I saw an article about how expensive car rental has become in Yurp, but in fact it seems to have become more expensive in Britishland.
A cursory look showed me that a 7-day rental in Vienna would run about $450 (base cost before add-ons), whereas at Heathrow the same car would cost $800. Seriously?
Unlike a lot of people, I have no problem with driving in Europe or the U.K., so a rental car is always preferable to waiting for trains or buses. (Not in the cities, of course, but around the country to small towns and villages.) Even Britain’s perennial parking problems don’t really worry me, and I really prefer the freedom of the open road.
When I stayed at Free Market Towers back in 2017, I rented a car which, if memory serves, cost me about $320 per week, fully loaded (insurance etc.) and I fondly imagined that the next time I get Over There, I’d be able to afford the same.
Fat chance, at those prices.
And train travel has become prohibitive too, not just in Britishland but also in Yurp; but I’m not interested in just staying in cities (ironically, other than maybe Vienna).
So here I sit: proper fucked, as the Brits say.