the bredmears, 19 november 2009
We really liked our motor home rental. The pick up and drop off were
easy and efficient and the vehicle itself was just as we expected.
Thanks very much

A.B., 02 october 2009
Indeed loosing the sunglasses was quite painful (it takes 5 weeks to get the new ones!) but other than that we really enjoyed the holiday in a camper and rental is a good option for us as we have a limited number of holidays per year.

Everything went smooth from our point of view, from reservation, payment, handing over, etc and the few things that we noted as not working properly were reported when we gave back the car. I would say that it was really important to me to have somebody to talk to when doing the reservation and payment as we had some issues with our bank and talking to you colleague settled the matters quicker and easier.

So in case we will plan another camper holiday (very likely to) you we'll be the first we turn to

Kate, 27 september 2009
We rented our motor home in Annecy and spent a week in Italy.
Nothing bad to say except when we tried to pay the damage
deposit, neither our Amex or Visa credit cards worked. Thank
goodness my hubby had his Mastercard with him or I don't know
what we would have done.

Josie Sinclair, 26 august 2009
This was the 4th time that we have followed the TOUR de France in a camper, and easily the best way of doing it. The vehicle was reliable and comfortable for 3 people but could not have accommodated a couple and 2 other adults.Altho the blurb stated that you may not get that in the picture this was significantly smaller.
Unfortunately had to purchase quite a few basics which should have come with van -fittings for hose so could get water, enough mugs for3 poeple to have a coffee, board so didn't cut on bench, all cleaning equiptment so could return van clean . However loved the trip.

Dan Hazzard, 26 august 2009
We rented in Lille, France for a two-week sojourn. The beginning
of this adventure was awkward, to say the least - the depot was
hard to find, there was no one who spoke english, some notes
about prepaid services were not accounted for - but once we got
going, things kind of worked out.
Everything seemed to work as it should, with one exception. We
discovered a few days into the trip that the refrigerator would only
work when we were connected to external electricity, but we
learned to adapt to this. And aside from needing to purchase a
broom and dustpan for the interior and a longer extension cord for
the exterior electrical hookups, the vehicle was well equipped.
I'm looking forward to another trip around Europe in a camper.

Julie and Dave Rogers - United States, 26 august 2009
We traveled to France for a month during the Tour de France in late June/all of July 2009. It was the first time we had ever rented a motor home or had driven in France and we were pleasantly surprised by the helpfulness of IdeaMerge, both in the States (Doug!) and out of Barcelona, as we needed English-speaking assistance. We picked up our vehicle in Nice and it was perfect. Laurent spoke English and was extremely helpful. We had a little difficulty getting the refrigerator to work, but figured it out after a few days.

We brought a Garmin GPS from home with a French chip and never would have survived without it. Laurent had maps that he loaned us for the trip, which were also extremely helpful. We also had appropriate dishes (though plastic would have made more sense - and made less noise!), utensils, broom & dustpan, etc. We would have liked to have had foldable chairs to sit outside (good addition?) as the weather was fabulous, but we couldn't enjoy sitting in it.

We did need assistance from IdeaMerge during our trip and they were fantastic in their quick response. We would recommend them in an instant to anyone traveling to Europe!

Mal Fox, 08 june 2009
Picked up the vehicle in Lyon, wrong address given
for Camping car 69. but the taxi driver got the
correct address from the 'phone No., which was
correct.
Arrived late due train delays just before closing
time, but apart from saying we should have been
there in the morning, everything was OK.
Adequate linen and duvets supplied (Mar/Apr), full
tanks, water and fuel, 2 gas bottles, full, useful
books on camping, incl. FREE areas on motorways.

On return, very efficient handling of vehicle return
Very satisfactory all round.

Note from IdeaMerge: Indeed the McRent Lyon depot had recently moved a couple of blocks down the street, although we weren't informed about this change. Our deepest apologies and thanks go to this client. We've straightaway corrected our McRent France Locations page.

