sunflower2

We're going to spend a week in Austria and a week split between Switz and GErmany.

We want to fly into whatever city we can get the best airline rates from Raleigh NC (we're thinking Frankfurt, Munich, or Zurich), and are open to making that decision in conjunction with what county is the best and least expensive to rent cars.

I'm thinking Germany is probably the most reasonably reasonably priced, but I don't know.

What is your wisdom on the best country (Germany, Switz or Austria) from which to rent a car?

Any suggestions on rental car companies?

Any opinions on best cities to fly into?

THANKS!!!

Sunflower2

SalB

The best country to fly into is the one where you get the lowest air fare. As far as rental cars, check as many sources as you can and compare prices. I just rented a car last week and found as much as $200 difference between companies. In all honesty, most were in the same ballpark and I didn't choose the absolute cheapest because I wanted four doors but it does pay to shop.

http://www.europebycar.com
http://www.kemwel.com

The above are two reliable web sites and you can check the usual Budget, Hertz, etc. They usually have European rentals. You might also want to do a search in the window above on Austria and rental cars just to see what has already been written about the subject.

Another possibility is http://www.france.com and click on the auto rental tab on the right side of the screen. They are very reliable too.

Have a great trip.

RufusTFirefly

We've used Nova Rentacar a couple of times and have been pleased. They had the lowest rate at the time and place we were traveling.

www.novarentacar.com

But do shop around as no one broker or rental company has the best rates everywhere, all of the time.

rex

<<The best country to fly into is the one where you get the lowest air fare.>>

Well, true, but at the same time, the cost impact of the total itinerary ought to be considered also - - measured in both money, time and convenience. Since an open jaw "semi-circle" itinerary is often the best way to accomplish this, then flying into/out of Germany is probably the best option - - since the two Germany airports you mention allow for a fairly good-sized semi-circle through the three countries. It's worth mentioning that Basel can "count" as either a Swiss or a German airport, from the standpoint of no drop charge on a returning rental car.

But it all depends on what specific destinations appeal to you - - the FRA/MUC open jaw means that you could "skip" the segment (only about 4-5 hours) in between these two big cities. You may not want to skip that - - it could include Rothenburg ob der Tauber, Ulm, Stuttgart, Heidelberg and more (a lot of places I don't personally know omitted from this list).

One alternative to consider is to fly into London, since you want to spend more time in Austria than the other two countries. On ryanair.com you could connect onward to Graz - - meander north, and then west to get to Germany or Switzerland - - and then you could circle back as minimally as Salzburg to return the car and fly back home.

No matter how you plan it, the possibilites for a semi-circle trip are somewhat constrained by your wanting to cover a lot of ground, east-west from (some parts of eastern) Austria (like Vienna, for example) to much of Switzerland.

You might want to consider just leaving Swizerland out of this trip and just visit Austria and Bavaria.

Or consider an all-Austria trip!

Best wishes,

Rex

TuckH

Try this...

http://www.gemut.com/

I think you'll find what you're looking for.

brennynp

We just returned from 2 weeks in Germany, Austria, Czech Rep. and Italy, with 2 driving segments and 2 train segments. I went with Autoeurope and found excellent rates (they are a broker). Renting in Germany and Austria should be very reasonable if you get a manual transmission. Also, see if you can get a diesel engine.

curmudgeon

Frankfurt or Munich usually have cheapest fares. It definitely pays to shop around for car rental; there are often tourist specials if you book ahead of time. One thing we Americans are not used to are the steep "drop charges" for returning a car in a different country - the EU hasn't gotten unified enough to allow the cars to float between countries, so it has to be transported back, and the charge can be several hundred bucks.

I think both Austria and Switzerland have Motorway fees - you have to buy a sticker on entry (if it hasn't been done by a previous renter) to use the main highways.