Rental Car from Paris to Basel
 

Plans have changed. We are finishing a river cruise in Basel then will be going to Paris to meet family. Our thought is to spend a few days getting back through the wine country to Basel to pick up our return flight home. Though the Basel airport is fully in France, the rental car companies charge a drop off fee of upwards of $500 because it is Basel Switzerland. Hmmm. Day rates are excellent but the drop off is way out of line. An option would be to return the car in Paris and then fly back to Basel, or to take the train. Both doable but not preferred. Any ideas?

Well, why not drop the car off in the nearest possible place to Basel in France -like Mulhouse's train station and take half-hour train ride to Basel SBB Swiss station? by trains book ticket way early -up to 90 days or perhaps more to get deep discounted tickets - www.oui.sncf is the official site on which to do that - www.seat61.com has adroit advice about doing that yourselves online- general info also www.ricksteves.com and BETS-European Rail Experts.

Yes a drive Paris to Basel could well wind thru Champagne wine district with Reims and Epernay great for Champagne tours - from Paris area follow the winding Marne River - lined by small Champagne houses - to Epernay - if WW1 interests you stop by Verdun and its manynpreserved trench-warfare battlefields.

See you found your answer that you indeed can drop off car at airport without charge.

Try Autoeurope or Kemwel where you can specify that you picking the car up on the French side of the Basel airport. The trick is to leave or arrive without getting into any Swiss motorway for which you need a vignette. I did this a few years back and know that both Basel and Geneva airports have this type of arrangment.

Thanks!

Euroairport, which is the official name of the Basel-Mulhouse-Freiburg airport and which might be the only one in the world that serves three countries at the same time, is actually on French soil as you already know, Just request a rental from Mulhouse airport instead of Basel airport.