twoaussies

Does anyone have experience with renting a car in Cape Town and returning it there. Is the mileage unlimited? The primary driver is 48, but I am 81 - will I be allowed to drive? Automatic seems much more expensive than manual - worth the difference.
Any suggestions as to rental companies will be appreciated.

Odin

Yes I have rented cars several times from Cape Town - I assume you mean the airport? I use Autoeurope as I find the all inclusive prices reasonable and they do include unlimited mileage but I am booking from a different country to you so the pricing and booking conditions might be different. Car rental is very cheap in South Africa so can't imagine an automatic being expensive. It should be ok to be added as an additional driver at 81 but you can call Autoeurope to double check.

christabir

I use Avis. I would use a company that has offices in your home country, if available. Unlimited mileage and insurance included from Avis. Automatics are significantly more expensive and are usually only available in the higher end cars. We always rent a manual and we come from a country where we drive/shift/sit on the "wrong" side! That's a personal choice - if everyone is comfortable driving a manual, rent one. If you are not, spend the money on an automatic. Check with the rental agency about age restrictions. The option of hiring a car and driver is available, too. It's great having a knowledgable guide when going to Boulder Beach and the Cape of Good Hope. Everything in CT is cab or walking distance. We also enjoyed the hop-on/hop-off bus. I don't like to search for parking so I only rent cars in cities if I have to and for the shortest time possible. Have fun - you'll love CT!

Odin

Automatics are not always significantly more expensive, I checked the prices on Autoeurope before making my comment. First car rental has automatics in the Ford Focus car rental group which is $60 more expensive that the same size car as a manual. Plus, there is no need to use a company that has offices in your home country. South Africa has a few local car rental companies such as Avis South Africa and Budget, as well as First, Bidvest and Tempest.

twoaussies

Thanks, I had never heard of First or Bidvest. Automatic is so much easier than stick shift when driving slowly in animal parks. I learned to drive on the 'other side' also, and find it easy to get back into the habit.
Will keep checking. How about petrol prices in South Africa??

christabir

What animal park(s) are you going to? If you are planning to use the same vehicle and drive from CT to reserves, then you should rent a high clearance/high view vehicle for best game viewing. We had good luck with a small SUV (a 4x4 is not needed usually), but stay away from the Avanza van - it hates driving at highway speeds and sucked down gas (petrol). It was a good height, had good windows, but just awful road noise. If you are planning to drive from CT to Kruger, I would definitely consider flying - it's far!

I also priced vehicles before my previous post. At Avis, a Corolla with a manual was usd100, an automatic was usd200 for a week. I think twice the price is very significant for an automatic. You will find the price difference for an SUV will be even more. I was unable to even find one at Avis to get a price comparison. All game drive vehicles at private reserves are manuals - it's not so bad. Rangers drive them many hours a day. I did it for six full days in Kruger - at least 11 hours per day! - and I did fine, and on the "other side". (Yep, we are crazy and stay out from sunrise to sunset when we self drive!!)

The reason I use a rental co with local offices is its so much easier to deal with billing issues. I had a double billing problem and it was just easier to deal with that without the time change and what I will call "American expectations".

Petrol prices in the U.S. are so low compared to the rest of the world it's hard for me to compare. Then throw in the litre/gallon thing... I can't help you there. I thought it was pricey, but prices have come down so much here, I have no idea what's going on in SA. FYI - the only age asked was if you are under 25. I don't think they care as long as you are at least that.

Odin

If you book through someone like AE (& there are several), you prepay and avoid billing issues. There is nothing to pay when you get to the car rental counter. They are a US company, so if you do have a problem they are very good at sorting things out.