Renting a car in germany?

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Ravin

Given that you're asking this question in "Frankfurt", I'm assuming that you're flying in to FRA (Frankfurt Flughaven) at some point. Most large German airports, like FRA, have plenty of rent-a-car companies to pick from, some of which are American and some that aren't. I know for a fact that FRA has Hertz, Avis, Budget, and a couple of other American companies, plus German companies like Sixt, Europcar, and others. Sixt in particular is everywhere in Germany; whatever company you go with, bear in mind that the rates from an airport location will always be higher than if you went into town and to a non-airport office--but you lose the convenience, of course. Sixt and most car rental companies rate rentals by class of vehicle, length of time, and the days of the week that you have it (ie, middle of the week is less expensive than weekends). If you're going to be taking six people around, I'd recommend a van over an SUV, just because there are more vans than SUV's in Europe, and they're more economic (fuel is FAR more expensive in Europe than it is in the U.S., which I like to remind folks when they complain about gas being a mere $3 a gallon here... it's easily twice that or more in Germany). European vans are also generally bigger and roomier than American vans, at least as far as passenger vans go... they're boxier-looking, but they're roomier. If you can, try to get a diesel--diesel fuel is much less expensive than gas, in Europe. Also, bear in mind that most cars in Europe are manual; Europeans don't usually opt for automatics, and many of them regard automatics as only being necessary for handicapped drivers or people otherwise incapable of handling a stick ;) You can ask for automatics, though, if you really need one... airport rental companies usually keep a higher stock of them on hand for American visitors; but they are often in higher demand and sometimes more expensive, and sometimes all the automatics will be out--meaning you're better off asking for a manual, if you can drive one. Rather than going through Orbitz, I'd recommend looking up the airport you're going to, especially if it's Frankfurt--many German websites will have a British or American flag you can click on to see the site in English; and there ought to be a link there for the airport's list of rental car companies. Look at the companies' websites for rates, or call/email them if necessary, and make a reservation with them directly, and compare it to Orbitz and other all-in-one websites and find which one has the best rate... I say that, because you'll often get a better deal going directly to that rental company for a reservation than through a third-party.

I used to live close to Frankfurt, and visited the city and its airport many times. If you need further information about either, or about the surrounding area (or even the neighboring countries... I did quite a bit of traveling), feel free to shoot me an email. I'd be happy to share my knowledge with you.

Sacha D

You can try Eurocar (quite a good deal)
http://www2.europcar.com/

or Avis
http://www.avis.com

And Hertz
https://www.hertz.com/

I never used orbitz just go straigt to the rent-a-car company.
those 3 companies always have a good cars.

Rath

I would suggest renting directly from Hertz or Avis. They have high quality vehicles and you can add on any extras you might need, such as car seats or nav system. Both companies have prime locations at every major airport in Germany. Car brands are the same, but the models are different in Europe, so as for what you should rent, I'd suggest a van. Some models to look for are the VW Sharan, Ford Transit, Mercedes Vito, or Mercedes Viano. If you prefer a station wagon/cross-over, this vehicle type is called a "Kombi" in Germany. Be sure to ask for an automatic transmission vehicle because most cars in Europe are manual shifters. Also, be prepared for some sticker shock. Renting cars is very expensive in Germany and the weak Dollar doesn't help much either.

DeSaxe

With 6 persons I would recommended renting a Van, I found a number of offers through the Orbitz site. In Europe the size of the vehicles are allot different that what you may be used to, and if you can not drive a manual transmission then you need to look for an automatic which are even fewer. And chances are they most likely will be diesels so be sure to remember that at the fuel pump.
I would also highly recommend getting an ADAC membership. If you have a AAA membership you should be able to get this through AAA. I would get the one with legal services and member insurance. In Germany it is refereed to as ADAC Plus with Rechtschutz. Resaon is a number of car renting companies have a large deductable normally 3000. euro so any damage to the vehicle may be a problem. Also when travelling outside Germany inthe EU a number of countries have strange laws and having an attorney at your disposal is a good idea. You can not beat the coverage ADAC offers. From on the spot loans, attorney assiatance & fees, road side assistance, towing, etc. I hope you never need it but it is a grat piece of mind just to have it.

â™Ą lovely â™Ą

I have never heard of orbitz before. So I couldn't tell but there's something else you could try. I have rented cars in germany several times and of course i am comparing the prices too. The company with the best offers is enterprise because they have specials plus you sometimes get a rebate as american.........

Worth a try

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