Corfu Airport Auto Rental: 10 Mistakes to Avoid When Booking

Corfu rewards the visitor who can circulate on their personal agenda. The island seems small on a map yet when you get off the most roads, distances feel longer, buses skinny out, and taxis add up effortlessly. That is why such a lot of company decide up a vehicle the moment they land at Corfu International Airport Ioannis Kapodistrias.

I actually have rented automobiles at Corfu airport for paintings and vacations, in prime season and in late October drizzle. The pattern is regularly the related. The folks that did a few homework are on the road in 20 minutes. The ones who rushed the reserving stand in queues, argue over assurance at the desk and uncover shock rates on their card per week later.

If you prefer a soft Corfu airport car apartment trip, the top of the line lesson is to have an understanding of where others pass flawed. The following ten mistakes are those I see in general at Corfu airport, in conjunction with what to do as an alternative.

1. Assuming “airport motor vehicle condo” usually method on-site

Many guests look for “Corfu airport vehicle condominium” or “lease car or truck Corfu airport” and anticipate every influence is contained in the terminal. It is absolutely not that realistic.

At Corfu, some manufacturers have desks within the arrivals hall and their automobiles within the airport parking just across the road. Others perform “meet and greet” or trip capabilities. You go out arrivals, seek an individual preserving a small sign, and ride a minibus to an off site lot a few minutes away.

That just isn't essentially poor. Off web site businesses could be more cost effective and greater versatile on issues together with mileage or additional drivers. The worry looks in case you expect to stroll in your automobile in five minutes and instead lose 40 minutes tracking down a go back CFU hire a car options and forth in 30 level warm after a 3 hour flight from London.

If you desire a in truth on web site Corfu airport rent a vehicle possibility, test in moderation. Look for transparent wording along with “desk interior terminal” or “on airport”. If the affirmation mentions a shuttle, assembly level or “workplace four hundred m from terminal”, construct that into your timings. It topics on arrival, and it absolutely matters when you have an early morning departure and need to drop the car and nevertheless look at various in on time.

2. Booking solely on cost and ignoring the insurance coverage structure

I still see americans brag that they came across the “nice car or truck condominium Corfu airport” for 12 euros an afternoon in August. That base expense is incomprehensible with no knowledge the insurance plan.

In Greece, undemanding policy most often carries 3rd party liability and some kind of collision ruin waiver (CDW) with a top excess. I actually have noticeable excesses from 700 to 1,800 euros for an economic system auto. If there's wreck, you pay as much as that amount until you've extra canopy.

The well-known blunders are two. First, americans bypass any more cover and cross their fingers, then spend their holiday stressful about slim streets in Corfu Town. Second, they buy an “extra refund” policy from a broker website and do no longer realise that the condominium business enterprise will still block the total excess on their card at selection.

A useful strategy at Corfu airport vehicle rental counters is to opt prematurely the way you choose to address chance. Some visitors are delicate with a great deposit since they've a effective credits card and ride with condominium claims. Others sleep more effective with a “zero excess” equipment that fees greater in step with day however shrinks the security block and economic publicity.

Read the insurance coverage section beforehand you click on “Book”. Compare the price of including complete conceal from the condo brand with a standalone extra policy from a good insurer. There is not any unmarried precise resolution, however taking walks up to the desk without a plan is the quickest route to tension and pricey upsells.

three. Not checking fuel policy and mileage sooner than confirming

Corfu airport apartment autos practically regularly use the comparable couple of fuel rules. The challenge is they glance an identical at a look, yet money very extraordinary quantities over every week.

“Full to full” way you select up the auto with a full tank, return it full, and merely pay for what you utilize. This is many times the fairest selection, peculiarly once you plan to force around the island.

“Pre acquire” or “complete to drain” manner you pay for a tank of gasoline at sequence and may return it on fumes. It sounds convenient but rarely works on your favour unless you would if truth be told use maximum of the tank and the guests premiums gasoline at near pump rates plus a small commission. Many do not.

Mileage is every other quiet seize. Most Corfu motor vehicle apartment enterprises be offering unlimited kilometres, which is right for exploring Paleokastritsa, Kassiopi, the south coast and inland villages with out inquisitive about distance. A few low rate provides conceal a in step with kilometre price above a modest daily decrease.

If your affirmation e mail is imprecise or makes use of phrases you do not understand, e mail or message the institution and ask for readability. You desire written confirmation of either fuel coverage and mileage. Verbal causes at a busy airport desk are trouble-free to misconceive and masses more durable to dispute later.

4. Overlooking using realities on Corfu while deciding on automobile size

Looking at modern pics, it truly is tempting to upgrade to a bigger automotive. More house for baggage, better air conditioning, perhaps even an automated for convenience. On Corfu, the larger the automobile, the more you want to take into account wherein you propose to power.

