When we go abroad, our preferred type of holiday is a villa or house hire that we can use as a base to explore our chosen destination.
We love exploring at our own pace, and visiting locations that might be difficult or take a lot longer to reach via public transportation. Having your own car also means you can get out early in the morning and skip the tourist crowds. All in all, hiring a car on holiday is a big must for our family. Renting a car on holiday provides so much freedom and convenience, and allows us to really see a destination rather than being stuck in one place for the whole trip.
Wherever your travel destination, there are bound to be several major car hire companies to choose from. Gathering quotes and individually checking car rental prices for each of these car hire companies can be a long process. But you don’t need to do the hard work! Car rental comparison site Discover Cars checks all the car hire company rates and finds the best price and best car for you.
I recently explored the Discover Cars car rental comparison website, using the same parameters as our most recent family holiday to Menorca, to see what car hire options and rates were available.
The Discover Cars website interface is very simple and easy to use. You enter the airport that you are flying into, the dates for which you want to hire a car, and whether you wish to return your hire car to the same location or a different one.
Once you click the ‘search now’ button, you will be presented with a list of vehicle options and rental rates. You can further filter the search results by categories such as number of seats, supplier, car specs like air con or automatic transmission, and excess amount.
Things to consider when hiring a car
Discover Cars has a comprehensive FAQ section on the website which answers many of the following questions for you, as well as a whole host of other questions you may have about car hire abroad.
Manual VS automatic?
Generally, we prefer to drive automatic cars. However it’s worth pricing up the cost of a manual rental car, too – as often then can be much cheaper than the rate to hire an automatic car.
Book early for better selection of vehicle options
The earlier you book your car hire, the more vehicle options will be available to you. This is especially good to do if you know you need a specific vehicle, ie, an automatic car or a large capacity car. We find the later we leave it to sort car hire, the less options available at a good price for a family car that will seat 5 comfortably plus have lots of luggage space.
What kind of driver license is needed
This depends on the car provider’s requirements. After searching for your rental location and dates, Discover Cars shows you the provider’s rental conditions under the picture of each car offered.
Before renting a car – check if you have mileage limits
Most car providers offer unlimited mileage, but some restrict mileage per day or per longer rental period. Discover Cars lists the mileage policy under the rental conditions for each specific car. Just click on the “Rental Conditions” link under the picture of the car that interests you.
The benefits of getting Full Coverage
When hiring a car, we always try to opt for the maximum coverage possible.
Driving in different terrain can lead to unfortunate scrapes – we’ve definitely had some hairy moments with extremely hilly driveways and very narrow right degree turns on tiny alleyway roads (not ideal for big cars!) Even the most careful sensible driver can come across obstacles when driving an unfamiliar car in an unfamiliar location. Having the maximum protection possible on your car hire eliminates the stress of worrying that you might end up forking out a hefty fee in the event of scrapes and minor car damage.
Collision Damage Waiver is another optional extra to consider. This insurance limits the customer’s responsibility during the rental period and sets the maximum amount of money the customer will have to pay for potential damages.
Renting a car online in advance saves money and time. It’s definitely worth using car rental comparison websites like Discover Cars to find the best holiday rental car option for you and your family.
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Disclosure: Thank you to Discover Cars for partnering with Sorry About The Mess
