ontheroadagain2013

Our September trip to Germany is coming together but I hope some of you on this forum can answer a question for me with regards to car rentals in Germany. We are flying in to Frankfurt and as of now plan to commute by train for the beginning of our trip around the Mosel and Rhine region. Then we thought we would get a car for the last five days when we travel through Bavaria.

Our last night on the Rhine will be in Oberwesel before heading to Rothenburg ob der Tauber. We'd like to stop along the way to visit the town of Rothenburg where our ancestors are from. So my question to all of you is, where would be the best place to pick up a car? From what I have read, Oberwesel might be too small of a city. Thinking of taking the train to Mainz and getting the car there. Does that make sense or is there a better place? Then after our tour of Bavaria we will spend our last full day (the first day of Oktoberfest) in Munich. We have hotel reservations is Freising. My next question is where we should drop off the car? Is it cheaper and easier to drop it off in Munich or is Freising a big enough city that would have sufficient rental agencies for which we can drop off the car? Thanks in advance for any insight.

ontheroadagain2013

Still hoping for some recommendations...thanks!

TexasAggie

Mainz is definitely large enough (and close enough to FRA) to have a good selection of rental agencies. We've always rented in Wurzburg and then driven to Rothenburg either along the "romantic road" or via the highway.
I'd suggest topping your thread in the morning when more posters are active.

SusannahT

You could try Economy rentals & Auto Europe to see where they have depots listed, as both connect with lots of rental companies.

Cowboy1968

Mainz and Wiesbaden will have pick up locations - you can go to whatever city is more convenient to reach by train from Oberwesel.
If you don't find any corresponding drop off locations in Freising proper, you should drop off the car at the airport. Munich airport - which is in fact 30kms from Munich but right next door to Freising. This will be much more convenient than finding any location in Munich. And you don't pay any extra fee for dropping off at airports (just for picking up the cars there).
The airport and Freising are connected by bus #635 every 20 minutes for a nominal fare - maybe your Freising hotel will even have an airport shuttle.

Yostwl

Keep in mind that if you intend to more than a quick, superficial overview of the Mosel area, a rental car can be very helpful. In fact, we use a car for both the Rhein and Mosel river portions of our trip, and found the driving very easy. We do like to see places off the main tourist path, and that would have been much more time-consuming without a car. Of course, if you only want to see the more popular tourist sights, then public transport is great.

ontheroadagain2013

Thank you, much appreciated. Has anyone had experience with SIXT car rental agency? Someone had recommended that to us.

bettyk

Sixt is a good agency as are the others mentioned here. I have always used AutoEurope.com and Gemut.com for car rentals in Germany with excellent results.

I would go with the company that gives you the best deal for the car you want. If you use your credit card rental car insurance, just be sure you know all the rules ahead of time. Most will require that you pay for the ENTIRE rental with their credit card and decline the car rental company's insurance on the contract.

lwbinpa

We rented a car in Frankfurt and returned it in Munich, both at the airports - so our experience is limited. However, if you've never rented a car in Germany (like us), here are some tips I wish we had known:
1. Unlike in the US, unless you have a letter from your Credit Card company stating explicitly that you, in particular, have rental insurance through the Credit Card company, they will make you purchase it there (extra couple hundred dollars). You will need to request this pretty far in advance of your trip.
2. Unlike in the US, they will ding you for EVERY little scratch on the car. When we turned our car in, it took more than 10 minutes for the guy to "inspect" our car. It was excrutiating!! We found out the hard way when we didn't document a scratch on the car door, which in the US would be a non-issue, and then lost the 600 Euro (more than $800) deductible on their collision insurance for them to get it fixed. Maybe it was just this broker (We got ours through Dollar - which is franchised through Buchbinder in Germany -they also provide for Thrifty and Budget). Before you take the car, go over it with a magnifying glass, including the windshield and wheels - and document EVERYTHING! If you are worried, and what we will do in the future, just purchase the insurance from them without a deductible - then you won't have to worry about a bomb being dropped on you at the end of your trip.
Good luck.

