Aussie603

HI~ we're planning on renting a car at Shannon airport for six days in July and returning it at Dublin airport. Then we'll need a car in London for one day later in the trip. Any recommendations on car rental companies, and especially in London where I heard it's terrible to drive, should we rent away from the city center if possible?

uncle_sam

Aussie,

Why do you need a car in London for one day?

Driving in London is a disater waiting to happen!

You can get virtually anywhere by by the underground, train, bus or tour.

Are you sure you need that car?

US

Nettie

I presume you are coming into London by air? if so, I don't think you will need to rent a car for one day. The trains and the underground system are by far the best way to get around. All trains from the airports will take you into London.Parking in London can also be frustrating and expensive. Stick with the trains !!

Aussie603

We'll be coming into London from Southampton by train, I think. We'll be staying in London for five days, but we need a car for a day trip out of London and in order to see everything we want to and make some reservations that we have already paid for on time, we need our own transportation. We don't want to depend on buses or the train, especially since we're a family and would have to pay for multiple tickets. I really looked into public transportation for this one day and the schedule just won't work. We'll be left out in the countryside at night with no alternative but to drive.
So that's the reason for the one day rental which I hope is possible and not unreasonably expensive.

Believe me, I really, really don't want to drive in London, that's why
I'm wondering if we could take a train or bus to somewherejust outside the city to get the car. Any help with making these arrangements would be great. Thanks.

andy

Aussie= You can take a train to Heathrow and get a cab to the car rental companies that service Heathrow--that way you will not need car in London, nor have to drive thru the miserable traffic--nor pay exhorbitant fees for parking....

Where will you be driving this car on your trip from London?

Clifton

For Ireland:

Argus Rentals www.argusrentals.com

Their prices were good and we had no problems dealing with them. When we had to make adjustments in drop-off day and called from the road, they were great about it.

Aussie603

Thanks, guys. I've gotten a quote from Argus and they are MUCH cheaper (about half the rate) than the other companies I checked. I'm also going to check out autoeurope.com because they have a deal where you get free rental and free activation on a cell phone if you rent a car from them. Has anyone tried this offer??

ALso, while in London, we want to explore Bath and surrounding areas and then end up at Stonehenge for an "after hours" special access tour. We were told by the tour company that since we are not using their van tranportation from London we have to find our own way back and there are no buses that time of night from Stonehenge. We'd have to pre-arrange for a taxi to pick us up and take us to the closest train station. Anyway it seems the hassle of trying to get back to London late at night isn't worth it, especially since we'll have our children with us, so we decided to rent a car. Does this change your suggestion about the train to Heathrow? Is there a better place to pick up a car since we're heading in the direction of Bath?
Is this a bad idea or is there a simpler way of doing this one day excursion? Thanks, Maria

obxgirl

Maria,

Heathrow is in the general direction of Bath so it's not out of your way to get the car there. And it's definitely easier if you want to avoid central London driving (and I would). Take the tube to LHR and get a car. It's a straight shot on the big motorway to Bath.

You will probably have others tell you this is too long a trip to make in a day. It will be a long one. And you will still have the journey of getting back into central London once you drop your car off at Heathrow. Any chance you can do an overnight near Stonehenge (say Salisbury) and drive back to the airport the next morning to drop off the car?

Aussie603

How long of a drive would it be from Heathrow to Bath and then how long from Stonehenge back to Heathrow?

obxgirl

It's in the range of two hours for each drive depending on traffic congestion near London.

Aussie603

I think we'll be going on a Thursday,if that makes any difference traffic-wise. Could you also give me an estimate on how long the trip on the tube would be from London to Heathrow, and if you know, how long a drive is it from Bath to Stonehenge. Thanks alot. M

Aussie603

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