We were considering doing this in Port Douglas only. I've heard this is advisable since the hotel we're staying at, Thala Beach, is a bit far out from the city.

Can I ask what all is involved in renting a car there - laws/insurance/etc.? Is it similar to renting/driving in the U.S. or a different animal?

Thank you.

othr than the obvious tendency to look the wrong way, give way the wrong way and use the wipers to indicate you'll find things a fair bit similar but insurance is cheaper in most cases here than USA. Cars (some may argue) may tend to be more beefy in the states and there are a few laws that are different like turning at red lights etc but mostly you'll be ok. get amongst it and have a go. YOu'll be right so long as you think about it

Check carefully the conditions on the rental company's website to be sure.

What bhuty was referring to is the fact that you're not allowed to turn right (equivalent to left in the US) after stopping at a red light unless there's a sign saying it's permitted. This of course is the converse of the general rule in America.

We had no problem renting in the US, paid the rather punitive CDW charge. I've heard that some American insurance policies may relieve you of the need to pay the equivalent charge in Australia, but I disremember the details.

It's permissible to run over cane toads, BTW.

Assume you'll be renting car from Cairns, really very few traffic lights enroute to Port Douglas. In fact the most north-eastern traffic light in the country is at Clifton Beach, south of Palm Cove and way south of PD. You will come across quite a few roundabouts on Cook Highway, rule is to give way to right and use traffic indicators for exiting. Perfectly acceptable to hit cane toads, but try to make sure you hit them cleanly.

Cooke Highway is a doddle, hiring a car is easy, there was a hire shop in Palm Cove although then the car we got was not too great as choice was limited.
You will need your driving licence passport and be sure you are covered by suitable insurance.

You will however be on the reverse side in both the car and on the road (I am from UK and it was the same way for me )

In addition I would say that hiring a car in the area is well worth it.

Good luck

Muck

In addition to the obvious differences between driving on the left and right, renting a car in Australia is a wee bit different than renting in the US (from an American's perspective anyway).

The bigggest issue for us when renting a car in OZ is insurance. We always decline insurance when we rent in the US as we're covered up to $50,000 on our Mastercard through Mastercard Auto Assist. If you have car insurance in the US, you're covered for car rentals within the US as well as any coverage you might have on a credit card.

In Australia, your car insurance and/or credit card insurance is of no use whatsoever. Mastercard Auto Assist for instance will only provide coverage if you can waive ALL insurance. That's difficult to do in NZ and OZ as some insurance is already included in the rental price and seemingly impossible to decline (I've tried).

So, if you want insurance coverage, you'll need to pay the additional daily fee of anywhere from A$20-25. This usually lowers the excess from about A$2,700 to A$300 or so. You're still responsible for this lower excess if something happens to the rented car.

Soooo, read the fine print carefully. If you decline the insuance, be aware of the amount of your financial responsibility.

FYI - rental companies that rent older cars usually have a lower excess.

Forgot to mention that renting a car in OZ is quite a bit more expensive than renting in the US. For instance, we just booked a two week rental in OZ with insurance for about US $540 - after many hours of searching online for the best possible deal, mind you. Of that amount, about $US 165 is for insurance (ouch).

A two week rental in the US last fall ran me about US $300 for the same type of car, without insurance though.

Make sure you understand the roundabouts.
We don't know why there aren't more of them in the USA because they make so much sense, compared to four-way stops.

Comparing costs of rentals.

I obtained a corporate discount for a small car in UTAH for US$186 for 3 days incl. 2 types of insurances (at about $33 a day for insurance if memory serves correctly).

I rented a van in OAHU for 7 days at a special promotional rate of $515 incl. 2 types of insurances.

I can rent a van (people movers are quite expensive) without any corporate discounts in BRISBANE for about AU$500 (about US$380) for 7 days incl. all insurances.

the costs of rental (in my experience) in USA is cheaper but insurances (if you have to pay them) are expensive.

IN australia, if you work for a big company try asking if that company gets a corporate rate on rental cars.

We rented a car in Cairns in January. We booked ahead of time online with Waterloo Car Center/Red Spot Rentals, and it was A$212 or USD$161 for pick up on Fri pm, return on Tue am. We opted for no insurance, just like we usually do. I can't say that I know what our financial obligation would have been if we had an accident, but it was clearly explained to us and it was acceptable to us.

We drove up to Port Douglas with no problem. The roundabouts were fun, but I was not the one who was driving! Driving on the left was interesting -- my bf had both hands on the wheel at all times, and rest assured that he never drives this way at home.

Enjoy Port Douglas -- be sure to go to the Wicked ice cream shop and have one of their wonderful shakes!!

We rented a car from Cairns airport and drove up to Mossman. By and large, it's a very easy drive, and other than getting out of the airport, everything is well marked.

One note: if you're arriving at night, be aware that the Cook Highway has a 29km stretch of VERY windy roads, which require going at slow speeds. Since it's just a 2-lane road there, you also may have some faster traffic behind you. If at all possible, do it during the day, which will also afford you great views of the water.

Once up in Port Douglas, having a car is great, with driving and parking pretty easy.

bhuty makes a good point - insurance is expensive no matter where you rent. In the US many renters decline the insurance because they're covered elsewhere (personal car policy from a US owned car or credit card). I've never once purchased rental insurance in the US, so I have no idea what it costs, although I'm pretty sure it's not cheap.

I'm just curious - if an Australian were to rent a car in Australia, is he/she covered under his/her personal auto policy, or must he/she purchase the offered insurance to get any coverage?

As an aside, we rented a car for three days in LA, California, and three days in Las Vegas, Nevada - same exact car. The one in LA was a heck of alot more expensive than the one in Las Vegas - mostly due to higher city, state and airport taxes.

My advice to the OP is to check around, because I found huge price differences between rental companies in OZ. Same goes for the US of course - you really have to shop around.