Continental motorhome hire?

[Lee1st]

Hi All, Real newby here.... I'm thinking of buying a motorhome but thought it might be a good idea to hire one for a week or so to see how my wife and I get on with it. We particularly like the south of France and thought that we'd probably hire from down that way. Can anyone advise of any good firms to deal with/bad firms to avoid, or any other tips? TIA Lee

[Brian Kirby]

[QUOTE]Lee1st - 2006-08-21 7:08 PM Hi All, Real newby here.... I'm thinking of buying a motorhome but thought it might be a good idea to hire one for a week or so to see how my wife and I get on with it. We particularly like the south of France and thought that we'd probably hire from down that way. Can anyone advise of any good firms to deal with/bad firms to avoid, or any other tips? TIA Lee[/QUOTE]

There are quite a few.  Avis Car Away, Blurent, Motorhome Rent and France-escape, seem the main ones for France.  However, you'll need good enough French to read, and understand, the hire contract.  I believe it is possible to hire via UK hire agencies, but I don't know of any except, obviously, Avis.  I think Herz may hire out 'vans.  If you've decided the type of 'van you want, it would make sense to hire one similar.  If you know the make and model, you could try dealers for that make, as some seem to have small numbers of vans they hire out for exactly that reason.  We were able to hire a Burstner in Calais in 2004, and were lucky enough to be able to hire exectly the van we wanted to buy, except engine size.

Be aware that the insurance rarely, if ever, covers damage to the upper body parts or the underside.  Too many people park them in trees on on top of tree-stumps!

Hope this helps

[docted]

Try the advertisers in MMM. You would be as well to take a van from the UK where you can read and understand the contractand make the journey to the South of France part of the holiday.