* CDW … why is this so difficult?

 

I had made a car rental reservation, for 8 days in Sicily, with Hertz, some time ago, making sure to exclude collision damage waiver (CDW) insurance. The reason for this is that CDW is provided by Citibank, if I pay for the car rental using my MasterCard, but Citibank’s 100% coverage is invalidated if I also purchase CDW (with a deductible) from the car rental company. So buying CDW from Hertz would mean spending more money for less coverage. I made this mistake once before and I am very careful to avoid it again.

Two days before we left, while I was on the web looking for an address for the Trapani airport to plug into our GPS, I saw an ad for car rentals in Trapani by a booking company called ArgusRentals.com, with which I was previously unaware. I clicked on the ad, found a NYC phone number, booked a car rental in Trapani (with Europecar) for roughly 50% of the Hertz price. I was absolutely clear about no CDW, and was assured that CDW was excluded from my contract.

Argus sent email contract confirmations to me, two times, but I did not receive them. I asked them to send it to Pat; she did not get it either. We are having some sort of email problem, involving blocked emails, and have not been able to determine if it is Comcast or Orange.fr which is the culprit. That is a story for another day.

I looked up the Argus reservation on their web site; it was there, but without any details. I called Argus, and they gave me the Europecar confirmation number, without which Europecar will not release the car. I cancelled the Hertz reservation.

Then, nervous about not having a full written confirmation, I asked Argus to send the confirmation to Pat’s daughter; we simultaneously asked Kerry to forward the email to us. That procedure worked fine.

However, when I read the Argus confirmation, it said CDW included. I called and was given totally incorrect information by two Argus agents, who insisted that I didn’t have CDW even though the contract said I did. There is a second level CDW insurance, which covers the deductible, and they were saying that since I didn’t have the ‘super’ CDW insurance, I had no CDW insurance. I got a number for Europecar HQ in Ireland and called them.

(thank you, Skype, for making all these international calls so inexpensive.)

Europecar immediately confirmed that they did not offer car rentals in Trapani without CDW coverage. I would have to cancel the reservation. But, would I be able to get another car from Hertz, or anybody, without CDW. A call to Hertz international reservations resolved the problem. And, my happy ending was enhanced by the fact that the new Hertz reservation was $300 less than the one I had previously cancelled. The original reservation was for an intermediate car, since no compact was available. This time, I was able to book a compact at the lower price. Also, maybe last-minute reservations, if a car is available, are discounted. Something to keep in mind.

Post script. When I picked up our car from Hertz in Trapani, the contract included CDW, although the price did not. ALWAYS READ THE CONTRACT !!!  After a brief discussion, Hertz corrected the contract to exclude CDW. The car is a Ford Fusion 5 door square back, which I think is not a compact.

As I drive this too-large car, through the narrow, twisting streets of Taormina, with crazy Italian drivers and motor scooters constantly passing me on the right, noticing that most of the other cars have dents large and small, I am very happy I was persistent enough, and fortunate enough, to retain my 100% Citibank CDW coverage.

 

* trains and web schedules … not always equal

We are taking the 14:45 (2:45pm) train back to Collioure. I had purchased tickets for a later train but we’re ready to go earlier.

As the train is pulling in, Pat notices that the train board does not include Collioure. But I looked up this train on the web, on a search for ‘Perpignan to Collioure,’ and it had a departure time (14:45) and a Collioure arrival time (15:10), so up we go. 

As the train approaches Argeles-sur-mer, the stop before Collioure, and begins to slow down, I look for a conductor to confirm, just to be sure, that this train does actually stop in Collioure. But no conductor is nearby, and the train pulls out. It’s only 3 minutes from Argeles to Collioure, but in that interval, the conductor appears and informs us that the train does not stop again until it reaches Cerbere, the last stop in France, and not a place you want to linger.

We enter the tunnel before Collioure, there’s a brief flash of light, and we’re in the tunnel after Collioure.  We remember the Kingston Trio’s immortal song about the MTA in Boston, where you need(ed) an exit fee, and the poor man “would never return.” 

