Although our last post had us in Vienna, our blog updates are always behind our actual travels. As I write this, I’m in Bordeaux, France, having just finished an inexpensive, one-way, two-week car rental starting in Nice. I want to share my experience to help you plan your own epic European road trip.
Bottom Line Up Front
You can find fee-free one-way car rentals in Europe IF your pick-up and drop-off are in the same country. You can even travel to other countries in the middle for a modest upcharge. For details, read on.
Planes, Trains, And Automobiles
Our loyal readers know that when we say we spend our summers traveling around Europe, we really mean AROUND Europe. Over the past five summers, we’ve visited nearly 20 different countries, not counting cruise ship overnights. To do so, we have mostly traveled by plane or train.
This summer we wanted to tour the villages of southern France en route from Nice to Bordeaux. A rental car is the best way to experience this region. You get a greater sense of the area and its culture that way, IMHO. You can look deeper into something that catches your eye if you control when and where you come and go. A one-way car rental makes it possible to see even more in a given time.
Picking A Mode Of Transportation
Now, I could have taken a train to Avignon, then Toulouse and finally Bordeaux and done local car rentals in each to explore the region, but the travel options between Nice and Bordeaux are not awesome.
Flying would require a connection and about 7 hours of travel time door-to-door for $170pp for the two of us. A train is about 10 hours door-to-door for $120pp, but I would stop along the way and deal with multiple local car rentals (kind of a hassle). So, a longer car rental seemed like a worthy option to consider. It meant 8 hours of driving, but it would be spread over several days.
The Dreaded Drop-Off Fee
Rental car companies can charge a hefty fee for one-way rentals, sometimes related to the distance traveled. I believe the theory is that they would need to pay to get the car back to its place of origin so they could rent it again.
Seems like BS to me. I rent cars a lot and, in the US, many have been from out of state. Their origin doesn’t change anything about how much it costs to rent the car again. I mean, I understand the seasonal snowbird migration along the US East Coast would be a problem, but most other routes would even out over time, I believe.
Autoslash To The Rescue (Again)
Our loyal readers also know I love booking rental cars with Autoslash because I often get a better deal than I could on my own with a little extra effort. This summer, Autoslash came through with another big win on a one-way rental for me as well.
When I asked Autoslash for a quote to go from Nice to Bordeaux for a 14-day rental, it came through with a compact car from Alamo for €430 or €31/day. The next option was nearly €200 more, mostly because of the one-way drop-off fee. I was so happy when I dropped off the car yesterday and the price for my two-week rental was so reasonable. This prompted me to do more research about where and when I could use inexpensive one-way rentals for future European road trips.
A Case Study Of One-Way Rentals
For simplicity, I chose to study 4 day, one-way rentals. First, within France, then France to Spain and Germany. Once I saw those results, I chose to add one-way rentals with Spain and Germany. A clear pattern emerged.
First, Let’s Look At Leaving From Bordeaux
Assuming we are staying in France, I chose Lyon as a destination, about 6 hours away by car. As you can see below, Autoslash found a one-way rental with Enterprise at €222, or €55/day. More than my prior rental price per day. But one-time fees can add a lot to the final bill, so I’m not too surprised.
When I clicked “Pay with Priceline”, I actually found a similar deal with Alamo. I decided to try booking through Alamo directly, and got an offer at €367! This is a case where Autoslash found a better deal for me with the same vendor. However, I was able to confirm in both cases there was no drop-fee.
The next cheapest option from Autoslash was with Dollar Rent-A-Car. As you can see below, their drop-off fee was substantial, leading to a total cost of €356. By the way, Autoslash costs slightly more here, which is why I always check directly booking a car with a vendor identified by Autoslash.
What About Going To Spain Or Germany?
Our next major stop on our current trip is Bilbao, Spain, about four hours away by car. So, I checked into a one-way rental to get there: Zut! (French expression for surprise) – €637. And what about a trip to Leipzig for a little more time with Bach? Merde! (a less polite French expression) – €1017!
OK, What About A Spain-only Or Germany Only Road Trip?
The one-way pricing improves dramatically if I stay with one country. Bilbao to Barcelona is only €178 ($198) and Leipzig to Hamburg is only €218 ($242). That looks pretty good.
Even better, for just €55, I can do a one-way rental to/from a given country and visit another country during your road trip. The Alsace region just got more interesting for a future year. I could start in Paris, drive through France and Germany, and return the car to Lyon. Then hop on the TGV and get quickly back to Paris for onward travel for not much dough. No one can object to that kind of Sweet and Low.
In my experience in the US, picking up a car in one location and returning it to another location, even if they are close, incurs a significant drop-off fee. This can be very different in Europe. You can find fee-free one-way-rentals provided you pick them up and return them in the same country. Of course, always be sure to verify all of the rental car charges before booking. Happy travels!
Where would you like to take a road trip?
