Hi,
We will be 12 people travelling from South Africa to Corvara for a ski vacation. We would like rent a 12 seater from Munich but are unable to get a vehicle that will fit 12 people as the usual companies(avis,eurpcar....)only goes up to 9 seats. Any help would be appreciated as we would not like to split the group by hiring 2 smaller cars.

I wish I knew as I have seen some lovely 12-14 seaters made my Mercedes-Benz with adequate room to stand while inside. Very different from the ubiuitous 15-seat vans that one can easily find from Thrifty in the US.

I think they are privately owned by people who do private tours; I have looked high and low for such a thing in Europe and I have never found a rental source in any company. Perhaps they are technically considered a bus, and might require a commercial driver's license to operate.

Best wishes,

Rex

Although I hate giving second hand information, what Rex has mentioned, I've also been told is true. Supposedly in most of Europe you must have a special commercial license if you are transporting more that something like 8 or 9 people. I do know we ran into this problem in the UK when a group of us traveled together. Luckily a member of our host group had such a license and took a couple of days off work to chauffeur us around.

Besides the problem of not being legally able to drive a commercial van - you REALLY should consider renting two smaller vans -- or even better, 3 or 4 cars. If you were travelling in one vehicle you'd all be linked at the hip 24/7. What if some of the group want to ski different slopes? Or some want to sleep in while others get an early start? Or some want to visit a nearby town while others want to ski all day? Believe me -- I have taken groups as large as 13 and it is MUCH easier to make everyone happy and avoid problems if you have transport options and multiple vehicles.

I'd still love to know if anyone ever stumbles across a source. Unless they were OUTRAGEOUSLY expensive to rent (i.e., quadruple a "normal" 9-passenger van, for example, and they might well be) I think that the passengers would greatly enjoy the extra room (using one even for just eight passengers).