Pam Symons, pamsymons@yahoo.com.au, 31 august 2008
We collected our van from Nantes, we had a bit of trouble at the depot, as they had prepared the wrong van for us but when mistake realised van was changed over, but the process was very long, took over 3 1/2 hours, even though we had sent all our information through previously. Van was in immaculate condition, beigh that it was almost new. Had no problems on our two weeks travelling in France, which was an amzing holiday, would recommend to anyone and will probable do again in the near future. When we returned van we were again kept for a long period again whilst they went over everything, we had cleaned the van inside and out, but they insisted that it wasn't clean enough as they found dust in a storage box, that we didn't even know existed, so we were charged for cleaning, which was disappointing as we had gone out of our way to keep van clean, and seeing as no cleaning equipment supplied, not even a broom, or a dust cloth, that wasn't easy. Staff were quite friendly and did help us with other issues. We would most probably hire through them again, but take a broom next time.

Avis Family, Ontario, Canada, 27 august 2008
Executive Summary - Had a great time. Camper was an ideal way to travel for our family. Would do it again.

Our family of 5 (parents and 3 teenage sons) had a fantastic 2 week camping excursion around northern France starting the last week of July 2008. We arrived in Paris on a Wednesday and spent two nights in a wonder hotel just one block away from Notre Dame Cathedral (Hotel Europe St. Severin). We returned to the same hotel of our last night before heading home. Our camper pick up was at the Rennes depot. We took the high speed TVG train to Rennes and luckily found a taxi van to carry our group plus a mountain of luggage. The depot is about 20 minutes from the train station.

Faxing in the rental information prior to leaving Canada really helped to streamline the process for signing out the camper. The staff at the rental shop were courteous and helpful. We had a reasonably detailed briefing of the ins and outs of the camper and were on the road in about 1.25 hours. We had the Family Luxury unit that has a huge storage bunker below the rear bed and we put that storage to use for the bulk of our luggage. The camper was brand new with only 200 km on the odometer.

When planning for the trip we purchased an SD card for our TomTom GPS with maps for all of Western Europe. We don’t know how we navigated around Europe on previous driving trips without this unit - we certainly wouldn’t attempt another trip without a GPS. It took most of the stress out of driving. Our preference - stay off of toll roads - they are typically built in never-ending ditches with no views. Go for the smaller 4-lane and 2-lane roads to see more of the country. (Set your GPS to avoid toll roads).

We brought $10 Canadian Tire summer sleeping bags with us to reduce housekeeping (as well, reviews were not very positive for the bedding package that was available). The sleeping bags worked great, and we would not have had guilty minds if we had to leave them behind to free up space in our luggage for our return flight. We also brought our own old pillows (some of those remain in France). Use the stabilizer legs under the rear carriage to reduce rocking of the vehicle when parked overnight.

The utensils, cooking equipment, dishes, etc. were adequate for our needs. Hint: pack towels or sheets around the dishes and cups when travelling to eliminate shifting of the load.

We purposely avoided using the on-board toilet. We did not realize that emptying of the dirty sink water should have been done at every possible opportunity. After about 5 days of warm summer weather an unpleasant odour was noticed and it intensified as days past. We finally figured out it was the fermenting dirty water vessel that was back gassing.

To our surprise, there was a strong-box (safe) under one of the seats for storing valuables.

We were amazed that there were essentially no bugs during our entire trip which included coastline and inland travel. The campground book provided was on little use. We had pre-purchased a Alan Rogers guide book which was of more use. Unfortunately, we were unable to purchase the interactive CD from ACSI - I think it would have been very helpful since we did bring along laptop computer to allow for email access and cataloguing of digital photographs.

We eventually discovered that campers are allowed to set up overnight at certain parking areas throughout France. One Dutch camper said there is a book that identified all of these free campsites. District information centres can point out the free campsites in their area. We utilized three of these free sites and also set up camp on residential streets on two occasions.

We wish that we would have had a few fold up chairs to use once we settled in for the night. We did not arrange for rental of the chair/table set due to comments from other reviews.

Our travels took us from Carnac, all along the D-Day Beaches, through Flanders Field (including parts of Belgium) and down the Lore Valley. A total of 2,700 km of travel was accumulated. A typical fill of diesel fuel was just of 100Euro. We had to fill up about 6 times in total.