More to the point, I explain to the conductor that the web had stated a Collioure stop, and she, a lovely young lady with excellent English (“my boy friend is British”), writes a note on our ticket to her colleague in Cerbere that we should be allowed to return to Collioure without additional charge. In Cerbere, the colleague agrees and the return train is due to leave in 20 minutes.  

TIP:  The lesson is you cannot trust the web schedules completely. Always check in the station. 

This happened to me once before, when I was at the station trying to buy a ticket on a train which did not stop in Collioure. I thought that was my mistake, but now I think it probably wasn’t. I’m going to try to figure out if there is a way to read the web schedules that will reveal this kind of error.

* if you’re taking a train to Paris, book early

When I returned the car in Perpignan (from our Nice trip), the train back to Collioure was 25 minutes late. This is very unusual, but later I learn the reason.

We had planned to leave for Paris on the 6:04 am train Monday morning, but the ticket clerk says the local train from Collioure to Perpignan (where we connect with the Paris train) probably won’t be running. We can hope the train runs, arrange a taxi to Perpignan, or take the Sunday night overnight train which is direct from Collioure to Paris.

I choose the overnight, but in seats rather than the sleeper, which we used last year and which is awful, and we get an earlier transfer to Rouen, so we’ll end up with more time on Monday to see the D-Day sights.

I use our Senior Carte to get the discounts, but learn that I should have booked the tickets sooner. The way it works is like airline miles, with a 50% discount for a limited number of tickets and a 25% discount after the 50% tickets are gone. I get a mix of 50% and 25% discounts, and the cost of the round trip for two people is 279 euros.

* let down by Budget Car Rental in Rouen

On our way to Normandy, we train and taxi to the Budget location which is not at the station. We resolve to favor, from now on, car rental companies which are at the station. For this and other reasons, we’re beginning to re-think my choice of Budget as our car rental company.

The next hour provides much more reason to do so.

Our car is waiting for us. While doing the paperwork, I repeat that we are declining the collision insurance (covering damages to our rental car) since this coverage is provided by our Citibank MasterCard. I then say, offhandedly, that I understand the liability insurance (covering damage to other property and persons) is automatically included in French car rentals, which I have been told by Budget US when making the reservation.

The local Budget manager says this is not true, and if we want 3rd party liability insurance, it will cost 25 euros per day, 100 euros total for the 4 day rental. I protest, and ask him to call Budget in the US to resolve the question. Instead, he calls a friend of his who speaks better English, and after several interchanges between the friend, the manager, and me, he reluctantly agrees to call Budget’s main French office in Paris.

I explain the issue to the English speaking person, who says she thinks I am correct, but will check with her supervisor to be sure. She leaves me on hold so long I think we’re cut off, and I ask the local manager to call again.

Instead he calls the friend.

As you can imagine, this has taken a long time - we’ve now been waiting for 30 minutes with all these phone calls, and everyone is getting aggravated. Finally, the manager again calls Budget in Paris, and remarkably, I speak to the same woman, who tells me I’m correct, that 3rd party liability insurance is included in all French car rentals without separate charge.

So it’s now clear that the local Budget manager was trying to charge me 100 euros ($140.00) for something he knew, or should have known, I did not need.

OK, now to the car, which upon inspection, is filthy.

All that time on the phone, the manager did not see fit to make sure the car was cleaned. We wait another 15 minutes while the attendant cleans the inside of the car. By then, we say enough and decline the exterior cleaning.

When we return the car four days later, our charge sheet includes the CDW insurance we had specifically and explicitly declined, and some other charges. I’m furious. The desk clerk calls someone (the manager?) and the charges are removed. I get copies of both charge sheets so I can later document my complaint letter to Budget. We also decide to cancel all remaining Budget reservations (Ireland, Italy, Key West, etc, etc, and do business with another car rental company.

US Air sent our luggage where?

 

We’re flying from Key West to Philadelphia, the prime reason being the graduation from grad school of Pat’s son. Of course, the clothes for the ceremony, as well as the weekend of busy events with all six of our children before we leave for France next week for over 5 months, are all in our one suitcase.