The road from the airport into Corfu Town is vast ample, but as quickly as you wander into older districts, roads narrow to at least one lane with stone walls on each aspects and tight corners round buildings. Some coastal villages and hilltop settlements are even tighter, with parking that barely fits a compact hatchback.

If you are staying at a hotel on the primary east coast road, a bigger motor vehicle might not be a drawback. If your villa is up a steep lane in the north of the island, a small to medium automobile with first rate drive and correct turning circle is a miles more desirable preference than a bulky SUV. I have watched workers spend 15 minutes maneuvering a mammoth vehicle out of a lane that was genuinely designed for scooters and donkeys.

For most traffic, the sweet spot for Corfu airport car condo is a small or compact vehicle, handbook or automatic depending to your alleviation. Enough boot space for bags, however small satisfactory to slide into tight parking spaces and meet oncoming visitors with room to respire.

five. Ignoring reviews of selected Corfu airport branches

Many visitors do a speedy money of the manufacturer identify and stop there. They see a monstrous global brand they recognise from abode, count on a well-known experience, and reserve. In prepare, department first-rate can vary broadly.

Search chiefly for the manufacturer title plus “Corfu airport” and learn the up to date stories for that vicinity. Patterns topic extra than exclusive complaints. If one user mentions a longer wait time, which could just be a hectic Saturday in August. If 20 folks across 3 months file competitive harm claims or unexplained quotes, pay consideration.

This counsel applies equally to neighborhood companies. Some small Corfu lease a auto establishments near the airport are stunning, with pleasant service and flexible regulations. Others reduce corners or rely upon technicalities to boost sales. Reviews on the whole make the distinction clean.

A 15 euro big difference on a week’s condo is not very really worth a foul argument over “pre current” scratches you were on no account allowed time to rfile.

6. Not getting ready your paperwork and card correctly

One of the dullest issues, yet I still watch it unfold in line on the airport each summer season. The forms for hiring a vehicle in Greece is simple, however there are just a few critical information.

You normally need:

1. A valid riding licence that you simply have held for as a minimum three hundred and sixty five days, many times two, relying on the company and vehicle organization.
2. For non EU / EEA drivers from distinct countries, an International Driving Permit along your own home licence. Check this upfront, simply because you will not achieve an IDP after you are already in Greece.
3. A credit score card within the important driving force’s name with sufficient conceivable reduce to disguise the deposit or excess block.
4. Passport or countrywide ID card for identity.

Where worker's get stuck is with the card. Many Corfu airport automobile rental desks do now not accept debit playing cards for the security deposit, merely for money. Others settle for them however only with expensive further assurance. Prepaid playing cards are repeatedly refused outright.

If your affirmation does now not in reality nation that debit cards are universal for the deposit, think you desire a typical credit score card with embossed identify and numbers. Also make certain the card reduce is excessive satisfactory. I watched a pair from Germany became away because their modest restriction couldn't accommodate a 1,500 euro block for the extra plus their motel’s pre authorisation.

Print or store your affirmation electronic mail as a PDF, including the voucher once you booked with the aid of a broker. Mobile net at Corfu airport is as a rule best, yet a useless battery or roaming issue could now not stand between you and your motor vehicle.

7. Chasing “no deposit” can provide with no studying the small print

The word “Corfu airport car or truck condominium no deposit” is horny, enormously in case you dislike the thought of masses of euros blocked to your card. Genuine low deposit or no deposit features do exist, however the devil sits inside the aspect.

Usually, while a employer advertises no deposit, it capability one among two matters. Either they have equipped the hazard into a larger day-after-day rate with crucial full assurance, or they will nevertheless retain a smaller amount as a gas or site visitors great guarantee. Sometimes equally.

There is nothing incorrect with paying a bit extra for the peace of mind that comes from no longer having 1,000 euros frozen on your card. Just comprehend what you might be shopping. Check:

The precise amount they are going to keep in your card, if any.

Whether the no deposit provide is tied to a specific insurance plan kit. How they tackle minor hurt, comparable to small scratches or chips.

Compare this to a wide-spread package from a further business that makes use of a deposit however can provide cut back rates. Over per week’s break, the total charge can swing both manner. The worst mistake is to e book at the electricity of “no deposit” on my own and then notice a protracted listing of exclusions and further charges should you reach the desk.

eight. Skipping the inspection and photograph ordinary at pickup

You are worn-out, the queue has been sluggish, and the coastline is asking. The agent points to the automobile, you signal the variety, throw your luggage within the boot and pressure off. That five minute shortcut can can charge dearly if there is existing hurt that under no circumstances made it onto the document.

At Corfu airport, where dozens of vehicles rotate among renters each and every week in summer, small bumps and scrapes are routine. Most services are truthful about this and mark all the things they recognize. Some are not thorough, fairly at peak occasions.

