Driving Vacations in Europe

Still, even if it's just one or two of you and therefore renting is going to take a big bite out of your budget, there can be situations in which renting a car is worth the expense. If you are at all planning to visit the villages of Provence, the hilltowns and vineyards of Tuscany, the whitewashed pueblos of Andalucia, or any other itinerary rarely of never served by trains or buses, get the car. The truer Europe lies in the small towns, not the big cities. Don't short-change your experience by short-changing your budget.

Rent by the week, or pay the consequence$

Daily rental rates for periods less than one week are staggeringly high; it can cost almost as much to rent for two days as it does for seven. It's just one of the annoying realities of the industry. If, however, you only expect to need a vehicle for a day or two here and there, there are two loopholes.

Look into the rail-and-drive passes available from Rail Europe (raileurope.com). These get you several days of unlimited rail travel on a flexi-pass (see the Rails section for an explanation) along with several days of car rental. You can add rail days or car days as needed to customize the pass to fit your schedule.

P-lease don't rent for long periods of time

If you're spending at least 17 days in Europe, do not rent a car. Lease one instead. For periods longer than 17 days, short-term leasing a car fresh off the factory floor is almost always cheaper--often by 20 to 50 percent--than renting. And since the car is technically yours, you get full insurance coverage--no added charges for CDW or theft protection, no deductible, and no taxes (foreigners don't have to pay VAT on purchases). You also get something no rental can give you: that that new-car smell.

This is not a new phenomenon or a fly-by-night operation. These are deals set up directly by Renault, Pugeot, and other manufacturers, and they've been offering them since the 1950s--it's just never been widely advertised. It's easiest to arrange a lease through one of three agencies.

Europe By Car (800/223-1516, or 212/581-3040 in New York, europebycar.com) has the widest selection of vehicles by far, and while the cheapest are usually something French (a Renault or Pugeot), anything from a Ford to a Beemer is available.

The European car rental specialist Auto-Europe (888/223-5555, autoeurope.com), which for standard rental contracts works just like an airline consolidator, also has a leasing program with Peugeot.

If you'd prefer to go straight to the source, Renault Eurodrive (800/221-1052, or 212/532-1221 in New York, renaultusa.com) has an office set up in the U.S. that does nothing but arrange these short-term leases on its own vehicles. The big asset with Renault is that they throw in a free cell phone to use while you are there.

A few other side benefits: since you're technically buying the car (with a buy-back clause in the purchase agreement) you get exactly the make and model you want, not the "Opel Astra or similar" a rental agent promises.

You don't have to pony up the $5 per day for any additional drivers. It's your car, you can let your husband drive if you want to. Also, leasing is available to anyone over age 18 (rental firms often won't rent to people under 23 or 25 years old).