We check in and the ticket agent places a luggage tag on the suitcase.

Prompted long ago by something Pat read and told me about, I ask, “Does that tag say Philadelphia?”

“Yes,” answers the agent without looking, as another US Air person grabs the bag and starts to put it on the conveyor belt.

“Don’t take that bag,” I say, loudly enough to attract the attention of everyone in the general area. This irritates him, but I could care less. “Show me the bag,” I add.

He turns it so I can see.

“What does BDL stand for?” I ask, reading the destination on the luggage ticket.

“Hartford, Connecticut.”

I turn, furious, to the ticket agent. “Did I ask you what the ticket said? Did you say Philadelphia?”

She changes the ticket (she had switched luggage tags with the agent standing next to her) but never apologizes. When she’s done, I insist on seeing the suitcase again.

The point is not that she made a mistake. Mistakes happen.

The point is that travelers must check every single time to avoid the impact of losing your bags, for a few hours, a few days, or forever.

Do the airline personnel get irritated when you do that? Sure. Do I care? Not one whit.

great Euro low-cost air search site

This site accesses all of the low cost airlines. Enter departure airport, get all destination airports from there. Choose a destination, get a booking page.

 http://www.flylc.com/directall-en.asp

Adventures in Low-Cost Travel - New York Times - 4/22/07

 A great article for those travelling in Europe. Find it at

http://www.nytimes.com/2007/04/22/travel/22journeys.html?ref=travel

changing rental cars in Mexico

                        

I reserved our car in Ajijic, Mexico, with Budget car rental, rather than one of the local operators, specifically because I felt more comfortable being able to talk to someone if there was a problem or a question. But it didn’t work out the way I had hoped.

The original car rental was from March 14 to March 24, 10 days. Then we decided to go to Puerto Vallarta for two days. I could park the car at the Guadalajara airport (~ $50.00 USD) or return the car and get a new rental upon our return to Guadalajara.

I called Budget’s international reservations number in the US (using Skype) to find out how much I would save, if anything, by splitting the rental into two, for 5 days and 3 days, rather than the original 10 days.

Unfortunately, Budget could not give me the answer. “We can’t get into your open contract.” Very frustrating. The Budget person was polite and apologetic, but not helpful.

“You’ll have to call the Budget counter at the Guadalajara airport,” she concluded.

“They speak Spanish, and I don’t,” I said.

“I’m very sorry,” she said.

I tried to call the Budget counter at the airport but I didn’t get through, so I don’t know if I would have found an English-speaking agent, but I doubt it. In any case, I had to solve the problem myself.

First, I reserved a car for the 3 days after our return from Puerto Vallarta. Now I knew that price. NOTE: You can always cancel a car reservation without penalty.

Then I entered dates for a 5 day rental, to learn what the charge would be, although I did not actually make that rental reservation. Adding the two rentals together, there was a savings of another $50.00. No parking, less car rental, $100.00 savings.

When I returned the car to Budget prior to our flight to Puerto Vallarta, the charge was exactly what the web site had calculated for a 5 day rental. We picked up the new car (which turned out to be the same car), upon our return.

Now, why couldn’t Budget, on the phone, have done the same calculations I did on their web site?

This small incident points out how important the internet is to the way we travel. You plan in advance, but you can also modify your arrangements as your plans change.

Guadalajara airport

This is a small and welcoming place. Upon first arrival, we go to the designated luggage carousel and wait. Soon a representative arrives, asks us where we came from, and tells us that the luggage has been switched to another carousel. A little thing, but nice, done with a caring and professional attitude, appreciated. Good first impression.

The airport has a Starbucks, a small English book section, the usual array of duty free shops, and comfortable seating. It is like many second tier airports in Europe, which are so very preferable to the inhospitable, inefficient places most major airports have become.

