Chateau de Biron is in the Dordogne region of France, south of Bordeaux in the South-Western corner of the country. Started in the 12th century, the chateau was in the hands of one family for 800 years, the Gontaut-Biron, and enhanced and expanded until the 18th century.

Chateau de Biron, Dordogne, France

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It has to be one of the most famous places on Earth, never mind the United Kingdom — the prehistoric stone circle that is Stonehenge. But if you have ever been there, you’ll have found yourself behind a low fence on a paved path, well away from the stones themselves and far enough away to make good photographs difficult.

It’s hard to blame English Heritage, who own the site and are responsible for maintaining Stonehenge. Over the years, visitors have chipped off pieces of stone and carved their initials. Today, you can still see graffiti carved in the 1800s, when the stones were simply sitting in a corner of a lumpy field on the edge of Salisbury plain rather than a protected monument.

So, how is it that I am so special that I got to go right into the centre of the circle to get the angles and photos you see on the site?

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Some have asked for recommendations of websites or agencies they should try for car rentals in Europe.

Not all rental car companies are equal — San Francisco CA

So here are the sites I use:

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Driving in Europe continues to be something that generates a lot of email, so on to another popular driving topic: traffic circles — or, roundabouts as they’re known in the UK. Incredibly popular in Europe, you don’t see these too often in the US. When you do, they appear to generate a lot of confusion amongst drivers.

Early traffic circle — Stonehenge, England

The “golden rule” of traffic circles is pretty simple: traffic entering must yield to anything already in the circle. As you approach, take a look to see if there’s anything coming — if there is, slow down or stop. You don’t need to stop if there’s no traffic in the circle. You do need to stop if entering would cause traffic in the circle to slow down or stop to avoid you!

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You’d be forgiven for wondering why there’s a need to write an article about renting a car. After all, millions of people do so every year - but there are enough differences when in Europe for it to be worth a few tips.

Tip One: Only rent a car if you need it

In many European capitals and major cities, it is often advantageous not to have a car - parking is difficult to find and expensive, and moving around by car can be slower than public transport at busy times. Unlike the US, many hotels do not have their own parking. So when in Rome, Paris, London, Florence etc. don’t rent a car if you intend to just sightsee in the city itself. If you need to get out to visit another town or city, consider taking the train or even a bus. Services in Europe can be fast, frequent and reasonably priced.

When it comes to a larger geographical area like Tuscany or the Dordogne, then you are going to need transport to get about, and a car is the most efficient way to do so. I say this as someone who really likes to take good public transport, and often takes not-so-good public transport. It is possible to get around by bus in areas like Tuscany, but boy is it a logistical challenge and fundamentally you will get to spend far less time enjoying the area. When you have limited time to vacation, spending it on a bus is not good. Buy carbon offset to cover the CO₂ emissions of the car (and your plane ride, while you are at it) if you feel bad about that aspect.

Tip Two: Rent a small car, or several, rather than a giant car

Resist the urge to rent a larger car, even if it is appealing because you have a large family or group on the trip. Get a couple of smaller cars instead. Larger cars are rarer in Europe because running them is more expensive, and also European towns and cities were not designed for cars at all. As well as being expensive to fuel, large cars are hard to maneuver in narrow streets designed for nothing wider than a few pigs and maybe a horse or two.

On one trip, we were staying a few nights in Florence and then heading out to Villa Vignamaggio. We were to stay at Hotel Brunelleschi, squeezed into the centre of the ancient city of Florence. The area is so old, the hotel is built around a Byzantine tower with Roman remains in the basement - it even has its own museum. The roads leading to it are really, really narrow: even the taxi driver had a hard time getting his small Fiat around the final bend. Some kindly Italians stopped to guide him back-and-forth as he edged the car around the corner. With even a small SUV or Minivan you’d be wedged between two buildings several turns back.

Incidentally, we’ll probably never stay at the Brunelleschi again. Not because it was bad - quite the reverse: it is a truly historic hotel with charm, good rooms, friendly staff and a fantastic location. No, I blame Dan Brown: it’s where his characters Langdon and Sophie plan to stay at the end of The Da Vinci Code - presumably for a night of passion. I could be wrong about the last bit, but it doesn’t seem like they’re going to sip tea and discuss iconography. At any rate, ever since then prices have gone up, up, up and you practically have to be Dan Brown to get in.

Tip three: Use your credit card rental car insurance to save money

Many credit cards offer extensions to basic rental car insurance to cover accidental damage and/or theft - far more cheaply than the rental car company. You are already paying for this in your annual card fee and/or interest, so make use of it. Check the website of your card supplier to find out what they offer, and read all the small print so you know exactly which insurance to accept, and which to decline.

