Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
(
W
www.insurance4carhire.com), which will cover
all UK- and North America-based drivers.
All agencies will require a blank
credit
card
slip as
a deposit (destroyed when you return the vehicle
safely); minimum
age requirements
vary from 21
to 23.
Driving licences
issued by any European
Economic Area state are honoured, but an
Interna-
tional Driving Permit
is required by all other
drivers (despite claims by unscrupulous agencies).
You can be arrested and charged if caught by the
tra
c police without an IDP if you require one.
Avance, Antena, Auto Union, Payless, Kosmos,
National/Alamo, Reliable, Tomaso and Eurodollar
are dependable Greek, or smaller international,
chains with branches in many towns; all are
cheaper than Hertz, Sixt or Avis. Specific local
recommendations are given in the guide.
FIVE SCENIC DRIVES
Kefaloniá's West Coast
The route north
from Argostóli allows vistas of the Lixoúri
Peninsula, Mýrtos
beach and picturesque
Ássos; see p.344.
Sithonía Circuit
Making the clockwise
circuit of Sithonía keeps imposing Mount
Áthos in view for half the way; see p.299.
Arcadian mountains
The Peloponnese is
at its most bucolic on the drive through
the Arcadian mountains west of Trípoli;
see p.172.
Píndhos mountains
The mountains and
villages north of Ioánnina offer scenic
splendour, even from the twisting roads;
see p.242.
Mount Psilorítis, Crete
Drive via Týlissos
and Anóyia for sweeping views of the fertile
valleys around Mount Psilorítis; see p.467.
Bringing your own car
If you intend to
drive your own car to and within
Greece
, remember that insurance contracted in
any EU state is valid in any other, but in many cases
this is only third-party cover. Competition in the
industry is intense, however, so many UK insurers
will throw in full, pan-European cover for free or for
a nominal sum, for up to sixty days. Those with
proof of AA/RAC/AAA membership are given free
road assistance from ELPA, the Greek equivalent,
which runs
breakdown services
on several of the
larger islands; in an emergency ring
T
10400.
EU citizens
bringing their own cars are free to
circulate in the country for six months, or
until their home-based road tax or insurance
expires, whichever happens first; keeping a car in
Greece for longer entails more paperwork.
Non-EU nationals
will get a car entered in their
passport; the carnet normally allows you to keep
a vehicle in Greece for up to six months, exempt
from road tax.
opposite of what they do in the UK or North
America, here signifying that the other driver insists
on coming through or overtaking. However, this
gesture rapidly repeated from someone
approaching means they're warning you of a police
control-point ahead.
Seat-belt
use (and helmet wearing on scooters
and motorcycles) is compulsory and children under
the age of 10 are not allowed to sit in the front seats
of cars; infractions of these rules are punishable by
fines. It's illegal to drive away from any kind of
accident
- or to move the vehicles before the
police appear - and where serious injury has
resulted to the other party you can be held at a
police station for up to 24 hours.
Car rental
Car rental
in Greece starts at around €300 a week
in peak season for the smallest vehicle from a
one-off outlet or local chain, including unlimited
mileage, tax and insurance. At other times, at
smaller local outfits, you can get terms of €30 per
day, all inclusive, with even better
rates
for three
days or more - or prebooked on the internet. Rates
for open
jeeps
vary from €65 to €100 per day.
Rental prices in Greece almost never include
collision damage waiver
(CDW) and personal
insurance. The CDW typically has a deductible
charge of €400-600, which may be levied for
even the tiniest scratch or missing mudguard. To
avoid this, it is strongly recommended that you
pay the €5-7 extra per day for full coverage.
Frequent travellers should consider
annual
excess insurance
through Insurance 4 Car Hire
Scooter and motorcycle rental
Small
motor scooters
with automatic transmission,
known in Greek as
mihanákia
or
papákia
(little
ducks), are good transport for all but the steepest
terrain. They're available for rent on many islands
and in a few of the popular mainland resorts for
€12-18 per day. Prices can be bargained down out
of peak season, or for a longer rental period. Only
models of 80cc and above are powerful enough for
two riders in mountainous areas, which includes
most islands.
True
motorbikes
(
mihanés
) with manual transmis-
sions and safer tyres are less common than they
ought to be. With the proper licence, bikes of 125cc