Rent a car in Greece and go on a fascinating journey to the mainland or fly to Rhodes or Crete and a week to travel around the island for a long time - the choice is yours .And we will try to provide you with all the necessary information for a comfortable trip .Going on a trip to Greek cities and towns without knowledge of the language, keep in mind that the inscriptions on the signs are duplicated in English only on the highway and in the cities, and on the roads of local importance and on the island of Crete it is customary to use only the Greek language .It is not recommended to rent a car for trips around Athens - traffic in the city is chaotic, with parking at the center of the problem, and you can easily get into the traffic jam .For trips to mountainous regions, choose an all-wheel drive car, and in cities it is more convenient to drive around and park, having at your disposal a compact subcompact .
In Greek, car rental will be ενοικίαση αυτοκινήτων, but you can also focus on the signs "rent a car". In high season (from mid-June to mid-September) it makes sense to book a car in advance via the Internet, and in the low - on the contrary, to negotiate on the spot, demanding a discount. Booking through the hotel or guide gives a guarantee of the reliability of the rental broker, but slightly increases the price. At local distributors the price is traditionally lower than that of international companies, but the level of support in case of an accident can limp.
In Greek rental companies you can often get a car without leaving a deposit either in cash or by freezing funds on the card. You need to return the car with the same amount of gasoline in the tank with which you got it.
Documents, insurance
To rent a car in Greece will need a driver's license (often our national is quite suitable, but with IDPs, the choice of rental offices becomes wider) .The driver's age must be at least 21 years (in some agencies at least 23 years and not more than 70 years), experience of at least a year .The cost of car rental in Greece usually includes: fire insurance and civil liability .Additional paid TPC - Theft Protection Coverage (insurance against theft) and different types of CASCO: CDW-insurance with a franchise; Super CDW - insurance with a franchise, the size of which decreases with a daily surcharge; FDW - complete CASCO (does not include compensation for perforated wheel, underbody damage, broken windshield or rear view mirror) .Sometimes additional payment can be assigned for each kilometer that you pass, and will be taken from you when you return the car - be careful when concluding the contract .
| The Egnatia motorway |
Fuel and refueling
At the Greek gas stations, you can refuel 95 and 98 unleaded petrol and diesel fuel (petreleo). Leaded gasoline is not for sale. In canisters, petrol is not allowed to be transported. On the islands, gasoline is always a little more expensive than on the mainland, because of the need for its transportation by water. Many refuellings are closed at 19:00, but there is always one round-the-clock refueling to the settlement.
Traffic Laws
Daylight in daytime is mandatory only in conditions of poor visibility, in the rest of the time its use is prohibited. Children under 3 years can only travel in special seats, and up to 11 years they are not allowed to ride in the front seat. Seat belts should be fastened to everyone who is in the car. It is forbidden to talk on the phone "using the hands". The audible signal is allowed to apply only in case of danger of an accident.
Make sure that the car you rented is equipped with everything you need: an emergency stop sign, a first aid kit, a fire extinguisher. Use and transport of radar detectors in Greece is prohibited.
On the streets of Greek cities there are specific signs: "Parking is prohibited on this side of the road for odd months" and "Parking is prohibited on this side of the road for even months."
Penalties
In Greece, traffic police officers do not have the right to levy fines on the spot. The receipt issued by them must be paid in the bank, and in the same region in which the penalty was issued. For prompt payment of a fine (up to 10 days) - a 50% discount. But with a delay in payment, the amount of the fine can significantly increase. With short-term car rentals, you can give a receipt (and money, of course) to the rental company along with the car. They will pay the penalty themselves.
Some amounts of fines: excess speed - from 40 EUR to 350 €; wrong parking - 40 €; non-use of seat belts - 80 EUR or even short-term forfeiture; talking on the phone without hands free - 100 EUR or even a short term deprivation of rights; driving in a drunken state - from 200 EUR to 2000 EUR, imprisonment possible; travel on a red light or the intersection of a double solid - 700 €; violation of the rules of transportation of children - 80 €; the presence in the car of a radar detector is 2000 EUR.
Toll roads
In full accordance with the famous statement, there are also toll roads in Greece. Payment for each paid site is usually 3-4 EUR. On the west-east highway, almost across the mainland of Greece, the Egnatia motorway has 5 payment points, each of which will have to leave 2 EUR.
Sites with special payment: Aktio - Preveza underwater tunnel (3 € for cars) and Rio-Antirio 3 km bridge (13, 20 € for cars).
Parking places in Greece
As well as almost everywhere in Europe, in the center of major Greek cities it's not easy to find a place where you can park a gift and not get a penalty receipt on the windshield. Do not try to save, leaving the car in the wrong place. Did not find a free parking lot - put the car in paid parking. On the islands and the coastal territories of the mainland, there are large parking lots for each port. However, from there it can be far from the main sights.
The price of parking is different everywhere. Maybe lucky to leave the car for an unlimited time for 2-3 EUR, and sometimes it will have to fork out for 2-3 EUR per hour. In Thessaloniki, for example, parking costs 2 EUR per hour. The best thing with free parking is in Crete. In Rhodes, paid parking only in Rhodes (1, 5 EUR per hour) and in Lindos (3 EUR per hour). You can park in the street only if there is white marking (for free) or blue (paid) lines. Parking at the yellow line is prohibited.
Parking on the street in the center of Athens for city guests is possible only if the layout is done with white lines. Yellow lines indicate places for residents of the city. You will have to pay for parking on weekdays from 9 to 21 hours and on Saturdays from 9 to 16 hours. On Sunday parking is free. You can park for a maximum of 3 hours, cost: 1 hour - 0, 5 EUR, 2 hours - 1 EUR, 2, 5 hours - 4 EUR, 3 hours - 6 EUR.
Local police have the right to remove the license plates of an incorrectly parked car. To cars rented, this also applies.
Car rental firms in Greece
Rent a car in Rhodes: Rodos cars.
Rent a car in Crete: Traffic Car Rental, Kosmos.
Car rental in Thessaloniki: Salonica Rent a car, PontosCar, Motion Car Rental.
International companies: Hertz, Europcar, Auto Europe, Avis, Budget, Sixt.
Greek companies: Drive S.A., Car Rental Greece.
Rolling brokers: EuroAvtoprokat, Drivebooker.
All prices are for July 2012