We spent a few hours on a last night in the camper to do a thorough cleaning. No problems upon return, even though the upper corner panel had a couple of dings from encountering a tree limb. No additional charges or penalties, only the cost as per original booking arrangements.

Simon Hooton, simon_hooton@hotmail.com, 21 august 2008
We booked to pick up our camping car from Loisirs 44 in Nantes. The company were great but we were supplied with the wrong address for the depot. We were given 315 Route de Vannes where as the address is 316 Route de Vannes, which is about 3km away. We found it having made many phone calls on expensive mobile roaming charges, thinking all the time that the company had gone bust and we'd lost our holiday, hey ho. Once we arrived, everyone was helpful and we had a great holiday-France is brilliant for campervans. So after a bad start we had a great time!

Penny Shek, 10 august 2008
We loved our campervan holiday, but Avis Caraway, St Laurent Du Var, Nice, was disappointing.

1. We were promised maps, but all we got was one map of France. This was not helpful at all, because it was difficult to read the roads at such a small size, and some roads and suburbs were not even on it. When I asked for another map, there was only one other available (also of the whole of France), and I was not allowed to take it! We had to buy our own for 20 euros!
We did not get a list of camping grounds as promised either.

2. The bedding which we paid for, was inadequate. We booked for two, but only got one blanket. One blanket did not keep either of us warm enough at night (july, summer).

3. The cooking equipment was unsatisfactory and inadequate eg. the knife had black stuck on it, only three plates for four people, no mugs for tea, no cleaning products/sponge. The fridge was not very cold.

4. The pick up location was not easy to find especially when returning the vehicle. Again, a map of France did not suffice.

Some good points were:

1.The vehicle itself was quite new and in good condition. It had good storage, was spacious and comfortable.

2. The flyscreens on the windows.

Hannes, 28 july 2008
Picked up almost brand new camper in Paris. Well organized and friendly staff. Experienced NO PROBLEMS with van, utensils or amenities. Driving a 6 seater in Italy / France was challenging at times, but handed camper back with no scratches.

Will definitely do it again, with the same people.

Jacob Pot, 28 may 2008
Pick up and drop off in Nice. Not the most organised; but friendly and effective.

Van not as new as last time. Some minor defects. Intermittent problems with water heater and fridge. Cooking gear very minimal.

Cannot understand why a van that will sleep 6 only has four seats with seatbelts.

Otherwise would do it all again, as it is an ideal way around the area.

Tom, 22 october 2007
Picked up the vehicle in Paris. Nice, clean and comfortable, however missing were the pots/pans, cutlery, dishes and information about campsites. (Double check for those.) Other than that, great holiday, nice way to see the country.

Ken Ackley and Karen Pope, 18 october 2007
We picked up our RV just outside Paris.
It was in very clean good condition.
We were not too happy with the maps and directions given us - ended up stopping to buy an atlas after hours on the wrong highway !!
No coffee pot was a surprise seems it would be an easy thing to provide. Yes the dishes rattle around.
Sheets were just barely OK - would make a big impression to have good ones.
These complaints aside -- we loved our time in the vehicle ---camped near Samois for 6 days for a Music Festival. Great to be able to fix our meals.
Our return was seamless ...the place is NOT easy to find or get to but -the folks there are great.

Wood Family, 08 october 2007
We picked up at Paris, France, and returned to Lyon, France. Great space in van and we had a good time but a few suggestions for improvement.
1. decent maps included, the camping books were no good for actually locating the camp sites.
2. specially moulded or cut out shelves to hold the crockery to save it crashing around in the
cupboards.
3. depots miles away from anywhere, closer to airports much better. Taxi driver in Paris had no idea hence a very expensive fare!!!
4. our linen was very threadbare and very stained and smelly pillows.we had cold weather in July and one blanket wasn't enough.

