Cool car rental: how luxury car hire in Europe works

What is the difference between an elite car rental and a usual one? To find out, I went to Geneva, having pre-booked through the Internet one very unusual car ...

You can select a specific model

The site of the industry leader hails from a past century. Conservative layout. Gold plated logo with a simple slogan. Simple design. But the main thing here is not this ... Booking begins not from the dates of the trip, but from the place, as well as the make and model of the car. And only then - the dates. This is not at all like the way modern brokers and rental offices work, guaranteeing only a car class, but not its brand or model. The elite rental business model is slightly different from Avis or Europcar, as well as from numerous brokers.

The main idea is to offer wealthy people high prices exactly those cars that interest them, guaranteeing not only the model, but also the selected equipment and, in some cases, even color. That is, if you ordered a yellow Lamborghini Huracán or a black Maybach S-class, then you will get it, and the point.

No queue at the rental desk

The first visual difference between luxury rental - you do not need to go to the rental desk upon arrival. You are greeted with a sign by a friendly man in a suit who takes your luggage and takes you to a car standing right at the entrance to the terminal, where he draws up all the papers.

These are really cool cars.

The least cool car available in a fleet of hundreds of cars across Europe is the Mini Cooper Limited Edition (from 60 euros per day, daily mileage limit of 300 km). Further, everything is limited only by the flight of your imagination and the size of your wallet.
Mercedes E250 Cabriolet, BMW 428i xDrive Convertible Sport Line, Audi R8 V10, Ferrari F458 Spider, Ferrari California T, Tesla Signature Roadster - this is not a complete list of available cars.

There are crossovers Mercedes GLE 450 AMG Coupe, Porsche Cayenne S, and even large SUVs - Range Rover Vogue 5.0L V8 SC, Mercedes G 63 AMG.

Renting an Aston Martin DBS or McLaren MP4-12C Spider will cost about 950 euros per day, while the price includes daily mileage of no more than ... 150 km! Then - 3-4 euros per kilometer. The minimum age for the driver is 28 years, two credit cards are required. Renting “regular” cars is cheaper, for example, the brand new BMW 730Ld xDrive Berlina costs from 310 euros per day, BMW I8 - from 440 euros.

Speaking of prices, it is worth considering that this is just the minimum tariff - in the season, on days of various public events, prices are much higher.

It is noteworthy that all models are not in simple "rental" trim levels - these are either cars of a limited series or with an optional finish. For example, if the Porsche 911, then with the Sport Chrono package, if the crossover Mercedes - then AMG and so on.

Also, all new items are immediately purchased in the rental fleet - for example, the BMW 730LD Xdrive Berlina, Porsche 718 Boxter S, Porsche 911 Carrera 4S Cabriolet. All so that customers feel a little more equal than their neighbors in the rich European stream.

Of course, you pay more for this than in regular rentals, but for customers of the company money is less important than meeting their requirements and good service.

There are also special offers in high-end rentals, for example, the Tesla Model S can be cut down for 250 euros per day instead of the standard seven hundred.

But do not forget that the franchise is at least 5 thousand euros, and 360 euros will be removed from your card for every scratch on the rim.

Together with the machine, you get various bonuses for free - from a Wi-Fi router with unlimited traffic in the glove compartment to water, napkins, nuts and so on.

You can not drive

An important part of the elite rental business is car rental with a driver.

Rolls Royce Phantom, Mercedes-Benz S-Class, Bentley Flying Spur. Cars can be booked both for transfers (for example, from the airport to the hotel), and on an hourly basis. Rental price - from 151 euros per hour for the S-Class, to twice the amount for a steeper car. Renting a V-Class minivan with seven passenger seats looks like a gift at all - only 116 euros for a transfer from Geneva Airport to the city center.

As for the airport, there is another service - a VIP transfer for arrival (270 euros, if up to three passengers), or departure (300 euros for one or 400 for three). The service includes delivery by limousine directly from the ramp (or to it), as well as, in case of departure, a visit to the VIP lounge at the airport.

Can drive

Yes, expensive, but cool, but how would you take a cool car and drive on it? In Switzerland, known for its strict traffic regulations, this is not possible. There are no unlimited autobahns in neighboring France either. But ... for customers of elite rental there is a way.

Since many people specially take a good car for a spiritual trip, group tours to neighboring countries are offered specially for them, the price of which includes hotels and restaurants that correspond to the level of your capabilities. The route is also developed in advance, and if it passes through Germany, it includes a maximum of unlimited autobahns. Using the configurator on the site, you can collect a tour of your dreams, starting from the proposed route.

For example, an 800-kilometer five-day tour from Geneva to Monte Carlo for two will cost 4000 euros, this amount will include transfers to hotels and airports, 3 days at the wheel of a Porsche Boxter S, 4 nights in three-star hotels. The route and all interesting points will be reflected on the screen of a special GPS navigator.

If you change the Porsche to a Ferrari 458 Italia Spider, add an escort car with a guide (among other things, he will tell you on the walkie-talkie when you can safely sink), spend the night in five stars, enter into the program an inspection of the F1 track in Monaco and a speedboat ride in the Cat d'Azur, then the cost is already 13 thousand euros for two.

Another feature of the tours is not advertised, but it is it that allows you to get more fun from the ride. The fact is that, at the request of customers, the routes are laid, including on private roads, which are sometimes blocked for good people, there are no police there and speed limits do not apply at that moment;)

That's about how luxury car rental is arranged in Europe, and in particular in Switzerland. We can only add that customers are far from always wealthy. For example, often expensive cars are taken at the corporate expense by top managers who need to convincingly look at important negotiations. The business is the same everywhere, and even in Switzerland it matters what car you came to meet ...