I believe I read on Rick's tips that you can save by renting here in the US prior to the trip. Having a rental secured before the trip makes me feel better but then my question is - best agency? Online or at local airport?
And then more specifically, anyone have any experience renting a VW GTI whilst in Deutschland? I have not had any luck with my searches. Only the Golf shows up (not bad either as we drive that already). Thanks!
I'm not sure you save anything, unless you hit a special, by booking in the US. But it does give you time to watch for good deals. Online is your best best. Many agencies don't charge a cancellation fee, so you could book what looks like a good deal now and keep checking, changing if you find something better along the way.
Hi Mary E,
We have used www.travelocity.com in the past for our car rentals in Germany. More recently (in 2007 and this year) we rented through www.gemut.com. Very plaeased with them. They will give you free quotes and are very helpful if you have any questions.
Paul
Yes, you can rent a Golf VI GTI 30th anniversary edition thru Miet24.de. For two years now Miet24 have a US subsidiary called rent24.com. The car is €119 per day or €559 per week incl. insurances and 1000km per week or 150km per day. You might want to inquire about a GTD as well as it's as much fun but just a bit more affordable (Diesel vs. regular gas)...
Greetings, our family just returned from leasing a car. The trick is you must stay a minimum of 17 or 21 days. It had many advantages.. no additional charges for additional drivers (including our 19 ear old son), unlimited mileage, all insurance included. All arrangements were made via fax / internet before we departed. We were also gifted a GPS (from an amazing Rick Steve fan) with oversea maps - an absolute godsend!
Hi have used Auto Europe at autoeurope.com for 20 years and have always had excellent service and good rates. There is also another company, Nova at novacarhire.com with excellent rates. good luck
We just returned from 2 weeks in France and rented a car for 6 of those days. I travel alot for work and I've never been able to get a deal at the counter as good as the deals you can get by reserving online ahead of time. I reserved online through Avis - I have a preferred card through them for my work travel but also they have rental locations at just about every train station in France so it was convenient for drop off and pick up. I paid 324 euros for 6 days for a mid-size car (an Opel Zafira) which I thought was a pretty good deal. By booking online, I was able to monitor specials and rebook using a different coupon code if a promotion became available. Just be aware that many promotions from companies like Hertz, Avis apply to airport pickups only. I chose to take the train out of Paris and pick up the car there then drop it off before returning to Paris, simply because I didn't want to attempt Paris driving. So where you pick up is entirely dependent on your itinerary and how comfortable you are driving in that area.
Mary:
I second the earlier recommendation for gemut.com. They are great to deal with and I was very pleased with the value we received. I would certainly use them again. Have fun.
I would try americanexpress.com and get quotes from there...no need to have an amex card either. I found they have the best rates by far from all the majors! I've booked two cars already as the price keeps dropping. Give it a try.
