renting a car in England
Jun 8th, 2003, 07:05 AM
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renting a car in England
We are going to England for the first time and will be spending 4 days in London and four days traveling to the Cotswolds and the Manchester area. Is it better to rent a car, then taking trains and a bus when you are carrying a lot of luggage with you. This is our first time and it would seem to us the car would be the best way to go.
Jun 8th, 2003, 07:22 AM
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Don't rent a car in London - public transport is easy and convenient and parking is an expensive nightmare (not to mention the congestion charge (daily tax for driving in central London).
A car will be very useful in the Cotswolds, and possibly in the Manchester area, depending on what your plans are.
Many visitors find it easier to rent a car from Heathrow airport (travel there from central London by tube or Heathrow express) so that you are already on the right side of London for the Cotswolds and don't have to drive through London to start with.
A car will be very useful in the Cotswolds, and possibly in the Manchester area, depending on what your plans are.
Many visitors find it easier to rent a car from Heathrow airport (travel there from central London by tube or Heathrow express) so that you are already on the right side of London for the Cotswolds and don't have to drive through London to start with.
Jun 8th, 2003, 10:30 AM
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You could also take a train to Oxford and rent a car from there.
Try AutoEurope for a rental,I have used them before and found them to be a good deal and trustworthy.
http://www.autoeurope.com/
Try AutoEurope for a rental,I have used them before and found them to be a good deal and trustworthy.
http://www.autoeurope.com/
Jun 9th, 2003, 07:54 AM
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Definitely rent the car, you are not only able to stop whenever you want but can get to places that would be a pain/impossible to see by train and bus.
Ruth is right, don't try and rent in London. We normally get a car at Heathrow, although getting out of there can be a problem depending on time of day. Make sure you get a marked up map fr. the rental agency to help you pick the right exits out of the roundabouts. We've used Autoeurope fr. Heathrow. Their toll-free service is great, although we've sometime found their counter people at Heathrow don't always speak the best English.
We've also rented from Avis in Oxford. Excellent service, they even picked me up at Christchurch College and delivered me afterwards to the bus depot.
Manchester is much easier to rent from, agencies are right at the terminal.
We've found the best deals with Autoeurope, and in fact if you find a better deal, let them know and they'll beat it by 10%. Good luck.
Ruth is right, don't try and rent in London. We normally get a car at Heathrow, although getting out of there can be a problem depending on time of day. Make sure you get a marked up map fr. the rental agency to help you pick the right exits out of the roundabouts. We've used Autoeurope fr. Heathrow. Their toll-free service is great, although we've sometime found their counter people at Heathrow don't always speak the best English.
We've also rented from Avis in Oxford. Excellent service, they even picked me up at Christchurch College and delivered me afterwards to the bus depot.
Manchester is much easier to rent from, agencies are right at the terminal.
We've found the best deals with Autoeurope, and in fact if you find a better deal, let them know and they'll beat it by 10%. Good luck.
Jun 9th, 2003, 09:40 AM
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This may sound silly to some, but you need to figure in the right-hand-drive factor. I've driven all over continental Europe but still haven't mustered the guts to drive around London and the surrounding towns. I suppose it's just a hurdle to do it for the first time and comes easier after that. People driving on 'the wrong side' of the road still freaks me out. heh
Jun 9th, 2003, 10:14 AM
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MikeW: Your thought brings to mind my first experience on driving on the left.I had reserved a rental car in downtown London for touring the countyside.The rental agency was on Wigmore Street,and after I had completed the paperwork inside the rental office, they brought the car around and doubleparked it in the street.The attendent handed me the keys, and with traffic backing up behind told me,"You'd best be off right away sir." I had no time to familiarize myself with anything on the car.I slammed the gearshift into 1st and off I went.The only thing I kept thinking about was that ,the driver always sits in the middle of the road.It still seems a mircle to me that I made it through London in one piece.
Jun 9th, 2003, 10:54 AM
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(giggle) The first time we were stationed in the UK, my hubby had flown over ahead of me to get the house/buy a car, etc, while I settled things back in the States.
When I arrived, I found that my hubby had bought us a second-hand standard!! I had never driven a standard before, just an automatic. So learning that, plus learning how to drive on the "wrong" side of the road at the same time, almost drove me insane.
About a month after I arrived, we went to Edinburgh, Scotland for the day. Some of the streets in Edinburgh are very steep. By the end of the day, I was sure I had shortened my life by at least 10 years, just from the stress of driving ( I was terrified of rolling down the hill backwards, straight into the car behind me.)
And the roundabouts!! Oh, I love 'em now. They honestly make complete sense to me and I wish we had them throughout the States.....but back then, it was quite a challenge figuring out how everyone knew when to go and when not to go.
But it all worked out in the end, and good thing too, since we're back in the UK for another tour!
When I arrived, I found that my hubby had bought us a second-hand standard!! I had never driven a standard before, just an automatic. So learning that, plus learning how to drive on the "wrong" side of the road at the same time, almost drove me insane.
About a month after I arrived, we went to Edinburgh, Scotland for the day. Some of the streets in Edinburgh are very steep. By the end of the day, I was sure I had shortened my life by at least 10 years, just from the stress of driving ( I was terrified of rolling down the hill backwards, straight into the car behind me.)
And the roundabouts!! Oh, I love 'em now. They honestly make complete sense to me and I wish we had them throughout the States.....but back then, it was quite a challenge figuring out how everyone knew when to go and when not to go.
But it all worked out in the end, and good thing too, since we're back in the UK for another tour!
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