Poster: A snowHead
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We will be arriving on an easyJet into Geneva for a morzine summer holiday in august. I want to book a car hire and I am confused. Is the default option to book French side or Swiss side, does it make a difference, and what would you recommend?
Thanks in advance
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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Unless the french side is more than £50 cheaper , i would go swiss side.
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Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
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The only advantage of booking Swiss side in the summer is having the motorway vignette. That can be very useful as Geneva traffic can be bad. It's quite a lot quicker to get down to your car (under the terminal building) on the French side whereas on the Swiss side it's a bus or walk. If being pernickety about comparing prices, there might be a charge on the Swiss side for taking the vehicle into France - and that often seems to crop up last minute, when you pick up the car, and they ask where you are going.
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@Trickydicky, Usually the default is the Swiss side. The French side is usually but not always less expensive. IMHO it is more conveinent than the Swiss side with the cars actually adjacent to the termnal and easier access to the motorway but you may have to buy a vignette to use the Swiss motorways.
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Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
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And one last question. Irrespective of where I hire from, are you allowed to cross the border ? We were thinking of going to a Swiss water park.
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Origen wrote: |
The only advantage of booking Swiss side in the summer is having the motorway vignette. That can be very useful as Geneva traffic can be bad. It's quite a lot quicker to get down to your car (under the terminal building) on the French side whereas on the Swiss side it's a bus or walk. If being pernickety about comparing prices, there might be a charge on the Swiss side for taking the vehicle into France - and that often seems to crop up last minute, when you pick up the car, and they ask where you are going. |
The bus on the Swiss side takes less than 5 minutes or it's an easy 500 metre walk, so it's not too much hassle. Also I've hired a car twice in the last month from the Swiss side (once from Sixt and once from Alamo) and not been charged to take it into France.
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Quote: |
so it's not too much hassle
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no, it's not a lot of hassle, but more hassle than walking down stairs in the French area. There have been a number of recent posters talking of the charges to take cars into France (of course, if you don't say you are going to France, you might not be insured..... there's a fair bit of discussion in a number of threads about that. I WAS asked last time I rented a Swiss car (about a year ago).
Getting in and out of the French side is also easy enough when you know where you're going. And don't rely on satnav!
It's swings and roundabouts.
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Just out of recent experience, Alamo didn’t ask and didn’t charge to take a car in to France from the Swiss side whereas Avis did ask and did charge (about €40 from memory). Both in the last two months.
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You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
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Quote: |
Alamo didn’t ask and didn’t charge to take a car in to France from the Swiss side
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hopefully there's no small print somewhere invalidating the insurance if you take a vehicle out of Schweiz without telling them.
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Probably should have checked @Origen!
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snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
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Never heard of being charged extra to go into France. Another money making scheme I guess..
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And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
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It hadn't happened to me before last year, @Perty, but there are quite a lot of recent reports about it. Seems to depend on the company, or the mood of the person on the desk on the day!
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It really comes down to the specifics in the T&Cs - and varies both from company to company and country to country!
For example go to Alamo.co.uk > Locations > Europe > Germany > Munich Airport and the Cross Border Policy FAQ at the bottom of the page says "Vehicles can be driven in (list of countries and exception). n all cases, customers must inform the rental branch of their intention to leave the country with the vehicle and require authorisation. The following additional charges will apply for all cross border travels. Airport & Rail locations 6.24EUR per day."
But go back through selecting Location > Europe > Switzerland > Geneva Airport and the same Cross Border Policy FAQ instead reads "Vehicles can be driven in all European countries excluding (list of countries). No additional charges apply for cross border travels. Customers are not required to inform the rental branch of their intention to leave the country with the vehicle and no prior require authorization is needed."
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You know it makes sense.
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Be warned if renting from the French Sector - you can only move between the Swiss/French sector of Geneva airport if you have a flight within 1 day. Not a problem if you fly in that day, but I almost got caught out renting a French sector a couple of days out before my flight.
From the Geneva Airport website:
“Warning: Following security measures imposed by the Swiss and French authorities, Genève Aéroport informs you that ONLY passengers in possession of an air ticket valid for day D +/-1 are authorised to pass between the international sector and the France sector.
Therefore, car rental agencies’ clients that do not meet this condition must imperatively move from one sector to another by road (car, taxi, etc.), by passing through the Ferney-Voltaire customs. Pedestrians and cyclists are not allowed to use this road.
Genève Aéroport thanks you for your understanding.
https://www.gva.ch/en/Site/Passagers/Questions-Reponses-FAQ/secteur-france#a7773c93-9319-4866-8fe9-57bc331007d2
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Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
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@jenkins000, what an extremely useful post for your first - welcome to Snowheads.
I've done that "Alice through the Looking Glass" walk between the two sectors at Geneva many a time, but not recently, and over the years it's changed a few times.
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Poster: A snowHead
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Quote: |
Following security measures imposed by the Swiss and French authorities, Genève Aéroport informs you that ONLY passengers in possession of an air ticket valid for day D +/-1 are authorised to pass between the international sector and the France sector. |
So no change for passengers landing in Switzerland and wanting to pick up a hire car in France? (ie just use an incoming flight ticket to switch sectors?)