When we return several days later for our trip to Puerto Vallarta, the airport is bustling at 7:00 am, so unlike the Miami terminal where we began our trip at a similar hour.

a small absurdity on the train to Dublin

                 

Sometimes little things happen which are so absurd they leave you absolutely dumbfounded, and whenever you recall the incident later, you can’t help but shake your head and smile. One of these episodes happens on the train from Cork to Dublin.

We’re in the latter stages of a long day … up early, train to Cork, walk around town, bus to the seaside village of Kinsale, then reverse the process. It’s been a nice day, but we’re tired and I’m thirsty. There was a vending machine at the station, but then we got in line to board the train and it was too late.

I perk up when I see a railroad employee pushing a small food cart down the aisle of the train. My thirst will soon be quenched.

“Do you have anything cold to drink?” I ask.

“No,” he says, without looking up or stopping.

I guess he’s at the end of a long day, too. Anyway, I give up on the idea of a cold drink. Just then, however, another passenger comes walking down the aisle carrying two cold beers. “Pardon me,” I ask, “do they have cold sodas wherever you bought those beers?”

“Yes, they do. There’s a counter in the next car.”

I look around for the guy with the cart, but he’s in the next car, and besides, what would I say to him anyway?

I get up and get my soda.

driving too fast on the wrong side of the road

                             

I don’t drive much at all any more, since we have no car. In fact, one of our important criteria in choosing to live in Key West and Collioure is that we don’t need a car in either place.

However, some of our retirement travel does require driving. Including a trip from Galway to Westport.

Unless you want to pay much more for an automatic drive, when you drive in Europe you’re going to be driving stick. Actually, this is fun for me, a throwback to “really driving.”

Pat, who never learned to shift gears, can’t share the driving, but we don’t take long trips anyway, so that doesn’t hinder us much. Maybe some day I’ll try to teach her, since it would be useful for her to know in case of an emergency.

In Ireland (and later in Australia), the stick is on the “wrong” side, so I’m shifting gears left handed. While also driving on the left side of the road. Fortunately, the pedals are the same as in America.

Every initial driving instinct is wrong, and I have to think constantly. It’s not relaxing in the least.

The hardest part for me is judging the space on the left side of the car. It’s even more frightening for the person sitting over there, since on the narrow Irish roads, there’s very little margin for error.

Pat has a tight stomach the entire way, urging me repeatedly to move away from the left edge of the road which is frequently a stone wall. But I can’t move, since there are only inches between the right side of the car and the center line of the two lane roads.

On top of that, Irish road signs share that “uncertain” characteristic of Irish oral directions, so there’s frequent uncertainty as to which road to take and when to turn.

Five minutes into our 2 ½ hour drive to Westport, we agree that we should have taken the train from Dublin to Westport and rented a car there, but it’s too late for that now. We have to tough it out.

Another problem is speed. Irish drivers go way too fast for the roads, often passing on narrow two lane roads, and a head-on collision frequently seems imminent. I’m tempted to look up accident statistics on the web, but I’m afraid it would be too terrifying.

I’m actually thrilled when I get behind a large, slow-moving truck or farm vehicle. Now I can drive more slowly and it’s not my fault.

We do get to Westport, and back, without incident. Except for the damage to our nerves and digestive systems.

Ryanair to Dublin

Ryanair was Europe’s original low fare airline and is still Europe’s largest low fare carrier. This year, Ryanair says it will carry over 35 million passengers on 346 low fare routes across 22 European countries, utilizing 15 European bases and a fleet of over 100 Boeing 737-800 aircraft. They claim a team of 3,500 people, comprising over 25 different nationalities.

We get in line to check in, although it’s still 30 minutes before they’re scheduled to open the line. I bring a tray from the café and have my dinner standing in line. 

The weight limit is 15 kilos each. We packed and weighed carefully. My bag is 15 kilos, Pat’s is 15.5. There’s no charge for the extra half kilo, and they never weigh our carryons. Other passengers have significant carryon, which must be more than 10 kilos allowed. Nobody bothers them, a lesson for next time.

