What to know about renting a car in a foreign country

I have rented a car in two countries, Ireland and Spain. The reason we rented in these cases we wanted to travel outside of the city we were staying in. My opinion is when you are in a city like Dublin or Barcelona, you do not need a car.  There are plenty of transportation offerings in the city. Not to mention driving in a city no matter where are you can be a little nerve wracking.  This is even multiplied when you are in a foreign city.

Planning your self- drive

You have decided to rent a car and take a road trip in a foreign country. Before you leave for your trip, there are some steps you must take before you get to your vacation destination.

•   Renting a car –  DUH..well this step is a no brainer.  Most of the rental car agencies that are in the United States, rent cars in most European countries. However, there are few things to consider or ask when renting a car in a foreign country.

o   Make your reservation on the phone vs online.  This will allow you to ask the agent some of the questions below.

o   If you will be visiting another country outside the one you are renting from, just ask that it is ok if you drive the car into another country.  In our case, we drove across the border to France for a couple of days and had no issues.

o   If you do not plan on returning to the country you rented the car, can you return the car in another country.  In my planning for Italy, if you rent a car in France, you cannot return the car to a location Italy.  The car has to be returned to a location in France.

o   Once you select the car, you may want to verify how many pieces of luggage the car can hold.  We learned this lesson when we arrived to pick up our car in Barcelona.  The website said the SUV we were renting could hold 4 pieces of luggage and 4 people, but when we got there the car barely could hold the 2 we had (we had 2 other people joining us along the way).  Luckily we were able to go back and get a bigger vehicle, but this may not always be an option.

o   Speaking of size, understand the terrain where you are traveling. This may require you do some google searching on driving thru <TBD> country.  You want to understand if the roads are narrow. Because if they are like in Ireland or Italy, than a SUV is not the car you want to rent.  In Spain, there was no issues.  The roads we drove on were your typical motorways or 2 lane roads.  When my friend I drove in Ireland, we drove outside of Dublin, the country roads are so narrow barely 1 car fits.  We were happy we had the small car.  

o   Stick shift vs automatic – you might have driven a car with a stick shift since you were 16, but nothing can prepare you for driving a stick shift when you are driving on the opposite side of the road, like in Ireland. Your shifting is backwards and can be very challenging. I know several of my friends who rented a car in Ireland, and always get an automatic.

o   Pay the extra money and get the car with the GPS?  I am on the fence with this one.  When I selected this option for the car we rented in Spain, my assumption was the GPS was part of the car.  However, it was a separate, and not very easy to use. The issue was it could not pinpoint your current location, and sometimes it was not easy to read street names.  I had purchased an international plan on my phone, so I would get on Google Maps on my phone to get us the directions we needed. Also, an old school paper map comes in handy too.  We used to track where we were at on the motorways and distance. So although we didn’t really use the GPS and probably get our money’s worth, I still think it is a nice thing to have.  It just another backup in case your other options fail.

o   Get the number you need to call if you have questions or issues with your reservation.  Because I had made the reservation in the United States, I needed to contact an office in the US vs in Europe.  It took a bit of work to locate the correct number to call.

•        Other things you want to consider

o   Do you need an international driver’s license?  Although the rental car company did not require that we had this, it is a Spanish law.  So to ensure we did not end up in a Spanish prison, we went to AAA and obtained one for $15.

o   Do you need extra insurance?  Check with your insurance company or credit card company (like American Express) to see if they cover foreign rentals or offer coverage.  When we rented in Ireland the rental car company said I had to buy insurance because mine would not cover any damage to the car. Although I felt he was full of it, I had not done any research on this, so I bought the insurance he was selling.

Self-drive vs Private car

Honestly I did not know the option to have a private car to drive you from point A to B. In planning my current trip to Italy, I have discovered the option for a private car.  So I really can speak to the experience of a private car.  I’m sure there are pro’s and cons to both.  With a private car I am sure you will get a local person whom can provide you with a plethora of information about the region you are driving you through and make stops along the way that you probably driving on your own will never know about.  The con is it will cost a lot more money than renting a car.  It really is what your comfort level is driving in a foreign country and what you want to experience.  My take is sometimes it fun to make these discoveries on your own.  This is what makes for some great stories when you get home.

Do you want to self-drive, but don’t like the planning?  I know when I was planning it probably took me a month or so to determine the route and where to stop.  There are tour companies that can do this planning for you, and you will meet a guide along the way.  Responsible Travel.com has a very similar itinerary to the trip we took through Rijoa. Might be something to look into if interested.  If you are planning a driving trip to Spain, feel free to email me.  I would be happy to answer your questions or provide information.