I like American Express’ coverage in this area, and so use that card for car rental charges. Our rental car was vandalized in Toulouse, France (not badly, but bad enough for a hefty charge from the rental company) and we claimed through Amex. After sending in the paper work they did their investigation and then paid up. Insurance is getting simpler in places like Italy where there are a lot of claims - all rental car companies now mandate you buy comprehensive cover.

The insurance cover you probably don’t need is for personal possessions. Most people’s belongings are covered by their household insurance policy, but there are exceptions for expensive stuff like cameras and lenses and jewelry. Read your policy to see what is covered and don’t buy coverage twice. In general, the best policy is to take anything remotely valuable out of the car as any kind of car trouble tends to ruin your day.

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Checking e-mail, Florence fashion

If you read the previous article, you now know the answer to the question “why doesn’t my American cell phone just work in Europe?” and what to do about it. This article will take a look at the various data services that are on offer for Americans who want to send e-mail, surf the net or transmit digital photographs back to base while traveling in Europe or elsewhere.

There are five basic types of data service available from GSM cell phones (if you’re wondering why GSM is the only technology covered, read the previous article). (more…)

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Ever thought about renting a villa in Italy, France, Spain or some other European country? Figured that it was hard to do and just for millionaires or film stars? You may be surprised to learn that renting a villa can be more reasonable than staying in a hotel, especially if you are a family or in a larger group (though being a film star or millionaire does help if you want to rent an entire Tuscan village from the Ferragamo family — yes, the shoe people).

Renting a villa doesn’t have to be difficult or expensive; there are just five simple steps.

Step one is to decide if a villa vacation is for you. The pros are that you’ll have a base for a week or two that you can come back to each night. You can stay in all day, lounge by the pool or in the garden, go somewhere, eat in or out… all up to you. The cons are that there’s no daily maid service or other hotel amenities, you are in the same place (so visiting places far from base means a longer round trip), and you have to keep the place reasonably clean and tidy, and do the cooking yourself if you stay in (and clean up afterwards). Personally, I am happy to trade off hotel amenities for a more relaxed and flexible vacation.

Step two is to pick a country and general geography — South of France, Tuscany etc — based on the kind of things you want to do and see. Get a few guidebooks to places you think you might like to go. My personal favorites are the Dorling Kindersley “Eyewitness” travel guides (DK guides), and the Rough Guides. I like the DK guides because they’re chock full of photographs so you can get a much better idea of what a place is really like, and they’re also a good starting point for planning photo-taking days. The Rough Guides are impeccably researched with good writing on places, their history, art and place in contemporary life, with great vignettes on the famous locals. However, although brimming with great maps to get you around. they are sparsely illustrated when it comes to photos.

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Part 1 of 2 articles: the second covers cellular data in Europe

Last updated: 18 February 2008

To many Americans, staying in touch with a cell phone while in Europe can seem difficult and expensive. But savvy travelers know it doesn’t have to be. Having a phone while you’re there can be a major time saver and convenience. Friends and family can reach you easily. You can spontaneously pull out the guidebook, pick a restaurant and call to see if they can accommodate you before jumping into a car or taxi. This article tells you how to stay in touch and save money.

Advanced mobile wireless use in Lucca, Italy

Why don’t US cell phones “just work” in Europe? For various reasons, the United States developed and deployed wireless technologies that were incompatible with those deployed in the Rest Of the World, which went with a single standard called GSM (”Global System for Mobiles” - this is one of the reasons why Europeans use the term “mobile” and not “cell phone”).

This meant that for many years, the only option for US travelers to Europe was to rent a GSM phone, which was expensive and inconvenient. No one could reach you on your US cell phone number; you had the hassle and expense of receiving and returning the phone, and both handset rental and calls were astonishingly expensive.

GSM comes to America

Today, you can buy US mobile phones that use the GSM system from AT&T Wireless and T-Mobile. So why don’t these phones “just work” in Europe? Although they use GSM, they work on different radio frequencies. To function in Europe, a GSM phone must operate (at the very least) on the 1800MHz frequency; to get the best European coverage it must operate on both 900MHz and 1800MHz.

The first GSM “world phones” supported three bands: 900/1800MHz (for
Europe) and 1900MHz (for the USA). However, US GSM carriers are now expanding their wireless coverage using the 850MHz frequency band. So you won’t get the best coverage in the USA with a 900/1800/1900 tri-band phone.

Thus you now need a quad-band GSM phone in order to get good coverage world-wide (850/900/1800/1900Mhz). There are more and more quad-band GSM phones coming on to the market every month, though they tend to be high-end models. To plug the gap, US GSM carriers are offering new tri-band “world phones” that operate on 850/1800/1900MHz. These offer the best coverage in the US, but limited coverage in Europe. The Sony-Ericsson Z310-A offered by AT&T is one example. (more…)

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