Help! To drive or not to drive?

If you are not familiar with the country, speak little if any Spanish, and like some comfort when you travel, you would be better off renting a car than trying to explore the country in guaguas and publicos.

A much better option than guaguas and publicos would be to take buses like Caribe Tour and Metro from area to area, then rent a car for the day in that area if you wish to see places of interest in the general area.

Rent a car, see the island, it's the best way! I wouldn't recommend that you drive at night on the smaller roads. Rent from a reputable firm like National, that way you have the peace of mind that they will support you in a problem or a breakdown, many of the smaller firms will not, they just don't have the resources.

Thousands of tourists every year rents cars, travel around the island without a problem. Just use the normal precautions when driving. If you do intend to drive at night, get used to 90% of drivers using their high beam permanently.

Have fun and come back here and tell us all about it.

I rented a car on two of my trips to the DR, and did not have any problems, did not do any night time driving other than one night from Higuey to Punta Cana with a DR friend of mine.

Just some related questions...Do any of the 'majors' have a loyalty scheme for frequent renters? Or give price breaks on rentals of 4 weeks or longer? Or publish upgrade or discount coupons? It appears that weekly rentals are 2-3 times the price for the same cars in North America or Europe....Any clever ways to get better deals from the majors?
I will be arriving in early January for a month and have been searching for a reasonable deal online. So far, the cheapest deal I can find is just short of $ 400 per week. As a frequent traveler and renter (on price only) I know the difference between the chains and independents.... I have used both and been lucky so far (by always declining all the optional insurance ) with my Gold Visa.

For anyone renting online, I recommend the following 1)print every page of your reservation as you complete it online. 2) be aware of the cancellation policy and have the phone no. handy
3) if possible, hold a little, discrete on-site 'auction ' after you arrive to see if you can get a better price/ car on the spot.

In Europe and North America most of the majors will accept a res without taking your card no.
It appears this is not the case in DR

Hopefully someone can shed some light on my original question

Thanks for this great board, all of you good people!

Definitely Rent

Rent a "Car", but if you are on the north coast I recommend something in a 4x4 or similar to allow for the brutal potholes you will encounter and hit at full speed. Not to mention the unmarked speed bumps on the highways You're going to want something with a suspension slightly better than that of the Ford Firefly.

Renting is the way to go. Stick to reputable rental agencies. Make sure you are insured.

marc

If you looking for a long term rate you should contact the National office here directly, skip their global online reservation system.

http://dr1.com/national/

Speak to Elso or Brenda, they will be able to help you out.

Thanks for the tip....is a month considered 'long term' in their books?

Contact them and ask, then let us all know.

We rented from National

at SDQ in April, 2002 and had a real blast. I logged a little more than 1,200 Km in the single week in one of their Nissan Sentras.

One reason rental rates are high is that a large percentage of Dominican vehicles are involved in accidents each year. But as Robert said, renting offers the independence I demand and requires no fixed schedule on my part.

Be prepared to meet some truly "interesting" drivers and some poor road conditions along the way. Major highways such as the Autopista Duarte are quite good, however.

Crossing the city of Santo Domingo itself can be quite an adventure. But don't worry, after 2 or 3 days of experience you will be driving like a native Dominican!

Swede

Robert, yes, I will contact them and let everyone know....but I'm like one of those 'smaller firms' with limited 'resources' and this may be only the 1st of many trips for me...then perhaps, my family.

I am also on the same learning curve with airlines and airfares out of Paris....(So far, its Air France in Jan.....641 Euros a/r) They have a great family loyalty plan for domestic travel but nothing for international. Any advise appreciated!

The main purpose of my visit January is to get a good overall picture of the country, acting as a 'scout' in preparation for returning with them in July for 4-8 weeks.

I'm sure that everyone agrees that whole travel industry is designed to get the maximum amount of people to spend as much money as they can afford in the shortest period of time. It's one of the few games with rules, conditions, rates, etc. that are in a constant state of flux.....and that's why I love it and hate it! We have rented cars in St. Martin, Cuba, and Puerto Rico and love to travel like drubun....always aware contact with the 'locals' and the 'real world' is limited with the windows rolled up and the AC on....

Anyone know how I would fare by letting the local real estate agents around the island be my 'guide' in their vehicles? Do the major bus companies have reliable schedules/ websites? Also, any tips on where and if I can rent a room for a week for around $100? Yeah....I know......but when you travel as much as we do, that's the way of the game...and I can wash dishes!

Again, huge thanks for to all for this great resource.....I've been sneaking a look at it for years and it just keeps getting better!!

goneglobal, the major bus companies, i.e. Caribe Tours and Metro, have very reliable schedules.

I truied to rent a car from National from Dec 27 - jan 1 but they had nothjing available. Any other suggestions ?

Please excuse my spelling - It's Saturday morning.

I rented from a local guy right next to the Europa in Sosua ( 2 years ago ). The rate I believe was competetive, 600 pesos per day. It wasn't the sturdiest of cars, ( Honda ) but it made it ok. I was afraid for the suspension and would have had to consider leaving the car and calling them to come pick it up while I beat feet. I shouldn't be held responsible for repairs to a (very) used car so I would have no other choice.

The North Coast highway to Las Terrenas was an easy 4 hour drive, not busy and didn't hit any major damaged road areas.

One odd thing was they wanted to keep my ID so they asked for my passport. Rather than give that up, they settled for my driver's license. Next time I'll offer a xeroxed copy of those.

It all ended well. Even though I was a few hours late in returning the car, ( and they were unhappy about it ) They charged me a mere 200 pesos penalty where I belive by the contract thay could have hit me up for more. Maybe they don't read their own contract, or don't bother to do the math....

I believe we were trying to save money at the time, but the margin was mighty slim and all in all I like the Caribe Tour busses. I would rather let someone else do the driving.

Also the Highway from POP to SD is fine and fast. The mountain road from POP to Santiago is ok when dry in the daytime but oncoming traffic comes at you leaving you little room, and the traffic behind keeps honking to urge you to go faster. The road through SD may be ok if you can find your way through but God help you if you get lost. We were stck in traffic for hours until we finally got through.