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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Yes, if you arrived that day or the day prior, no problem. You’ll be asked to show your boarding pass to walk through to the French sector.
There are issues if, for example, you fly in, spend 2 nights in Geneva then want to cross to the French sector. Or alternatively if you’ve arrived back into Geneva from your ski resort and have 2 nights before your flight out and have rented a car (my scenario). In these scenarios they’ll make you take a taxi ride into France then back under the airport into the French sector. So it turns a 15 metre walk into quite an ordeal.
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Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
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In my experience they don’t actually scan your boarding pass or validate it in any way. I’m not sure why they bother “checking” at all, as it would take less than 2 mins for someone to edit a screenshot of their actual boarding pass, to have a different date.
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You need to Login to know who's really who.
You need to Login to know who's really who.
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Getting to the rental desks in the French sector confuses some people (it’s tucked away in a corner, on the same floor as the Check-in desks rather than the Arrivals hall). A few times this winter I’ve seen people queue at the car rental desks Swiss side or ask at the rental desks if this is the French sector, to be directed back in to the airport to find the correct location.
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Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
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snowdave wrote: |
In my experience they don’t actually scan your boarding pass or validate it in any way. I’m not sure why they bother “checking” at all, as it would take less than 2 mins for someone to edit a screenshot of their actual boarding pass, to have a different date. |
They checked our boarding passes before we were allowed to cross from France to CH a couple of years ago.
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@Bergmeister, checked as in "looked at" or checked as in "scanned and validated against airline database"?
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@snowdave, if only “looked at” the boarding pass, would you be advocating editing a screenshot of it to pass?
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snowdave wrote: |
@Bergmeister, checked as in "looked at" or checked as in "scanned and validated against airline database"? |
A security guard looked at our boarding passes on the phone but didn't scan them.
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You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
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Hertz Swiss side also now charge the cross border fee. The guy at the desk mentioned it was to provide break down cover outside of CH. I’ve heard other reasons on the past such as tax.
The introduction of e-vignette may make it harder to know if a car from the French side already has a vignette unless this can be checked against the registration online.
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@Ozboy, I was told by hertz that it was optional, but the breakdown charge would be E700 without it. I didn’t have time to check if my normal RAC cover would have applied anyway, but if it does then the I could skip the charge.
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snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
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@snowdave, I will check this next time as I literally drive 3 kms over the border to Châtel and car does not move until I leave again for the airport. I am happy to risk E700.
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And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
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RE - Cross border charges.
I've been charged by Hertz on the Swiss side, and by Europcar on the French side within the past few months. Europcar never used to charge anything, seems to be a new policy, it was a flat €30 and I was told it's mandatory.
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@Ozboy, You can check the vignette status online, I believe.
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You know it makes sense.
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Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
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Just to clarify as it wasn't obvious for me. We don't need vignette to get from french side to France through Geneva. Depending on traffic it takes 10-15min more but the vignette is for motorways (map of them can be checked online). So easiest option is to enable "avoid motorways" and point at the first city in France.
Regarding cross border fee, it can be checked in T&Cs, as far as I remember enterprise doesn't charge it.
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Poster: A snowHead
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Quote: |
Depending on traffic it takes 10-15min more
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It can take a lot more than 10 - 15 minutes more. And remember either to switch satnav off once you get back into France, or enable some option which won't have you sent up a forestry road covered in snow.
And though it's unlikely to be a problem, remember that using any device which alerts a driver to speed traps is illegal in Switzerland. Or so they say.....
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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Origen wrote: |
It can take a lot more than 10 - 15 minutes more. And remember either to switch satnav off once you get back into France, or enable some option which won't have you sent up a forestry road covered in snow.
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It's all about current traffic but my recent trip from swiss side took me through local roads anyway due to traffic on motorway. The previous trip from French side took 10-15min
Origen wrote: |
And though it's unlikely to be a problem, remember that using any device which alerts a driver to speed traps is illegal in Switzerland. Or so they say..... |
Is there any app still working? Waze and google maps no longer alert about speed cameras in switzerland.
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Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
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@snowyc, just don’t speed?
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You need to Login to know who's really who.
You need to Login to know who's really who.
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@ster, why would if it's illegal?
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Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
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snowyc wrote: |
@ster, why would if it's illegal? |
Huh?
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You'll need to Register first of course.
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"I", why would I speed if it's illegal?
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@snowyc, you are concerned about finding an app that tells you where the Swiss speed cameras are. Why want that if you dont speed.
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I once had a shockingly slow journey through Geneva, in the summer, in a French hire car with no vignette. After several trips when I guess I'd just got lucky, that one put me off for life! Though I had always enjoyed a childish giggle going through the "Perly Gate"
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You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
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ster wrote: |
@snowyc, you are concerned about finding an app that tells you where the Swiss speed cameras are. Why want that if you dont speed. |
No, I'm not concerned at all. Have been to European countries where the mentioned apps don't alert about speed cameras many times and survived without a single fine.
You misunderstood my question which was more a surprise that there might be an app still working given it's illegal rather than a concern.
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@snowyc, got you now.
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