rmoore926

AZ- Thanks again. We're from California so I'm used to driving on the right. And, like your family it seems, I'll be doing the driving. I've always used public transport in Europe (it's been 20 years since my last trip) so this renting a car is going to be a new experience.

Thanks to all of you that have contributed so far. Renting a car seems the best way to see this part of France. I have been enjoying looking for our accommodations while we're there. Still searching. If I come across a few contenders I may ask for more opinions.

john183

I agree that renting a car to see the rural areas of France is the best way to go. For me, driving in rural France is not difficult and is more of a pleasure than a chore. The Loire part of our trip was similar to what you propose. We rented a car in Rouen, drove around Normandy, then to the Loire Valley and eventually dropped it off at the St Pierre des Corps train station in Tours to return to Paris.

In the Loire we spent four nights in Amboise. Having a car made our Loire visit very enjoyable and I think it would have been very hard to do what we did without a car. We simply plugged in where we wanted to go and just followed the directions. On our first full day we drove to and toured Chenonceau in the morning, had a late picnic lunch there, then later that afternoon from our hotel we just walked around the town and to the Amboise castle and to Clos Luce. The next day we visited both Chambord and Cheverny. On our last day we went back to Chenonceau to celebrate our granddaughter’s birthday with a nice lunch at the castle’s restaurant. We then went to Chisseaux and took a short boat ride on the River Cher to see Chenonceau from the water. And finally that evening we went back to Chenonceau to do the night walk. The next morning it was a quick easy drive to drop the car off at the station and take the train to Paris. I posted a long trip report if you want to see more details from our trip.

I did not see it mentioned above and I’m not sure how the situation is now but in my experience, unless you specify an automatic transmission at a higher cost, you will most likely get a car with a standard transmission. I can drive a car with a standard transmission so I did not care what they gave me. Out of all our car rentals in Europe, only twice did I get an automatic. One was a very lucky free upgrade in Rennes and the other time in Reims I had reserved a standard but they just gave me an automatic for the same price.

shelemm

Every major car rental agency clearly states if the transmission is automatic. In general, standard is cheaper to rent, but in many cases the price difference is not as significant as it used to be. Automatic is no longer a rarity on the roads.

rmoore926

shelemm - good to know. I know how to drive a stick, but it's been many years since I've done so.

bilboburgler

The basic numbers are that there are more electric cars in France (>5%) than automatic cars (<5%). The only danger is you book an automatic and then you don't get it. Perhaps now is the time to try electric?