Tengo ilusión....

[jubilee]

We are finally getting somewhere with a trip to Spain - hooray!! Ryanair flights booked to Madrid (cost £0.00, + tax....) - September 8-17. Will hire a car for the duration. In the past wherever we have gone we have used Hertz. Any comments about other car hire options from the airport? Anyone know which terminal Ryanair flies into? Couldn't find it anywhere on their website.

Part 1 off to San Ildefonso 3 nights. From there visit Segovia and Rio de Duraton area, etc, as recommended by Juanjo. Part 2 Avila + Salamanca. Part 3 visit my email amiga in Toledo, frazzle the brain spending a couple of days with her and family, none of whom speak any English - nice in-at-the-deep-end experience.... Managed to do this 2 years ago and came home THINKING in Spanish - great. Unfortunately it didn't last back in good old Derbyshire...

Any suggestions for must-sees around the above much appreciated. Also, final day is a 0630am departure so will stay overnight in Madrid. Any suggestions for not-to-expensive hotels on an easy route for early morning drive to the airport?

Thanks

[eldeano]

Terminal 1. Check-in desks (for journey back) 346-362, next to the Food Gallery.

One thought, do you really need a car?

[jubilee]

Do we need a car?

Well, the last visit, Madrid, Toledo, Alicante, we did all by train which was MOST IMPRESSIVE. Originally we were looking at this trip as non-car too, but then Juanjo suggested Parque Natural del Rio Duraton, Sepúlveda, and some other places around there look very nice to visit. We especially like places for walks or hikes. Perhaps we should catch the train to Segovia, hire a car there for the first three days, then do the rest by bus and train? Was thinking car would allow more side visits, such as Alba de Tormes. Could you tell me the name of the busline we could use Segovia-Avila-Salamanca so that I could check out schedules and times?
Thanks again

[Juanjo]

Do we need a car?



Yes- my experience is that you need a car or you will miss out seeing a lot of good things otherwise inacessible by public transport.

[omeyas]

Have never been in Spain and not hired a car, I would hate to rely on public transport, however good it may be. You go where you want, when you want, you're in charge! :)

[tailormadeandalucia]

Hire a car with GPS to avoid too much map reading.
If you've got such an early departure from Madrid it might save you some hassle by staying in one of the airport hotels in Barajas. I think they do free airport transfers from these hotels which means you could ditch the car at the airport the day before and have a short journey to and from the hotel. Try the hotel osuna. www.chh.es

[eldeano]

Try the hotel osuna. www.chh.es (http://www.chh.es)

I stayed here for weeks. It was fine and they ran an airport service every day (except Sunday).

[Greboicus]

When we were in Madrid a couple of months ago we eventually stayed in Sol but we did find out that Travelodge have some fairly cheap hotels on the outskirts.

[Greboicus]

Oh and on the car hire, I have broken from my usual use of Europcar and found a company called Auto-europe http://www.auto-europe.co.uk/ basically they use the normal firms (Europcar/Hertz/Avis) but you save a fairly substantial amount of money. We have hired a car from Valencia on the 13th July and return it to Madrid on the 25th and it cost us £206 which was over £60 cheaper than Europcar so maybe worth a look for you

[omeyas]

We have done a great deal of car hire in Spain over many years, and the "cheapest" is not always the best, or the "cheapest" at the end of the day.
Bear in mind, the actual insurance does not cover a lot, glass is normally not covered, and tucked away in the T&C's you'll find things like,

The Collision Damage Waiver (CDW) does not cover damage to the undercarriage, oil sump, clutch, wheels incl. tyres and wheel trims. Nor does the insurance cover the replacement of the vehicle regardless of the type of damage caused. The insurance does not cover change of tyres.

So for extra cover, you are offered "excess waiver", which can range from €1 to €5 a day. Not too bad if you are there for a week, but when we go for a month, that can be up to €150 extra! :( Of course, you can elect not to pay it, but then they normally want a deposit of many hundreds of pounds to cover possible damage. I refuse to pay it, using instead a UK company (http://www.insurance4carhire.com/) to cover the extra insurance. It cost me £45 a year, and that covers as many trips as I want of up to 30 days. As we normally go at least 3 times a year, it's a huge saving for me.
Don't know about Madrid, but certainly at Málaga, the cheapest companies also attract the longest queues, an hour wait is not unusual.:(

[gary]

Do we need a car?

Well, the last visit, Madrid, Toledo, Alicante, we did all by train which was MOST IMPRESSIVE. Originally we were looking at this trip as non-car too, but then Juanjo suggested Parque Natural del Rio Duraton, Sepúlveda, and some other places around there look very nice to visit. We especially like places for walks or hikes. Perhaps we should catch the train to Segovia, hire a car there for the first three days, then do the rest by bus and train? Was thinking car would allow more side visits, such as Alba de Tormes. Could you tell me the name of the busline we could use Segovia-Avila-Salamanca so that I could check out schedules and times?
Thanks again

Cant see the point of taking a car to toledo - unless there are other places on your itinerary - Atocha - Toledo by train is a dream

[jubilee]

Many thanks for all of this good advice. It is hard to wait for September! Have decided on the car to also visit Sierra de Gredos. Really appreciate you taking the time to share your experiences