If you are traveling overseas, radisson plaza hotel fort worth you can see the city sights by train or bus, but if you want to see the countryside and travel the terrain you're going to need a car. There are many similarities with renting a car in the U.S., but be aware of some of the differences.
You may need an International Driver s Permit , if the country you are visiting requires one. Usually, a car rental agency will be able to tell you if you need one. You will need to obtain the IDP before you leave the United States.
radisson plaza hotel fort worth Try to book you rental in advance either by phone or online. Many major U.S. agencies such as Budget have an overseas agency. Typically, overseas Budget car hire agencies only accept credit cards and sometimes booking online is less expensive red carpet inn hotel atlantic city than renting in person.
Have a look at your U.S. auto insurance policy to see if you are covered red carpet inn hotel atlantic city for overseas rentals. If your policy does not provide coverage in the country you're radisson plaza hotel fort worth visiting, you will need to purchase sufficient coverage from the rental radisson plaza hotel fort worth agency.
Think about the car you're going to be driving. European countries feature roads built for horse travel in the 18th century and tight parking in villages. radisson plaza hotel fort worth You might want to scale down from the car you drive at home, especially with gas running around $10 a gallon in Europe.
Tell your car rental agency if you plan to cross any borders while you have the car. They'll be likely more knowledgeable about any requirements to get you across the border, and of you need special or extra insurance. radisson plaza hotel fort worth Some agencies restrict their cars from going across borders red carpet inn hotel atlantic city so ask first.
When renting a car in Europe, look out for age restrictions. These vary by country so you'll need to know them for each country you're visiting. If the country does not have age restrictions, the agency might. Some agencies radisson plaza hotel fort worth require renters to be less than 70. Limitations radisson plaza hotel fort worth vary according to the individual rental car company, type of vehicle and by country. John McCain's mother , who is in her nineties, was denied a rental car in Italy because she was too old. Her response was to buy the car.
Some countries may have limitations or restrictions on younger drivers . Generally, red carpet inn hotel atlantic city though the rental age is 21, and government red carpet inn hotel atlantic city personnel can rent at 18. Look out, though, in some countries for a fee that is sometimes charged to drivers red carpet inn hotel atlantic city in their 20s. In fact, it's best to go over the contract to check for add-ins, fees and other surcharges beyond the daily rental rate.
In many countries, an "inclusive rate" for insurance red carpet inn hotel atlantic city includes Collision Damage Waiver (CDW) and theft protection. red carpet inn hotel atlantic city With CDW, you are generally released from financial responsibility for the vehicle, though you'll have to pay a deductible of some sort. Check to see if your credit card has an insurance program, and if so do they offer CDW. Check on your credit limit, in case your overseas rental agency requires a deposit. In some cases, the deposit radisson plaza hotel fort worth could exceed the credit limit.
If you get a speeding ticket overseas, don't assume you can beat it because the court date will be well after you've left the country. The ticket will be traced back to the agency red carpet inn hotel atlantic city and you may have to chip in an administrative fee for this "service" as well.
Finally, drive defensively . Whatever state you're from, there are probably stories about the bad habits of drivers from other states. Remember, overseas, you're looking at a different driving culture radisson plaza hotel fort worth . In Germany, red carpet inn hotel atlantic city it's faster, but in other countries it may be slower, or you might not know the limit until you've been stopped by police. Traveling in Russia once, I was surprised when my guide decided to turn off the engine at a red light to save power.
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Very informative post. I can add that if you live in Ecuador and plan to rent a car during a visit to the United States, check booking agencies such as Argus.com. Their prices are much lower than companies like National, Hertz, radisson plaza hotel fort worth and Avis, and include insurance. But the car MUST be booked outside the U.S.
Also, toll roads are popping red carpet inn hotel atlantic city up everywhere radisson plaza hotel fort worth and booths red carpet inn hotel atlantic city either don t exist, or, are not always red carpet inn hotel atlantic city manned. Some, have no provision for even taking change. Your license plate is photographed and you are billed, or, in the case of a rental car, the company. red carpet inn hotel atlantic city Then you ll be hit with a processing radisson plaza hotel fort worth fee ($25) for each picture taken! You can avoid this by buying a toll tag (expensive) as I did for Texas. But I had no such tag for Oklahoma red carpet inn hotel atlantic city and it was a major inconvenience avoiding toll roads that I had no way of knowing if they were manned, took change, red carpet inn hotel atlantic city or didn t.
If you are planning a trip across the USA in a rental car, you may want to research your route carefully, beforehand. You may also be able to rent a GPS that can keep you off toll roads, assuming its programming is current, but I chose not to. I was renting a convertible radisson plaza hotel fort worth and didn t want to risk leaving a high dollar item in the car with the top down and unattended.
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