Loading summary
Transcript13 lines
- [00:01]
A
When it's time to scale your business, it's time for Shopify. Get everything you need to grow the way you want.
- [00:07]
B
Like all the way.
- [00:11]
A
Stack more sales with the best converting checkout on the planet. Track your cha chings from every channel right in one spot and turn real time reporting into big time opportunities. Take your business to a whole new level. Switch to Shopify. Start your free trial today.
- [00:29]
B
Now let's see that I'll be doing. Hello, my name is Claudia. I was born and raised in Sardinia and I still call it home. I am the mastermind behind the Streetly Sardinia Travel Blog and now the Streetly Sardina Podcast where each week I'll bring you the best Sardinia has to offer and and share my most useful tips that will help you plan a memorable trip to my wonderful island. In the last episode I talked to you about the hidden gems of Cagliari. This week I will share with you all my useful tips for renting a car in Sardinia. Let me stress that as always, you will find a more detailed version of today's episode on my blog, swiftlysardinia.com let me remind you that you will find the link to my blog post in today's episode description, so don't forget to read that for more information. Now today's topic Renting a Car in Sardinia Whenever I have friends visiting, whenever I have consultancies with anyone that is coming to Sardinia, my recommendation is that they rent a car. This is really the best way to get around the island. It allows you to visit as much as possible to reach all the best beaches, to visit all the prettiest villages, to check out everything even if you have limited time. When renting a car in Sardinia, I always recommend using Discover Cars. It's my favorite comparison site. What I love about them is that they have a very powerful search engine that looks for local and international companies. It pulls out the best deal on car rental and they also have reconciliation of up to 48, sometimes 24 hours before you actually pick up the car. I've done it many times. I use them myself and they have budget friendly full coverage policy. Now here's everything you need to know about renting a car in Sardinia. First of all, here's a quick guide. My recommendation is to use Discover Card to find the best deals on car rental. I recommend using prepaid cars so that you don't have to pay anything on arrival. Pick a supplier that has 8 plus rating from other travelers. Look out for and make a note of the amount required for the deposit. Remember that the main driver must have a credit card. Some companies allow you to use a a debit card. Usually those are more expensive. I always recommend choosing full to full fuel policies to avoid unexpectedly high fuel charges and beware of the allowed mileage. Usually it's best to have unlimited, especially if you're planning a long trip. Read the pickup instruction carefully and pay attention to the location types. Usually I recommend picking a car at the airport or at the ferry terminal because they are more convenient. Sometimes there are some companies that have a chateau bus to the pickup place. It can be annoying. I've done it sometimes and you have to wait around so that's not fun. Now here are my tips. First of all, as I said, my first recommendation when renting a car in Sardinia is to use Discover Cars. Now you may be wondering why I keep recommending them. It's my favorite car rental company. No joke. I remember renting a car years ago with a different company and it was a mess and I ended up stranded in Rome airport without a car trying to sort it out with with the customer service. It took hours. Since I've used Discover Cars, I've had zero issues. It's very easy to find a good car with Discover Cars. First of all, you need to put in your details. Decide where you want to rent a car from and where you want to return it. You may return the car from at a different place from where you picked it up. So maybe you're landing in Cagliari. In that case you will have to put Cagliari airport as your pickup location and you're departing from Olbia and put Olbia as your departure place. Put in your travel dates and what kind of car you want to rent. I will explain a bit more about this in a bit. Filter your search ratings. Normally I go for eight stars over 10 as a minimum. It probably is a bit more expensive, but you know you always get what you pay for and cheaper companies sometimes have hidden fees. Select full coverage. It's a small additional €10 a day that covers any damage to the car. This would normally include repair work, towing, lost keys, windows and glass repairs. Basically, it allows you to avoid having to pay the car rental company for additional insurance. Hit search and the engine will give you the list of companies that have cars available for the specific requirements you have. As I said, I recommend getting full coverage insurance. You never know what's waiting for you on your Sardinia holiday. It can be a relaxing, nice holiday, but there might be some inconveniences adding those extra euros for good insurance. Will come in handy. Even a flat tire can turn into a headache. When you rent a car, one thing you must realize is that even if you have your own insurance via credit card company, maybe this may not be accepted here in Sardinia. And by law you need to have insurance wherever you rent a car. Here in Italy, you should get a comprehensive insurance that covers you for any liabilities. For example, if you're involved in a car accident when you're renting a car. Full coverage also includes collision damage waiver, which some of you again may have via the credit card. It protects you in case of accidents. Personal liability insurance. It covers medical expense for you and the passengers. It also includes theft protection. Because you never know. And you know, here in Sardina it's relatively quiet, but you know you may want to go for the extra protection. Full coverage also includes any damage to the body of the car. It's also worth pointing out what is not included. Excluded bits are damage to the interior parts of the car. Cleaning fees, damage that may occur because of unforeseeable events that or that you have incurred with because you didn't adhere to the terms and condition of your rental policies. Will local companies accept Discover Cars full coverage policy? In my experience, some rental companies here in Sardina and even in Italy will try to push their full coverage policy even if you already bought one with Discover Cars.