The flight leaves and arrives on time. The plane is clean and comfortable. Food and drink are available for purchase.

train to Girona

Our Ryanair flight to Dublin leaves from Girona in Spain. To get to the Girona airport, we train from Collioure to Port Bou, just across the Spanish border, then from Port Bou to Girona, and then by shuttle bus from the train station to the airport. It’s not the easiest of trips, especially with (too much) luggage.

The train from Collioure to Port Bou is a few minutes late, which is unusual. French trains are usually precisely on time. The delay had to do with a defective air conditioner. Unfortunately, they didn’t get it fixed, and it’s over 90 degrees outside, with no circulation inside. The good news is that it’s only a 20 minute ride to Port Bou.

In Port Bou, we buy our tickets to Girona. Buying tickets separately seems to be much less expensive than purchasing the through ticket in Collioure. I don’t know why.There’s a wait in Port Bou but the station has a relatively nice café.

A young lady offers to share her table. She’s a musician who plays viola for the BBC Orchestra, on her way to Girona to mentor a young people’s orchestra giving a concert next week. The train to Girona is also without air conditioning, but the conversation is good and the hour goes quickly, except for another 20 minute delay at some dusty stop with no station.

At the Girona train station, we catch the (air conditioned) shuttle bus to the airport.

low cost airlines

Since the inception of low cost airlines, many destinations in Europe are now less expensive by air than by train.

We’ve flown Ryanair to Dublin, booking our tickets on the web (http://www.ryanair.com/site/EN/). Sometimes, if the flight is not full, they will offer tickets for a one euro, or even a penny. You still have to pay the taxes, which might be 25 euros, but still, what a bargain.

The flights are a delight. If there’s any kind of question, however, contacting Ryanair by phone is very difficult.

The other issue is luggage. I think the low cost airlines may make more money on overweight luggage charges than they do on the tickets. So be careful. Weigh everything, and give yourself a slight margin for error. I will say they have given us a one kilo grace without extra charge.

There are other budget airlines. We flew Wizzair (http://wizzair.com/) to Budapest and it was excellent. Although the startling pink and purple planes were even more distracting than the unusual name.

We’ve never flown Easyjet (http://www.easyjet.com/en/book/index.asp) but have heard good things.

From Collioure, flights on low cost airlines are available from Perpignan and Carcassonne in France, and from Girona in Spain. Some destinations have daily flights, some less frequent, but you can reach almost anyplace in Europe.

organization of the train

When you have a reserved seat on a train, you have to find the right car, and do so quickly, because the train doesn’t stay in the station very long. If you board the wrong car, you will have a difficult passage through narrow aisles with all your luggage. This is not fun.

Our friend Karl pointed out to us that most stations have an electronic signboard which lists the exact sequence of cars in the next train and gives a platform location for each car.

So easy when you know.

don’t take the sleeper

We’ve enjoyed sleeper trains with a private compartment in other European countries. We bought first class tickets on the sleeper train from Collioure to Paris, expecting similar privacy, but instead we were in a four berth compartment. When we entered, there were people on the lower two berths, plus a dog in a cage.

The dog was never a problem.

always ask twice

We’re in Paris, with a ticket on the 11:24 am train to Collioure. It’s only 7:00 am and there’s an 8:24 am train.

“Can we exchange?”

“Certainly, monsieur, but only first class is available. It will cost another 125 euros.”

We decide to take a walk instead. About twenty minutes later, Pat suggests asking a different ticket agent the same question.

Lo and behold, we get a different answer. Second class tickets are available. The price difference, reflecting a rush hour train, is only 29 euros. We buy the tickets at 8:10 and easily make the train.

Our seats are close but not together. The second ticket agent took the time to search for two singles. The first agent couldn’t be bothered.

We’re in France, where the consumer is never king, and service is not our job. Always polite, always with a smile, but never going that extra step.

Well, almost never. The second guy did.

the train goes everywhere

The train, located less than 100 yards from our apartment, is a major amenity for us, as well as a necessity. Trains in France, and throughout much of Europe, are clean, comfortable, and on time.

Travel by trains has become much more affordable for us since we purchased our Carte Senior. For 53 euros per year (each), we are entitled to 50% off all tickets if available. If the senior allotment has been used up, then we get 25% off. We made back our investment on our first round trip to Paris.

