26 x 14 x 8 is pretty big -- make sure that you check with your airline about per-piece weight limits.

Here's a different idea: you say you'll have to shell out an additional $500 to rent a bigger car just for a bit more luggage space. How about offering the girls part of that money for taking substantially fewer clothes & shoes, and then they can spend it in Europe?

IMHO they cannot possibly wear all the things they could cram into a 26 inch suitcase. jenviolin's idea is terrific - bribe them to cut back to reasonable 19 or 21 inch bags and your problem is bascically solved.

OR - you could do it the other way -- Charge them for the excess $ you are having to spend for all that stuff everyone is taking.

Thanks, I think we got the clothes down a bit. But the problem also lies in having to take winter clothes for the Alps, and to take sheets and towels for the gite rental in France. We dumped the towels and will buy them there, but are still trying to work in the sheets. We can stuff them under the car seats when we arrive. I warned the oldest one with the largest suitcase that she will have to sit with the suitcase in the car and not complain if it is too big for the trunk. It sounds bigger than it looks. Its only a little bigger than a carry on on wheels. Part of its bulk is not in luggage space, but in that it is a convertible suitcase/backpack on wheels so it has back pack straps tucked in it as well. We have use Rick Steve's list to pare us down.
cparis-We arrive in Munich Weds morning leaving from Denver on Tues. Then, we go to Innsbruck for 5 days, Cinque Terre for 3, maybe 4, then, a gite in Dordogne for a week, followed by a home exchange in Belgium, and last, but not least 4 days in paris. How about you?

http://www.a1-autoracks.com/deckmaxi.html

gb, the above site has something called a trunk rack, but I'm afraid you may actually have to drill into the car to mount it, and I'm not sure that's allowed with leased cars (?)

Are sheets not supplied at the Gite?
Every Gite I have stayed at has provided linen as an option.
Ask them to supply it for you.
My wife always takes old underwear and throws it away as it is used. You may think its not much space saved but for 4 people its a lot !
Muck

That sounds like a great trip. We are going around Austria and S. Germany ie. salzburg, Hallstadt, Vienna, Innsbruck Garmisch... How did you arrange for the house swap...I always thought of doing that. Have a great trip.

Are you going soon too? We signed up with one of the home exchange companies. Originally, we couldn't find a home exchange at the time we wanted. (We needed June and most Europeans take their vacation in July and August). So what we have is a modified home exchange. We are only staying a few days in their home while they are there, and they are staying a few days while when they are in the US. Then, the remaining time, they have a full home exchange with other family. The family seems fairly nice over the Internet, and we share the same occupation. So, I think there will be no problem. And we probably will have made some friends with a future home exchanger. But, then our free Hilton points got us quite a few free nights (9) so it will work out. Maybe next time, I can be smarter about vacationing later in the summer.

cparis
Thanks for the Kohl's suggestion. I went over and they didn't have any rolling duffles that had a 21 inch frame. But, they did have an expandable luggage backpack with wheels in the suitcase part, rather than hanging at the end like my current bag. So, for 50 some dollars I got that. So, we tried our various pieces in the trunk of our old Corolla, and think we might just make it. At worse, the smaller of the backpacks can probably fit inside the car without too much discomfort for the 3 days where we drive up to 10 hours. Hopefully, we won't need the roof rack. And the home exchange people are coming to the US the week after we leave and offered to carry an excess bag if needed. (I wonder if they would take that antique armoire I'm looking for. ;-) just kidding.