el13207

I am hoping those experienced with travel in Portugal can give me some advice: we are flying into Seville, Spain, before traveling on to Portugal where we plan to spend 2+ weeks before dropping the car in Lisbon. Our first stop in Portugal is Tavira, to which we can travel by bus, however all online reviews seem to indicate that the single available car rental agency there is quite sketchy. Another option is to travel by bus all the way past Tavira to Faro where we could rent from more reputable companies at the airport there. Not sure of the logistics getting from the bus stop in Faro to the airport, but I'm sure we could figure it out.
Has anyone done this routing and can you recommend the best course of action? I know we can't rent in Spain and drop in Portugal without paying a huge surcharge so that isn't an option. Help, please!

cdnyul

It is about a 5 hr drive from Lisbon to Seville. Unless your air tickets are carved in stone, I would fly out of Seville.

Mark

el13207

Mark, our plans have us spending four days in the Algarve, before moving on to Evora, points north, Porto and ultimately Lisbon, from which we then fly to Barcelona and ultimately home. Hotels are all booked as are flights. All I have to do is figure out where to rent a car from a reputable agency as close as possible to Tavira.

Robert2533

Check with Auto Europe about the best place to pick up a rental car. Faro will have more cars to choose from.

el13207

Robert2533, to your knowledge is Faro the best spot to rent a car when one has just crossed over from Spain in that part of Portugal? I know that there will be more cars in Faro than in Tavira, but I just wonder if there is some other place I'm unaware of before then (e.g. someplace once you've crossed the border) where one can rent a care from a trustworthy agency.
We have used Auto Europe before in other parts of Europe, and they list Guerin in Tavira as their selection for renting a car there - but there are some really negative reviews online about Guerin and thus I hesitate to rent from them, AutoEurope-connection notwithstanding.

Robert2533

The larger the city. the better the selection, but you can always request a car you would like to rent be transferred to just about anywhere you want to pick it up. Of course, there may be a delivery fee...

Note that Portugal is somewhat different when renting a car than Spain or France. You have to be persistent.

Rubicund

I think that for the sake of choice, I'd continue into Faro before renting. The town itself has many choices for car rental most of which will be a local firm, but bear in mind that local companies will not offer a drop off as far away as Lisbon. Therefore you're stuck with the national coverage agencies.

However, coming from Tavira into Faro, you pass the airport, so it makes sense to have all your choices within a few yards of each other. Book in advance for the best deals.