Unfortunately for visitors, you have to be a resident of France to get the senior discount. Even without it, trains are often cheaper and always easier than driving.

TIP: Ticket early. Many reserved trains will fill up. If you can, book way in advance. You can always get a refund, or exchange tickets (if available), if your plans change.

LEW

packing for 5 months abroad

What can possibly be interesting about packing?

Well, consider that we’re going to be away for five months, and need to think through everything we’ll need, while balancing our needs against ever-changing airline luggage restrictions.

We’ve received many different answers from American Airlines to the same questions about luggage. We finally decide who and what to believe and write down the particulars in case someone else decides differently when we actually check in.

We have scales, in pounds in Key West and kilos in Collioure. Put something in, take something out. Will the airline’s scale give the same result as ours?

We’re trying to anticipate the weather in all of the places we’ll be, including Australia in what will be spring for them in October. Our plan is to leave much of what we take this year in Collioure so we won’t have to take it again next year.

LEW

where’s the car?

We disembark in Perpignan and find ourselves on the middle platform. There are steps down and an elevator up into the station, but no carts and no porters. We’re unwilling to let our luggage or boxes out of our sight, so we set up a relay.

Pat guards the remaining suitcases and boxes while I carry and drag one at a time about fifty yards to the top of the stairs, leaving them in sight as I return for the next. Same process down the stairs and along the underground corridor to the escalator.

Thank goodness for the up escalator. What’s this? They’re shutting down the elevator. Pat pleads. I plead. Someone takes pity and keeps the elevator running. We get the bags up.

We’ve arranged to pick up a rental car in Perpignan. The in-town Budget car rental office closes at 5:00 pm, and it’s now 4:30, which is why we were so anxious to get the early train.

I find the office, just down the street from the train station. It’s closed!

Now we’re stranded in Perpignan, with more luggage and boxes than we can possibly manage, and no car.

Next to the closed Budget office is a Hertz office, open. As happens so often in France, the young woman at the counter is as helpful as can be. She calls Budget’s other office at the Perpignan airport, and within 10 minutes, they’ve returned to get us.

We drive 37 kilometers (22 miles) and arrive at our apartment in Collioure. I put the key in the lock and turn it. Nothing happens.

I can’t unlock the door. I remember vaguely that there is something different about this lock, but I can’t remember what. We stand in the hallway, frustrated by our long trip, not knowing what to do.

Then suddenly, there is our neighbor Brigitte, an angel from heaven, walking down the hall to greet us. She opens the door and we’re home in Collioure. We raise the electric gate and stare at the magnificent mountain view.

For about five minutes.

Then we collapse into bed and sleep until mid-morning the next day.

LEW

Paris Gare Lyon

It’s January. We own a 300 square foot apartment in southern France we haven’t seen since the previous July. We’re going to spend much of the summer in Collioure, but we can’t wait that long.

We decide to fly over to begin making our new home comfortable and connected. This time, we decide to fly to Paris (instead of Barcelona), take the train to Perpignan, and rent a car to drive to Collioure.

We lug along two oversize boxes, checked as luggage, containing art work and photos to hang on our apartment walls. In fact, we have so much luggage we can’t fit into a normal taxi at Charles de Gaulle airport, and have to wait for a larger van taxi.

The trip from the airport to the Gare Lyon train station in Paris takes about 30 minutes in moderate traffic. We’ve been worried for days about transferring our luggage and making the morning train. The next train isn’t until many hours later. But we make it with time to spare.

Outside the station, two men with carts magically appear as we exit the taxi. Who are they? Should we trust them? They turn out to be free-lance entrepreneurs waiting to serve the weary and confused.

They rush the carts to the ticket windows, wait for us to purchase our tickets, and then hustle us to the platform and to the train, which has not yet begun boarding passengers. They open the door. We’ll be the first to board.

Is it the right train? Our new friends the luggage handlers insist it is, but between their poor English and our worse French, we’re not sure. Then I see a small sign on the side of the train with the same train number as on our ticket.