pat richter, 03 october 2007
We're a couple of months late with this but, better late than never! Picked up our motorhome in Paris for a 2 week trip through parts of France, the Swiss Alps & Italy in June.It was our first time in a motorhome. Loved it. Would do it again at the drop of a hat. We recommend getting a GPS---worth it's weight in gold!The staff at the Paris depot were excellent, very friendly and all spoke English. However, we feel it should be made very clear that the actual depot isn't in Paris but in a suburb. We had been picked up at the airport and taken to the depot but it was a nightmare trying to return it because we programmed the GPS for the road in Paris(rue du Colonel de Rochebrune) and ended up all over Paris---including going up the Champs Elysees and circling the Arc de Triomphe 3 times!!! We laugh about it now but didn't at the time!The depot is actually in the suburb of Rueil and both it and Paris have a road of the same name but we were unaware of this. We should have programmed Rueil into the GPS. We weren't impressed with the table & chairs that we rented--they were basically falling apart.Other than those 2 minor things, it was a fantastic experience.So easy to just pull off somewhere and eat etc. Doug at Ideamerge answered all our questions very promptly & we'd definitely rent through Ideamerge again. We agree with a previous review--------just doit!(but get a GPS!)We're already thinking about our next trip.

Pat Richter

Anthony Cranny, acranny@compuserve.com, 09 september 2007
We, as a family, were very impressed with the simplicity of pick-up and return of the Motor Home. July and August traffic can be horrendous but it was easy to drive, even around the streets of Paris. It was fun and we were able to see more of France than we normally do. The vehicle was in good condition, and very clean and comfortable. We shall be doing this again in the future. thankyou for a great holiday.

Kerri Ackland, 18 august 2007
Ideamerge were the perfect answer for us, as we were looking to hire a vehicle from one location and drop at another, but further to that we were hiring at very short notice. Ideamerge were extremely helpful and prompt with getting us set up with exactly what we needed and when.

We found the people at the pick up location in Marseille freindly albeit a little disorganised and the people at the drop off depot in paris exceptionally helpful and totally well organised.

The camper was in prestine condition, dishes and pots etc below average, but completely functional.

We did have an accident, which is a very complicated proceedure to work through, especially if your French is only average as mine is. And we did have a mechanical problem, which used a whole day of normal touring time, but the help desk free phone was absolutely as helpful as they could be.

I would definitely hire through Ideamerge again and we have told friends to do the same.

Jay Crystal Merz, 25 july 2007
We picked up our motorhome at Paris South. Drove it through France, Germany, Italy and Switzerland.
Plusses.
Ideamerge personnel were helpful and responsive.
The RV was clean, new, easy to drive and quite spacious for a family of four. We saved a lot of money preparing most of our own meals. Our teenage son loved the flexibility of eating when he wanted to. The bed even fit our 6'4" son. We would do this again in a heart beat. Finding campgrounds in Europe is relatively easy, easier than finding a room every night. There were no hidden fees. The dishes were nice.
Checkout was quick and easy.
Cons
Getting to Avis for pickup was a nightmare. More assistance than "take a cab" would have made it so much easier. We took the train from Gare du Nord. We thought we were walking distance from the Bretigny train station but that was a different station. We walked for 45 minutes. Upon arriving we quickly got our orientation and left.
The promised camping book and map didn't match so they were worthless.
The pans were in poor condition with no lids.
Even though the instructions emphasized keeping the RV level, ramps or jacks were not included.
The instruction manual was incomplete. We were surprised as was everyone else in the campground to find out we had an alarm system.
Again more assistance on getting to the Paris south location would have made the beginning of our trip so much more enjoyable. A taxi from central Paris would definitely have been more than Euro70. The train to Bretigny then a taxi was very affordable.
If you can drive a manual transmission this is a great way to go.

Anthony Willis, twil9899@bigpond.net.au, 24 july 2007
Ideamerge were efficient and wonderful.
We collected our motorhome from Nice, unfortunately arriving from the airport to find the place closed for siesta and nowhere for us to even sit while they ignored us outside the gate. The depot was a filthy shambles and obviously a very distant cousin of Avis. We explained that the main door of the van didn't seem to work properly, for which they gave little attention, but failed to understand that it wouldn't open from the inside. In the end after days of frustration I 'fixed' it with a bit of wire. The back seats were torn and shabby. They provided us with one empty LPG gas bottle and a quarter full one. The fuel tank was provided on a quarter full, which eventually meant we had to turn back from our intended route because we couldn't find any open gas stations. There are only seat belts in forward facing seats. They were unable to provide a camping table and seats as booked, so we brought our own.
However Avis at the Paris end, reimbursed us and COULDN'T have been more helpful, courteous and professional.
Having glass and china crockery is a constant annoyance (on every corner). Surely melamine is a cheaper, quieter and better option. Otherwise the vehicle was pleasant to drive, economical and comfortable. It would have been helpful to have electrical converters provided for each country, as we had trouble in Switzerland. It took some getting used to the width of the vehicle, especially when our GPS took us into ever narrowing streets. In all a wonderful way to see Europe.

