with driving a manual, it just takes a few hours of grasping at the door handle searching for the gearstick before it finally kicks in.
Rentalcars will provide quotes from most of the rental firms at the airport, I avoid the likes of Goldcar, OK, Centauro, Keddy, Rhodium etc, on the face of it they offer good prices but the problems become apparent once you're in their grasp. I've just made a dummy booking for sat to sat mid June (peak season) and Sixt are offering a VW Polo automatic for £236, a Citroen Cactus automatic (ugh) for £251 whilst Hertz offer a VW Golf automatic for £289. There are larger, more expensive cars on offer but my choice would be the Golf. If you specify automatic in your booking you should receive an automatic, if they don't have any left in the vehicle category you opted for then they should upgrade you at no extra cost. I have never not received an automatic despite all the years renting at Palma (except on one occasion when the upgrade was a manual that was too good to turn down). I would also recommend joining Hertz and Avis' preferred customer programmes, they're free to join, allow you access to fast track collection and should offer a bit more gravitas if your booking ends up going a bit awry.
You will undoubtedly experience a trouble free rental in Palma and you'll love driving on the island, it's a real joy. We'll be there for a week at the end of May to the first of June (school half term) which is a busy period on the island but the weeks after are also popular for those without being confined to school holidays and can take advantage of cheaper airfares, however car rental prices will continue to rise so my advice is to book as soon as possbile, you've already missed the good deals (we secured a 7 seater Mercedes people carrier for £90 when booking together with our BA flights, that car would now cost in excess of £900 if we were to book it direct now).
Posted by
OP
Essex UK
2 posts
Great many thanks, downloaded their app and have booked for the holiday, cheers
Posted by
Portsmouth
5259 posts
Fantastic, where are you staying and how have you avoided the school holidays (assuming you're going with school age children)?