Thus encouraged, we board and negotiate a fee for the services provided. We settle on 20 euros, which we regard as more than fair for helping us over logistics problem we had worried about for days. Next time, we’ll do it ourselves, but for this first time, we feel it was well worth the expense.

The train ride from Paris to Perpignan is pleasant and comfortable, and the food, like all food in France, is excellent.

LEW

best site for European train schedules

 

We use the train extensively. In fact, we selected our Collioure apartment in part because it was close to a train station. But I spent many hours trying to find and interpret schedules, both the little printed schedules available in the stations, and several very poor web sites, before I found the Route Planner at

http://plannerint.b-rail.be/bin//query.exe/en?L=profi&en=++++English++++

This site offers user-friendly entry of all European stations, along with desired travel date and time of day, and then provides all of the resulting schedules, with intermediate stops and layover times (try Paris to Moscow – 39 hours with 7 changes, but you can get there).

The only complication is that there may be several stations at major locations, so you have to choose the one you want to get the schedule.

LEW

packing 93 books

Pat and I like books. Lots of books.

As we head off to the “land of no Barnes & Noble,” both of us are terrified that we will run out of books to read. Collioure, we believe, has no English book shops.

So we take 93 books with us for our first summer abroad, including fiction, non-fiction, and research for my next novel.

93 books weigh a lot. We explore many expensive ways to ship them, but in the end decide that the least expensive solution i sto pay the overweight luggage fee. We pack two suitcases and two boxes, even a few ounces under the 70 pound max.

Our flight over involves several connections, and the boxes barely make it.

Later in the summer, we find a used English book store in a neighboring town, and we also buy 25 more books in Ireland and Australia. Most we read, and some are left in Collioure for next summer.

LEW 

car rentals

 

I make car rental reservations far in advance, either directly at the car rental company sites (most often www.budget.com) or at Expedia (www.expedia.com), where I can see all of the companies which serve the location I’m interested in, and compare prices. Both Budget and Expedia have user-friendly reservation systems, especially once you’ve used them several times and are familiar with them.

Yesterday’s car reservations included Philadelphia (May), Barcelona (later in May), Perpignan (for Nice in June), Rouen (for Normandy in June), and Ireland (July).

cancellation charges

Expedia does not charge a fee for cancelled or modified car rental reservations, unless these are bundled in a reservation with flights, in which case cancellation and change fees do apply. There are no charges for cancelled or modified car rentals at any of the company sites. Credit cards are not charged for car rentals until you return the car. So there’s no penalty for making reservations well in advance.

keeping records

With the amount of travel we do, it would be impossible for me to keep it all straight if I didn’t record things in an orderly and timely way. As soon as I make the new reservations, I record all the details (pickup and return times and places, type of car, and cost) in the appropriate calendar date in my Microsoft Outlook. I also update my travel budget, which I keep on an Excel spreadsheet, replacing the estimated cost with the actual cost. Before we actually travel, I’ll print out the appropriate reservation pages (car rental, air, hotels) to carry with me.

collision damage waiver

My Citibank MasterCard provides insurance for any damage to a rental vehicle. There is no additional cost for this insurance. However, if you accept the collision damage waiver insurance from the car company, Citibank won’t pay. Thus, you will incur extra cost for insurance you don’t need, and if you have an accident, will have to pay whatever deductible the car company includes with its insurance. This happened to me once, and it took me a year to get my money back, which I only did because Citibank had failed to properly advise me when I questioned them in advance on this precise point. So check with your credit card company to find out if they provide this insurance and what the conditions are.

other car insurance

None of the issues about collision damage insurance has anything to do with liability insurance, contents insurance, or any other insurance offered by the car rental company. In Europe, it seems that liability insurance is automatically included in the rental rate. I usually take the liability insurance (if it’s not included) and decline all other insurance, including the collision damage waiver.

Always make sure, at the counter, before you take your car, that you are getting the insurance you want. So far, by the way, I have never met a car rental agent in any country who did not speak English.

LEW