sam Robbins, sam.robbins@gmail.com, 07 july 2007
We picked up our RV at the Paris Avis location and apart from a
brief downpour as we did our outside inspection of the vehicle
everything went well. We had some logistical issues both picking
up and dropping off the RV at the Avis Paris location. It couldn't be
more distant from CDG airport if they tried! Our real problem was
that we had too much luggage (we are musicians and along with
our regular bags we were carrying three musical instruments). It
really is our only quibble with the Avis situation - the staff were
very competent and helpful but the location for most international
travellers is not great - a location at Roissy en France would be
much better.
We had booked one of the smaller RVs but I could see that look of
fear and apprehension in the eyes of others who were waiting to
take possession of larger units knowing that they would have to
navigate the 'beast' out of a very cramped yard and down some
fairly narrow streets.
Anyay back to us. The RV was fine and just as described. We drove
south through the Loire, Dordogne, Provence and down to the Med
and then crossed into Italy and eventually Slovakia and Croatia
(which is very beautiful). The gas (diesel) mileage was fine and the
vehicle (Citroen) performed flawlessly for the whole trip.
I am used to driving in Europe and so didn't have too much trouble
adapting to the road conditions and despite what others may say, if
you know what to look for, campsites are very easy to find -
especially in France.
I would highly recommend the experience to anyone - but I would
also suggest that they get themslves a GPS (or rent one rom AVIS)
Bon voyge

Paula Rich Beckwith, pbeckw1044@aol.com, 31 march 2007
We picked up and dropped off the RV in Paris in March 2007. Picking up and dropping off was considerably easy and very pleasant. We booked the first and last night at the Camping du Bois de Boulogne, which is only about 15 minutes from the RV place, I would recommend it. Great location to catch the bus to the metro. The RV was like new with no problems. We ordered the pickup and drop off at the airport option, the drop off went wonderful, the pick up was very confusing especially considering it was 6 AM, we had to call 2 times and then had to walk to an outside car rental area. Overall the whole trip went off without a hitch. This is our second RV rental from this company, last year we picked up in Frankfurt, Germany. We would surely rent from them again in a different part of the country. They were very helpful and informative. Thanks again

LEE, OKKYOUNG, 22 january 2007
I had enjoyed a wonderful journey with a wonderful motorhome of Avis-Caraway(Paris Depot of Ideamerge). I can't forget their kindness and hospitality. We had no trouble during our journey as long as 40 days. It gave us a lot of interesting and beautiful memories. Also, I strongly recommend the motorhome if you have a baby. My 18-month baby can manage 40 days journey with motorhome, otherwise she couldn't do it.

Brad Brioux, 25 october 2006
The unit we got was brand new a Citroen Pilote model D2, their were three guys and it was perfect. Very easy to drive with an excellent turning radius, and super fuel efficiency, excellent interior layout very efficient use of space and comfortable sleeping arrangements. We went from Paris to the 24 hours of LeMans and stayed at the camping area they provide. After that we went to the Loire valley and camped in various areas near the river. On the way home prior to having to return the RV we stayed at the Boise de Bolgne camping area and it was super. In fact after we returned the RV we went back their and stayed in one of their mobile homes they have for rent which was very reasonable. All in all the trip was fantastic and thanks for helping us out with the superb RV rental.

Regards Brad Brioux

Nigel Dick, nigel@nigeldick.com, 09 october 2006
With 30,000km on the clock the RV was still in very good condition with a external few bumps and grazes we had to agree on before I left the yard. Though the truck (based on a Renault chassis) was the smallest on offer it was still the biggest vehicle I've ever driven but quite sprightly and I soon got used to driving down tiny lanes and narrow streets. It also sported much more storage than I expected.

