Brisbane Travel Forum

Hi

I've just joined and it looks as though VT is a really friendly place.

Has anyone any tips or warnings about car hire in Brisbane. We're visiting in January and will have to rent a car for a couple of weeks to get to friends in Mitchell so we'll need unlimited Ks. I'm happy to go for Hertz or another major but I get confused by the CDW requirements and would rather not get an expensive shock when we come to pay.

We're really looking forward to our visit.

Thanks for any help and advise you can offer.

I don't know about how the UK credit cards work, but many of our American ones include the CDW insurance for overseas rentals, as long as you DECLINE that part of the insurance at the time of pick-up; so check that out--could save you a bunch.

There are many car hire companies in Brisbane including all the majors e.g. Hertz, Avis, Europcar etc. Thrifty is one I have tried in the past when I have had to put my car in for a long service, they seem to be fine. Info at:

www.thrifty.com.au

There are many cheaper companies but some of them have a limit on how far from Brisbane you can take the car so this would probably not be suitable as Mitchell is most certainly further away than the limit which is something like 300kms.

Hope you enjoy Brisbane and Queensland in general. Be prepared for the heat in January.

Hi there

I think most of the major car hire companies in Australia offer unlimited kilometers. We hire cars whenever we travel in Australia through Avis or other major companies and have always had unlimited kilometers. Regarding CDW, all of the major companies appear to not quote on this in the initial pricing when you book online. It is always on the final page as an add-on cost to your booking. Still, if you decide to take this option or not, the final price quoted, should be concrete and won't change from there. We always pay the CDW just in case!

It would be worth checking whether your airline has any partner deals too. For instance, Virgin Blue have a partnership deal with Eurocar I believe. However, even with that I have always found Avis or other companies cheaper but it is worth checking out. Perhaps consider joining one of the major car hire companies clubs if you are likely to want to hire cars often. That will sometimes get you a better deal.

If you are likely to be doing a lot of driving, it would probably be better to go with something with a reasonable engine size too. If you are going for a 4 cylinder car, go for at least a 1.8 litre engine because of the distances you have to travel. Without wanting to tell you how to suck eggs, it is also worth considering how much luggage you need to fit in too when choosing the size of car you want.

Hope you enjoy Brissy!

Cheers

Liz

Welcome to vt Authur! This is a friendly site so stick around and share your holiday adventures with us :o) As the others said, if you go with any reputable car hire company, you shouldn't have a problem.

My suggestion is to pay with your credit card. That way, if they do charge you for any transaction that you have not authorised, then you can dispute it through your Bank.

Have a great holiday!!
Cheers,
Ann :o)