Treat your inspection as part of the rental, not a nuisance. Walk around the car, money every panel, the wheels, and the entrance and rear bumpers specifically. Pay consideration to:

Small scratches and dents.

Alloy wheel scuffs and hubcap hurt. Chips or cracks in the windscreen. Any hurt at the roof once you are tall adequate or can see from an angle.

Photograph all the pieces, even concerns which might be already marked. Capture the auto from each and every nook, the odometer reading, and the fuel gauge. Time stamped footage to your cell create a document that is onerous to argue with later.

Encourage the team of workers member to add any missing marks to the style beforehand you sign. If they seem to be reluctant, dwell well mannered but agency. A short while here is worthy far extra than an offended e-mail exchange after you return residence.

9. Forgetting to plot parking and get admission to at your accommodation

Corfu airport automobile apartment is the gentle piece. The more difficult part, particularly in top season, is residing with the automobile when you reach your lodging.

Many antique villages and a few parts of Corfu Town have very limited parking. Some beachfront accommodations have non-public masses, others matter completely on public areas that stock up soon in July and August. Steep private driveways are general for villas, usually with awkward angles and free gravel.

Before you ebook, ask your lodging about parking in explicit, lifelike terms. Do no longer settle for “parking a possibility”. Ask whether this is individual or public, what percentage areas they have, how tight the entry is, and whether or not greater motors healthy with no trouble.

This should always outcomes no longer merely your option of condo automobile dimension, as spoke of past, but additionally regardless of whether you even want a automotive for your overall continue to be. For example, whenever you are spending three nights in Corfu Town after which per week in a north coast village, it's possible you'll do higher to spend the first half strolling and taxis, then set up a Corfu airport auto condo beginning on the day you leave town.

Thinking in segments like it will shop fee, parking headaches and the tension of threading a motor vehicle as a result of the metropolis’s one method formulation in case you are still jet lagged.

10. Returning the automobile in a rush and neglecting the basics

I have misplaced count number of what percentage disputes jump at drop off seeing that the renter is hurrying to seize a flight. When you might be dashing, you omit gas, you park wherein you will not be presupposed to, or you give up keys without checking the ultimate bureaucracy.

Give your self a good buffer for go back. If your flight is at 13:00, do not plan to roll into the car park at eleven:forty five, specially once you rented off web page and want a commute experience again to the terminal.

At go back, target to:

1. Refill the tank at a station with regards to the airport whenever you are on a full to complete policy. Keep the receipt. There are a number of petrol stations inside of a brief drive, but some should be busy.
2. Remove all individual objects from the automobile, adding door pockets and less than seats.
3. Walk round the vehicle with the agent where viable and ask them to be sure in writing that the automobile is back without new ruin and with a full tank if suitable.
4. Take last footage, inclusive of the gasoline gauge and odometer.

If you've got to use a key drop field considering you are returning outside place of job hours, footage and a quickly video walkaround became even extra useful. Corfu airport rent a vehicle prone in general address those returns exceedingly, but a clear visible rfile protects you in case a new dent appears to be like at the inspection sheet later.

A short pre booking checklist

Used good, a vehicle turns Corfu right into a versatile, simple island to explore. Used badly, it will become a thread of tension strolling thru your trip. Before you decide to any airport auto lease Corfu deal, run through this brief checklist.

1. Verify if the business is on airport or off site with a trip, and the way that influences your timings.
2. Read recent stories particularly for the Corfu airport branch, now not just the model.
3. Compare entire expense, such as coverage, gasoline policy and any mileage limits, no longer just the base every single day expense.
4. Check parking and get admission to at your lodging and favor car dimension subsequently.
5. Confirm what cards and files you want and no matter if any “no deposit” supply has restrictive prerequisites.

Handled with this point of interest, Corfu airport rental cars suppose much less like a big gamble and more like a good managed tool in your journey.

Final strategies from the queue at Corfu airport

If you spend 30 minutes within the arrivals hall on a hectic afternoon, you would practically expect who will breeze with the aid of and who will end up pissed off. The ones with revealed confirmations, transparent choices on coverage and reasonable expectations approximately the car and the island have a tendency to leave smiling. The ones who booked on payment by myself and did no longer examine a notice of the terms are those arguing on the table.

Corfu motor vehicle condominium does not ought to be tough. It is just a matter of matching the actuality at the ground along with your personal tolerance for chance, finances and driving self belief. Look beyond headline charges, have an understanding of how insurance coverage and deposits paintings, decide upon the accurate dimension of automotive for Corfu’s roads, and supply yourself time at either pickup and return.

Do that, and your hire a car or truck at Corfu airport becomes what it will have to be: an straightforward gateway to mountain villages, quiet seashores and late dinners in small tavernas, for your very own clock as opposed to anybody else’s.