On returning the vehicle I got a heavy reprimand for parking outside the gates while waiting for the operators to get back from lunch (there was no place else to go!) and that leisurely 2 hour lunch-break effectively added another day's rental onto my bill.

Apart from that it was a great experience and my only other advice is: The campsites in Florence and San Gimignano are wonderful but the one in Siena was closed and, with the closest alternative 40 km away, there was a long line of RV's outside cursing the owner of the place. I expect his karma balloon will be badly deflated when he returns next summer!

Dirk and Dixie Havlak, HavlakRD@comcast.net, 24 august 2006
We rented in France. The motor home was easy to drive for a big vehicle and was a fun way to travel. Considering that we had 6-7 adults in it, it was well designed and although crowded, fun. There was enough storage space. Although almost new, it was in need of better repair and maintanance. One of the bench seats collapsed when two people sat on it at once, a problem since we needed it for our big group. One of the big drawers had a latch that didn't work and flew open on turns. The refrigerator latch didn't always work, and we couldn't get the refrig to run for the first two days until we met some Germans with a similar rig. It never did work on one of the electrical options. The dishes and glasses provided were glass, a terribly impractical option as they rattled around the entire time. The blankets were wool, also a terrible option as it was very hot and they were hot and scratchy. There was AC in the cab but not in the back of the vehicle and it was very hot inside, so we slept with mostly no covers.

The training video in English was good, but did not show us where the electrical outlets were and we could not find them so were unable to charge batteries, cameras, etc., which was aggravating.

Driving near Paris is scarey and difficult, especially if you are inexperienced, and better instructions and maps for driving and for taking public transportation would have been useful.

In summary, I would recommend motor home travel and the arrangements made through IdeaMerge worked well, but I would seek a better rental agency (than Avis Car-Away) if there were other options in the Paris area.

Diane, 24 august 2006
We had a great holiday in our motorhome. We were picked up from our Paris hotel and taken to the depo to collect our vehicle which whilst daunting at first sight proved a doddle to drive. We headed south west to Bordeaux and to the coast. It provided a comfortable wasp free retreat after long days of surfing and sunbathing. The down side: the state of pre booked picnic table and chairs was shoddy to say the least, broken and rusty. I would recommend checking that sort of thing over carefully before taking posession. Sadly finding the depo on the way back into Paris was a nightmare and took an hour and a half longer than expected leaving us without our pre-booked taxi! He'd left without us. So there you are. I would definitely do it again though. Thanks.

Simon Cox (Hong Kong), coxs@netvigator.com, 21 august 2006
We hired a 6 berth van (for a family of 5) out of Paris, and headed west to the Loire Valley, up to Brittany and Normandy and back to Paris. Probably the best family holiday we have had. Will certainly do again. IdeaMerge were efficient. The van was new'ish and very comfortable. Avis staff in Paris were helpful. No vehicle problems. Although if our kids were a bit bigger we would take a bigger van next time, to avoid having to convert the dining table into a bed. I also recommend buying your own bedding on arrival rather than renting. We took an iPod travel kit with us to plug into the vehicle, so the kids could listen to their music - recommend that. Out of all the campsites we visited, the only one we didn't like was the most expensive, being the crammed Bois de Boloigne in Paris, just near the Avis van depot - avoid it.

YH Lee, 26 july 2006
I had a good time with camping car. I rented it in France. Staffs were kind. Thank you.

Neil Wilkinson, 28 june 2006
Just a quick notre to say that we had a fantastic time with the Motorhome which was our first time. The Motorhome was almost brand new which was a great start and the staff were friendly on arrival. The only negative is that the pick up point in Paris was very very hard to find!!

kang namil, 11 june 2006
It has really been a unforgettable journey in our lives, driving thru 8 countries such as France, Spain, Switzerland, Belgium, Netherland, Germany, Czeko, Austria in Europe for 29 days. The campervan had been in good condition and the joys and funs were always with us. We miss the beautiful sceneries thru the windows of campervan and we are already looking forward to next journey with the campervan as soon as possible. Many thanks for kind hospitalities rendered to us by
your staff in Paris.