- [07:57]
C
While holiday shopping is almost always fun, credit can be confusing. That's when you get MyFico. Download the MyFico app now and shop with confidence, knowing that you can stay on top of your credit 24, 7. Get your FICO score straight from the people that created it. Plus free credit monitoring and a free credit report every month. No credit card required. FICO scores are used by 90% of lenders, so trust the MyFico app to keep you in the know. Visit myfico.com free or download the MyFico app today.
- [08:29]
B
Let me stress that you're under no obligation to sign up for that additional fee full coverage. I've once found a vendor that was very peshy. It was late in the evening, I just wanted to get to my hotel and rest. And when I realized what had happened, I remember I reported it to Discover Cars and they refunded me again. I was renting with Discovered Cars. When you refuse the additional policy, the car rental company will hold an additional deposit. An additional deposit. Usually it's in the range of 3000 Euro, which is return entirely once you return the car with no damage. If there is a damage on the other Hand. You must make a claim to Discover Cars which will process it within 48 hours and reimburse you for up to 3,000. Filing a claim is super easy, so you don't need to worry about that now. When it comes to the best places to rent a car in Sardinia.
- [09:30]
D
I.
- [09:31]
B
Recommend picking it up from the airport. It's just easier. There are many companies, they're all there. You don't need to shop around, you don't need to find your way around town to find the car rental office. Some people will tell you that it's cheaper to rent a car in some random small village. Trust me, I have tried many times to see if it is and it isn't. And sometimes it simply is a nuisance getting to that village to pick up your car. So just get a car at the airport or at the harbor when you get here and start using it immediately. It's just better. Of course, the airports usually have all the car rental offices, so you don't need to worry about that. Can I hire a car in Sardina and drive to Corsica? Huh? This is a question that I get all the time. Lots of people ask me. There are very, very few car rental companies that will allow you to take a car here on the island of Sardinia and then get on a ferry and drive the car to Corsica. It really depends on the company. You normally have to read the geographical terms and condition of the car rental supplier. Most companies don't allow it, some do. So just read the terms and condition for that. How to choose the right trip for the right car? For your trip to Sardinia, I always recommend picking a small car. Unless you're coming here with a big family, you have lots of luggage, you have kids, you really need to. You really need to get a small car. It's easy, easier to drive around town with a small cars. You will find Cagliari and other cities in Sardinia. The roads, the streets can be very narrow. And having a big car makes it more complicated to drive. Makes, makes it way more complicated to find a parking spot. The same goes for, you know, driving in the narrow mountain roads of the island. Just get a small car, like a small Fiat Panda or a Cinquecento. Usually an economy car will be perfect.
- [11:57]
A
When it's time to scale your business, it's time for shopify. Get everything you need to grow the way you want.
- [12:03]
B
Like all the way.
- [12:07]
A
Stack more sales with the best converting checkout on the planet. Track your cha chings from every channel right in one spot and turn real time reporting into Big time opportunities take your business to a whole new level. Switch to shopify. Start your free trial today.
