minivan rental ?
 

Seven of us are traveling to Greece this Fall and would like to rent a single vehicle to travel outside of Athens. Does anyone know if it's possible to rent a minivan or anything else that would seat 7, have a/c, V6 engine? We'd like to avoid renting two cars. <BR>

I did the research for France earlier this year, and you can check <BR>www.avis.com <BR>www.hertz.com <BR>www.kemwel.com <BR>there are minivans available!

Check with Auto Europe (www.autoeurope.com) or 1-800-223-5555. We have used them many times in the past and have been very pleased. I was looking for info on a rental in October last night and received an email from them stating, "Auto Europe guarantees the best rates in the car rental industry. If you find a better rate on a comparable car and service with another rental company, we'll beat the rate." Need I say much more? Good luck.

I rented a minivan last year from Auto Europe for 2 weeks in Ger., Swit., and France. They are an excellent company and I highly reccommend them. <BR> <BR>As far a a minivan goes they are much smaller than here. We had six people and basically one bag each and we barely fit. It took us about 45 minutes at the Frankfurt airport to figure out how we would be able to fit us and the luggage in the minivan. We had to fold down one of the rear seats to get everything to fit. <BR> <BR>Bottom line in my opinion is even with modest luggage, seven won't fit in a European minivan even thought the rental companies tell you there is more than enough room. If you have no luggage seven will just make it. <BR> <BR>Another alternative is to rent a mini-bus. That will definately fit seven with luggage. The problem with renting a minibus is that most of the credit card companies that offer free CDW will not extend the coverage to a minibus - it's too big. You may have to purchase it seperately or take your chances if you want to roll the dice. <BR>

Chris is absolutely right. The minivans over here don't have the space that you'd find in a van back in the states. We drive a Renault Espace ( a 7 passenger minivan) for our family of 6 and we are just packed in there on trips. When relatives came over we rented a 9 passenger VW and that had plenty of room for the 8 of us and all our luggage. (Chris is also correct about not being able to get free insurance coverage through your credit card for a minibus.) Hope you have a good trip. I spent 4 weeks in Greece when I was 14 and it was a trip I'll never forget. Mary