Michael

<i>Unlike in the US, unless you have a letter from your Credit Card company stating explicitly that you, in particular, have rental insurance through the Credit Card company, they will make you purchase it there (extra couple hundred dollars). You will need to request this pretty far in advance of your trip. </i>

That was not my experience in the Frankfurt airport when I rented the car through Autoeurope and had Europcar as the rental agency this past May. I simply signed as indicated that I declined the CDW.

bettyk

Well, I'm with Michael. We have never had to show anything from our credit card company when renting at the Frankfurt Airport or with Avis when picking up the car in Kelsterbach right outside of Frankfurt Airport.

We have also never been billed for any minor scratches. Of course, we have always rented through AutoEurope and/or Gemut when traveling in Germany.

Sorry for your problems but that just hasn't been our experience on our 6+ trips to Germany over the past 10 yrs.

atfox1

I am flying to Frankfurt and I have rented a car from Sixt. Picking up at the 24 hr stn in Frankfurt (on a sunday and most locations are closed) to avoid airport taxes.
Rented BMW 3 series, returning it to Munich Airport 11 days later and the TOTAL fee is 333 euro's. Pretty reasonable if you ask me.

ontheroadagain2013

Does that include the CDW insurance?

Michael

<i>We have never had to show anything from our credit card company </i>

Our credit card information was taken by the agent in case of additional costs, some of which I am contesting for reasons that have nothing to do with normal rental experiences--overcharged for fuel when we could not fuel the car ourselves because it had been taken away to a garage before we could turn it in at our final destination.

LuvToRoam

We always book through Gemut and they are very, very helpful. You can speak to a real person here in the US. [email protected] 800-521-6722

trotters

We also book with Gemut and find their prices competitive. Last trip to Germany we needed to change our reservation twice, and Andy at Gemut was very helpful. Our experience has been great: no hidden fees, no issues with declining CDW or minor scratches on car.

LSky

I've always rented through AutoEurope, Gemut of Kemwell. No letter needed. We decline the CDW and inspect the car when we pick it up. In the bright morning light.

laxatl

I have rented from a number of agencies in Europe but got clobberd by the Hertz franchise in Brussels in a similar fashion. They billed my credit card company for a $900 in damages. I had no proof to contest it. So now i photo and video the car wiht my phone (usually with the attendant standing beside it) when I turn it in so I at least have some proof of its condition.

just_wandering

I picked up a rental car in Mainz several years ago as the starting point of a driving tour through along the Rhine river, among other places. This saved me from paying the hefty surcharge levied on cars rented from German airports and train stations. Actually, I stayed one night in Mainz and picked up the car the next morning, a little more rested than I would have been had I just driven off a few hours after arriving. There was enough to do there (e.g., Gutenberg Museum, Roman Museum) to make for an interesting day. I would suggest you inquire about the location of the rental agency in Mainz. The agency I rented from required a cab or bus ride because it was located quite a distance from the city center. There may have been rental agencies at the Mainz train station, but there would have been that surcharge again, which is quite considerable on a two-week rental.

On another trip, I stayed in Freising the night before flying out of MUC. As another reply suggested, the airport is a very short drive from Freising, so why not just return the car at the airport. By the way, if you will be having dinner (or just want a drink) in Freising, I recommend the outdoor beer garden at the Weihenstephan brewery (the world's oldest brewery, I believe) especially if it is a nice day.

I also recommend you check out www.gemut.com, as one of the replies suggested. They specialize in travel to German speaking countries, but I've used them to rent cars in other European countries as well. They work through AutoEurope, which works through all of the brand name rental car companies. On several occasions they have been able to get rates that are substantially lower than those advertised on AutoEurope's web site which are pretty competitive to begin with. They will also go to bat for you if you run into problems with the rental agency, as I found out on my most recent trip when I had mechanical problems with the car.

Michael

<i>They work through AutoEurope, which works through all of the brand name rental car companies.</i>

I do not understand how Gemut can be advantageous in terms of cost. It needs to make money, and yet it goes through another broker who also needs to make money. Might it not be simple to simply use Autoeurope?