23 June 2009

Disneyland Paris Bargain Prices

If the recession has a silver lining it's in the discounted prices that Disneyland Paris are offering. You can get a whopping 40% off a package stay if you book Disneyland Paris before 15th July. What’s more this great offer can be combined with the Kids Under 7 Stay & Play for free offer! This means that a family of four can now stay in a Disney Hotel from as little as £248.40 (including Park Tickets & Breakfast). With a little luck these bargain prices from Disneyland Paris mean that things are quiet, so you might even find the queues smaller than usual. More information and links to book Disneyland Paris.

19 June 2009

Cost of a car accident abroad

If you are taking your car abroad this summer, be aware that in some countries accident repairs are much more expensive than in the UK.

Aviva Insurance tells us that Germany is the costliest country for crash repairs, with the average cost £2940, or twice as much as the average across Europe.

In France the average claim for personal injury is £10000, so do your best not to have an accident there!

Other destinations where an accident could cost you dearly include Austria and Switzerland, with an average cost of £2,265. whilst Belgium is the third most expensive country in Europe and a crash could cost up to £1,617.

These figures make it even more important to ensure that you have good quality fully comprehensive vehicle insurance in place. Although the old Green Card is no longer required, and most insurance companies do not issue them now, you should still contact your insurer to let them know you are driving abroad.

In addition make sure you have vehicle breakdown insurance which covers taking your car to Europe. This causes some confusion. It is not the same as your car insurance, and many breakdown policies only cover the UK. If you need European breakdown cover we recommend Green Flag as the company offering the best mix of cover and cost.

17 June 2009

Shortage of hire cars

The car hire industry is forecasting a shortage of hire cars this summer. Because of the recession they haven't bought so many cars this year, apparently. So if you're thinking of flying and want to hire you should book sooner rather than later. Of course, we don't do flights at Drive-Alive, but we do trains, and many people are taking the train to Europe then hiring a car. Both our car hire partners are very competitive on price, well-established, and have cars in hundreds of locations across Europe. Try Auto Europe or Argus Car Hire and we're pretty confident you'll find what your looking for.

10 June 2009

Save up to 40% on Mini Cruises with DFDS

DFDS Seaways operate from Newcastle to Ijmuiden near Amsterdam and from Harwich to Esbjerg in Western Denmark. Although the vessels are primarily intended as car ferries, they have plenty of facilities on board and DFDS is keen to promote what they call mini cruises, where you travel as a foot passenger. They offer straightforward mini cruises where you either stay a night or two at your chosen destination, or you can just spend a few hours ashore. Or you can check out their wildlife mini cruises, city cruise breaks and cottage holidays. We've chosen to highlight these because currently they are all on offer with up to 40% off.

As this is a blog we don't have the space to feature details on these offers, but you'll find them all by following the links on the Drive-Alive website:

Special offers on DFDS mini cruises, holidays and ferry crossings

If you'd prefer the trip to Denmark, and would like to take your car why not combine the Øresund Region of eastern Denmark and southern Sweden - two countries in one destination. Enjoy the cosmopolitan buzz of Copenhagen, Denmark's capital city. Studies show that the Danes are among the happiest and most content people in the world - and the Danish capital is a great place to find out why! Then cross the Øresund Bridge to the laid back city of Malmö, in Sweden, for another unique Scandinavian experience. With Denmark's sophisticated capital on the one hand and Sweden's rugged natural beauty on the other, you'll discover almost endless possibilities for days of exploration within a fairly small geographical area.

5 June 2009

Senior Railcards in Europe

As you may know Drive-Alive has a sister website for train travel in Europe, with links to sites where tickets can be booked. We've recently been asked if other European countries offer a discount card for senior citizens, similar to the Senior Railcard available in the UK.

The answer is yes, although there seems to be a trend for these to become less widely available. The other problem is that we know of no UK website where these cards can be pre-booked, or where the discount can be claimed online. So it looks as if the only current option is to either try and book on the rail booking website of the country you are visiting, or wait until you arrive and then buy your card and tickets.

If anyone knows of a site where railcards and discounted tickets can be booked, we'd like to hear about it. In the meantime, here is a link to the most comprehensive information about senior railcards we've been able to find.

3 June 2009

LD Lines Launches Fast Ferry Dover Boulogne


LD Lines has started its new fast ferry service from Dover to Boulogne with their brand new, high speed wave-piercing Catamaran. The vessel is the world's largest diesel-powered catamaran and is claimed to provide a whole new level of comfort compared to the older fast ferries operated by Hoverspeed (now of course defunct, along with the hovercrafts). These old vessels were unaffectionately known as vomit comets! The crossing time will be just 1 hour and LD Lines promise fast loading and unloading. The new fast ferry crossing, together with the existing ferries, means there will now be six return sailings daily between Dover and Boulogne, with fares starting from just £24 single. Click for full timetables, prices and bookings.