While planning a perfect vacation, travelers often encounter a common dilemma: should I get a rental car or simply count on public transport? The answer isn’t that straightforward and largely depends on your travel destination.
For instance, if you’re planning on visiting any Mediterranean island, maybe it would be better to rent an island beater. On the contrary, if you’re going to any modern city, a rental car probably wouldn’t be necessary as it might become a pure headache. A driver would need to constantly look for a parking lot, pay for it, and purchase a parking spot in a hotel. Don’t discount possible stress driving in an unknown city where driving culture might differ from the one you left at home. Sometimes it’s worth trusting the public transport system.
If, in the end, you decide to avoid public transport on your vacation, renting a car online is easy as ever. A couple of clicks, and you’re all set. However, before hitting the confirmation button, it’s worth diving deeper into the rental contract, even if most of it is written in small print. After all, you want to avoid any possible misunderstandings in the future.
There is a saying that a wise person learns from others’ mistakes, but stupid ones learn just from their own. We were these dummies several times; therefore, after reading this, you’ll be a wise person and know what possible mistakes you might make while renting a car abroad.
One destination with multiple airports
On one late evening flight to Venice, we reached our destination successfully and immediately stood in line at our rental car company desk. Of course, we made the reservation online in advance and patiently waited for our turn to come. When just two people were left in front of us, we checked our booking details one more time and understood that we were in big trouble. Our rental car was at a different airport.
When we were looking for a rental car at one of the booking sites, we simply entered Venice as our destination. We were given the results from both airports near Venice – Marco Polo and Treviso. “There is no medicine from stupidity,” – my dear grandma would have said in such a situation, but we didn’t have time for self-pity. We need a quick and efficient solution.
So, we are in Treviso, but our rental vehicle waits for us in the Marco Polo airport. These two airports are more than 30 kilometers (about 19 miles) apart. Moreover, it was late evening, and we had no hopes of reaching the other airport by public transport. There was a taxi option. But once we calculated additional expenses, precious time, and nerve cell loss, we decided to forget that other car and rent another one at the airport we arrived.
Only free cheese is in the mousetrap
Obviously, no one is going to give you a free rental car. But if you see an unusually low rental price, you should get suspicious. Where is the catch? Twice we got hooked on such bait ourselves.
In a rental agreement, sometimes is provided a maximum available driving distance. Every upcoming kilometer or a mile is charged additionally in a specific tariff if a driver exceeds it. This happened to us in Portugal. We planned to travel from Lisbon to the Atlantic Ocean, reach the most western part of Europe (Cabo da Roca cape), and at the end visit the terrific Sintra. When we arrived at the airport in Lisbon, we understood why the rental price was so cheap. It turned out we could drive just 60 kilometers in that car. So, we had two options in front of us. Either we had to cancel our planned trips or purchase additional kilometers and travel without any restrictions. Since we didn’t plan on returning to Portugal, we had to empty our wallets again.
The kilometers limit isn’t the worst thing if you want to save money and your trip is planned to the smallest of details. When we signed a rental agreement in the Netherlands, we knew that we could drive 600 kilometers at the most. We calculated how many kilometers we’ll need to drive to visit different sites in advance. But surprise surprise – unexpectedly, I learned about a retail hotspot “Designer Outlet Roermond” and decided that skipping this place would be a sin. This detour costed us additionally because we exceeded those damn 600 kilometers. Thus, if you choose a trip with a kilometers limit, always add more for unplanned wanders.
Buy your peace
Once you arrive at a rental place to finalize your rental agreement, a consultant always offers you to purchase additional add-ons. You probably, automatically answer “no, thanks” hoping to end this process as soon as possible and hit the road. Perhaps you actually don’t need a GPS, but you should consider full insurance, or, as I call it – a “purchased peace.” Here is an example from our trip to Iceland that proves this statement.
When we travel, we usually purchase full rental car insurance. Luckily, we have never had a severe car accident or any other damages for that matter. One could say that we paid for nothing all these times, but our experience in Iceland was an exception.
We were a few hundred kilometers away from Reykjavik when we pierced our car tire. At first, we called the rental car company and asked what to do because there was no spare tire in the trunk (this is another thing to check before leaving a car rental place). They informed us that we had to contact road assistance and call a mechanic. Of course, we had to pay for everything ourselves and later provide the rental company with receipts. And just then, they’ll reimburse us.
Those who have been in Iceland know how much a cup of coffee costs there. Therefore, we weren’t astonished when we got a 600 euros bill for a tire repair. We were delighted that our full insurance will cover these unexpectedly high expenses.
Important details
And finally, here are a few other suggestions that should help avoid trouble. First of all, check rental place operating hours, especially if you have a late flight. Once we arrived 15 minutes before closing time, no one was waiting for us anymore. We had to return the following morning, but our reservation was canceled. A staff member explained that we “didn’t show up on time”; therefore, they gave our car to another client. This is how we lost our money, the rental car, and got our plans partly ruined. Not talking about our ruined mood.
Don’t forget to insert your flight number in your booking details. If your flight is delayed, car rental staff members could check your flight status and wait for you. But don’t forget that everything depends on their benevolence in the end.
If you’re planning on crossing a border with your rental car, don’t forget to inform your rental car company in advance. An additional fee will be applied, but it’s better to pay in advance than get in trouble afterward for not providing such information.
Most importantly, make sure your driver’s license is valid in the country you’re planning to drive. You might need to have an international driver’s license. Once I saw how a Chinese couple was denied their rental car because none of them had a suitable driver’s license and did not get their money back. Same company BTW. That’s definitely an example of how to start your vacation on the wrong foot.
Car rental fails in a nutshell
So, these are the main car rental fails:
Make sure your rental car is waiting for you at the correct airport. One destination usually has multiple airports.
Check if your rental agreement has any limitations. For instance, amount of kilometers you can drive.
Don’t be a penny pincher and buy full insurance.
Check car rental companies opening times.
Don’t forget to put your flight number in your reservation.
If you’re planning on crossing a border, inform the car rental company.
Make sure your driver’s license is valid in the country you travel in.
I hope you took something helpful from this article. Have safe trips! You’re welcome.
