Rental of car in Munich for two weeks - how to keep costs down?

[Setanta12]

We will be flying into Munich and absolutely require a rental car. We're not interested in the make/model/petrol or diesel (will be opting for cheapest) but are interested in discovering any advantage in renting in Munich itself, with car driven to airport for our collection - as opposed to being gouged at the airport - and insurance costs for the fortnight.

Has anyone any experiences with renting babyseats for infant ?

 

[dub_nerd]

I wouldn't think renting outside the airport is going to be cheaper -- at the airport you'll get the greatest competition since all the companies are there. I gave up using the big name car companies years ago and nowadays use economycarrentals.com. They're a broker who sometimes find smaller local companies, although in latter years I find they're just as likely to go with a bigger company implying that the bigger company rates have become more competitive. They throw in various added extras for free (extra drivers and CDW) though I've never had occasion to test how reliable those things are. I haven't hired babyseats but I know people who have and they're expensive. Also, the perennial thing to watch out for that people forget -- even if you have CDW from elsewhere the car company will put a temporary charge against your credit card during your hire period so make sure you have the credit to cover it.

P.S. I have no connection to the company I mentioned, just have used them for a few years. And by way of disclaimer I got gouged for damages by a car company once in spite of cover, but it wasn't ecr's fault (long story).

 

[JohnJay]

Ive used Sixt a few times recently when working in the UK. They have always been cheaper than the other car hire companies. Watch your CC statements after you use them though, they tried to shove on a charge "in error" two different times for me! Once they charged for a tank of fuel (although I returned it full) and the second time they charged me for excess insurance eventhough I didnt want it. They refunded both times without any problems. I wondered how often these "errors" go unnoticed though! www.sixt.com

 

[mathepac]

IME it is always cheaper to rent from the "down-town" branch, away from the airport. It is easy to do a comparison though, just select your collection / return branch.

 

[Wonderpig]

We always rent at Munich airport - I have no money saving tips I'm afraid but we take the view that the convenience is worth paying for.

Central Munich is about 45 mins away by S bahn so getting there wastes time, is inconvenient (especially with kids) and obviously carries a cost.

We also always take the max insurance - we know we're being gouged but take the view that if anything goes wrong we just ring up and say "give us a new car".

We have generally used the same company as they supposedly have some discount arrangement in the airline we use (no prizes for guessing which one!). It's hard to confirm how much the discount is tbh as when you book over the internet you pay a price and then there's always extras when you get to the desk.

Regarding car seats, they have always been decent on the cost and only charged a flat fee regardless of days in use. However, we once had a nightmare where they didn't have the seats we ordered. Two hours in sweltering heat with kids was no fun. Eventually we insisted that they borrow the car seat from another company.


Adding an additional driver was an extra €10 per day so having a single driver is one way to keep costs down.

P.S. Have always found the baggage reclaim in MUC very slow so if you intend to also travel to the city centre to rent car I would add approx. 45 mins for baggage reclaim, 45 mins for S bahn and time for car rental admin. I'd say allow a good 3 hours from landing before you are on the road if you do go into town.

 

[music]

hi
I Too have found Sixt best for car rental.
Public transport in and around Munich incl from the airport is quick and inexpensive. The S bahn, U Bahn and buses form a extensive system. You can travel all around the city and out to the surrounding countryside for Euro 26 per family total per day.
Perhaps take public transport for a day or two and then rent a car?
Also you could look at taking your own baby car seat as baggage on the plane. It will work out less than renting from a car hire company.