CAR RENTAL INFORMATION
Car rental has become one of the most annoying and irritating issues on holiday. We will give you the information that will at least save you the most hassle and, in the best case, allow you to start your holiday smoothly. We are often asked if we recommend a specific provider. In our opinion it is best to rent from the big brokers, we have chosen Autoeurope as it is very clear and cheap.
We recommend clicking on full-full in the search mask for the fuel regulation and for the insurance we recommend choosing the plus package with reimbursement of the excess. Later, when choosing the car, we recommend choosing the excess refund with Super Cover. Please read the tariff details.
TO THE CAR MODELS
Many access roads to houses in the countryside as well as to some beaches are not asphalted and often have large potholes.
The historic town centres with their winding, narrow streets and high kerbs also prohibit cars with little ground clearance and large spoilers.
For this reason, we can recommend the following cars: For two people, Fiat Panda or Nissan Micra are best (Lancia Y is very poor). If you only have hand luggage, the Panda is also enough for a family. For 4 persons we recommend small SUVs like Fiat 500 X, Jeep, Opel Mokka …
ABOUT THE INSURANCE
For the insurance Plus Package with reimbursement of the excess, we recommend from now on insurance with Super Cover, as here also the administration and other costs are covered (see detailed report below).
The local car rental company will try to sell you an insurance package, which you should politely decline. He may not know that you have already taken out Excess Reimbursement with Super Cover. Normally, the car rental company will block the maximum excess on your credit card. Caution is advised for debit card holders, these are often not accepted by the car rental companies. We have also had a case where the car rental company did not hand over the booked car to the customer because the credit card had a limit of 2000 € and was therefore not sufficient to block the excess.
In the event of damage, the car rental company will charge you for the damage up to a maximum of the excess. Autoeurope will then refund the excess. This is not an insurance, but a service.
TO THE PROVIDERS
At Autoeurope, you can also see in the results the rating of each car rental company and whether you are directly at the airport or have to take a shuttle bus.
We have deliberately tried several providers, all of them try to sell you additional services because of the lower prices.
Whether you are satisfied with the car rental company depends, of course, on the individual case, e.g. how the car rental company reacts in case of damage and whether they are accommodating with minor damage. We recommend that you always fold in the outside mirror when parking.
TIPS ON ARRIVAL AND LOCATION OF CAR RENTAL COMPANIES
In Catania, some car rental agencies are located directly in the arrivals hall, while the others are about two minutes’ walk away, in another building next to the car parks. At the moment, there is only one provider with a shuttle bus.
As the waiting times at the car rental agencies have increased, we recommend choosing a provider in the airport so that you do not have to wait additionally for the shuttle bus.
If it is possible for you, one person can also already pick up the rental car while the other person waits for the luggage. Remember that only the credit card holder to whom the car is booked can collect it.
TIPS/EXPERIENCES DURING PICK-UP
UPGRADE: First they try to sell you an upgrade.
INSURANCE: Then they try to sell you a more expensive insurance.
⇒ Politely decline both.
COLLECTION TIME: If you arrive late, you will be told that the car is no longer there, which is not legal in our opinion.
Don’t be afraid to give half an hour to an hour after flight arrival as pick-up time, it takes time to get your luggage.
DAMAGE: Take pictures of the car and don’t forget to ask about the damage.
BE PREPARED, I.E.
– Do not forget your credit card with pin.
– Credit card must be issued to driver, not debit card.
– Check the terms and conditions for possible late arrival. macos/deepLFree.translatedWithDeepL.text