1

Take the train from BCN to Perpignan for example and rent your car in France.

2

Thanks for the idea. However, we will be arriving in BCN by cruise ship and we need to spend a few days visiting cities in Spain including Madrid, San Sebastian, etc. W will cross over into France near San Sebastian. The additional rental ca drop off charges range about $300.

3

W will cross over into France near San Sebastian.

Rent a car in Barcelona, return it in San Sebastián, take a bus to Bayonne (or to Biarritz) and rent a new car in Bayonne. Or rent a car in Barcelona, return it in San Sebastián (or, if possible, in Irún), take a local train to Hendaye and rent a new car in Hendaye.

4

No way of avoiding heavy one way fees, do as Anillos suggests, but I would not bother hiring a car to visit Madrid from Barcelona, use a train or bus or flight. Depending on the other cities you wish to visit I would possibly not hire a car in Spain unless you have plans to tour the countryside.

5

Thanks for your ideas. We love to travel by car whenever we can. We find it very easy to change our plans on the run and avoid the problems associated with luggage handling, buses, taxis, etc. We also have many days without hotel reservations and will stop and find lodging randomly when we get tired or come acoss a city that we find interesting. I think we will just have to pay the extra charges. I did the comparison of a seperate car rental in Spain and then picking one up in France and when you add up all the cost of two rentals and include border crossing by bus or train the savings disappear.

All the ideas are appreciated. We look forward to an extended vacation now that we are retired and have the benefit of being able to be gone for two months instead of the usual two weeks.

Thanks,

Pat

6

Even within France and Spain one-way drop off charges can occur.

7

You can cross the border with the car. So one of you could go to pick up the car in France and come back to where you left your luggage and the other passengers and then put luggage and persons in the new car.
In my experience a drop-off fee for a foreign car at an airport is usually less than a drop-off fee in an office in the center of town.

8

Since you plan on 21 days you might look into eurodrive...depending on where you're from...
I know the plans work for anyone outside of Europe/UK---I'm from the US and loved the plan.
I used Renault but the other French car makers have similar offers.

You go to the website (for your country), look at all the cars available, the options, the prices, etc., then select one (all online). You will know exactly what you'll have to pay and it's an all in price...nothing added after and will include all insurance with no extra fees or taxes. You will be sent a contract which you will print out, sign and send back. You'll need to pay a portion of the charge as the deposit and the rest at least 6 weeks prior to car pickup.
What you will get is the car you ordered, direct from the factory. Very often extras will be added, as when you return the car it will be made like-new and sold as 'gently used' (some French people buy nothing but these models).
You can arrange to pick up the car in Barcelona airport (yes, there would be an extra charge for this) and then return the car to another location.
I always picked mine up at CDG so if you're flying out of CDG it would be very easy to turn the car in the day of your flight...they're about 10 minutes from the airport and they take you directly to your terminal.
Because all the paperwork is done before you leave for the trip, it's a fairly simple matter to pick up the car (and return it).

Here's the website for the US---I've met people from Korea, Oz, etc when picking up or dropping off my car (many trips)...so it's not just for people from US..just a different site for each country.
http://www.renaultusa.com/index.asp

You don't need an IDP (International Drivers Permit) for France but you do for Spain. It's just an official precis of your domestic driver license translated in multiple languages. Auto Club (AAA) can provide them..not that expensive and cheaper than gettng a ticket.
Hope you find this info useful.
sfgirl

9

Assuming you guys are American ($300 could be anything), you are aware that fuel prices are roughly 2 to 2.5 times US prices, right? Use http://www.viamichelin.com as your route planner; the cost indications that it gives (including the tollroads in that part of Europe) are pretty spot on as are driving times. Be careful, we drive faster too.

You also need to take local requirements into account - for example having breathalyser and high visibility vests in France in certain circumstances. Refer to http://www.theaa.com/motoring_advice/overseas/index.html to check what steps you need to cover off.

10

PS - the major agencies are Hertz, Avis, Europcar, National and Sixt. A car would be a serious hindrance in both Barcelona and Paris; pick up and get rid of it at the local airports.