- [12:26]
B
When it comes to how far in advance should you rent a car in Sardinia? If you're coming in August or July or anytime in the summer, I recommend renting a car six months in advance. Just don't expect to find a last minute deal. There is a, there's a shortage of rental cars here on the island. Remember, it's Sardinia. It's an island. So book in advance to avoid any, any bad surprises. You know, coming here and just deciding to, to randomly rent a car last minute. Usually it won't work or it will turn out to be very, very expensive. Renting in advance is going to key. How much does it cost to rent a car here in Sardinia? Unless you make last minute reservations, it's not expensive at all. If you're looking to rent a car in the peak summer season, an economy car could cost you just, just like €30 per day. If you, if you get full coverage, it can be as cheap as €40 per day. In the slower winter months you can get real bargains for like €10 per day. And that's with full coverage. So, so it can't really get any better than that, can it? Remember that the following items can increase the cost of car rental. Having an additional driver asking for a GPS system. Automatic transmission car. If you want to rent an automatic car, it's even more important that you book in advance. Remember that manual cars are more common here in Europe. Automatic cars are not common at all. So if that's what you're looking for, book super, super early. You will also have to pay a separate fee for the additional child or infant seat which you will need. Remember that the regulations here in Italy or in the European Union in general are different from regulations in North America. So if you're coming with a pram that you can remove from, you can remove and use as a child seat. Remember that may not necessarily be suitable or be legal here in here in Italy. And yes, you will have to abide by local, local laws. Chances here that the police stops you are very remote. But if they stop you and things are not super, everything is in place like a child seat. You may get a fine and that is something that you should avoid. Another thing that, that makes the price of car rental increase. Is the drop off location different from where you pick up the car? That's normal. That's everywhere in the world is like that. So don't, don't worry so much about that. How Old do you need to be to rent a car in Sardinia? Well, like in the rest of Italy, you need to be at least 21. Some companies will allow you to rent a car when you're 18, as long as you had your driving license for at least a year. Usually drivers younger than 25 may have to pay a surcharge. On the other hand, there is no maximum age limit, but some companies will apply a limit of 75 or 80. What documents do you need? Again, make sure that you have all of this when renting a card car. Because some. Even. Even if. Even if some. All your friends got lucky and they were not asked for all of these documents when they rented a car in Italy, that doesn't mean that you will be as well. So make sure that you come prepared. You first of all need to check that your driving license is still valid. May sound rather obvious, but you know, my sister once planned to rent a car in Cyprus or Crete. Where was she? And when she brought out her driving license, she realized that he had expired and so her husband had to drive. Unless you have an EU driving license, you'll need a valid international driver license anywhere in Italy. In other words, if you have a driving license for any of the European Union countries, you can rent a car and drive here in Italy. And obviously that applies when renting a car in Sardinia. If you have a driving license from a country that is not in the European Union, for example the United States, Canada or Australia, you will need to get an international driver license. The car company may or may not ask you for one, but you still need to have it, just in case it is a legal requirement. You will also need a valid credit card. Some companies will allow you to rent a car with just a debit card, but that is generally more expensive. Other documents to keep handy will be your passport and you will need it when you go pick up the car and your insurance policy. Finally, some tips for when you go pick up your car. First of all, inspect it before you hit the road. Don't be afraid. Go there with an agent. Check everything for scratches, bumps, irregularity. Make sure you note everything down and take photos. You should also check how much fuel is in the car's tank. It should be full and you'll have to return it full too. Be on time when you return the car. This is especially important if you have a flight to catch. Don't be late because you will have to find a place to refuel the car. That may be tricky. Plus there might be a line at the desk just in case there are some problems. Give yourself plenty of time. Trust me, I have once find found myself rushing to return a car. I was in Puglia and it wasn't fun. I was about to miss my flight. This brings me to the end of today's episode. Now I will share the topic for the next episode in a minute. Let me remind you that if you ever need help to plan your trip to Sardinia, you can book a one hour consultation with me. The link for that is in the episode description so make sure to read that. Of course there's my blog streetleesardenia.com that has even more tips to help you plan your trip. I also wanted to let you know that I will be taking a two weeks break from podcasting just for the holiday season. So I will talk to you again in the next year. Then I will be sharing my tips on driving in Sardinia. Finally, if you like my podcast, share with your friends who are coming to Sardinia and give it a review. A five star rating please. And until next time we talk, have a really happy holiday season. Goodbye.
- [19:55]
D
I'm Martha Stewart and I believe the best gifts are not only beautiful, but useful every single day. And Lenox has brought timeless beauty and lasting quality to our tables for generations and their Lenox Spice Village is the perfect holiday gift for someone you love or for yourself. Spice Village transforms everyday spices into inspired memories filled with warmth and joy all year long. Give a gift that lasts beyond the holidays. Discover the collection@lennox.com SpiceVillage.