Margaret Messner, mbmessner@sbcglobal.net, 25 august 2008
We picked up our McRent Globus on July 14 in Frankfurt. The customer service was very efficient and checked everything thoroughly. We rented the table and chairs but took old linens, towels, pillows and a sleeping bag (duvet) which we didn't bring back with us. Then we immediately went shopping at Bauhaus and IKEA to get cleaning supplies, paper towels, toilet brush, etc. IKEA definitely has the best prices, where we saw a folding table and chairs for less than the rental fee!
We loved driving the Globus. We traveled in southern Germany, the Dolomites, Venice, Switzerland and southwestern Germany for a month. In Cortina d'Ampezzo after dinner, the engine wouldn't start. Unfortunately it was Friday evening and no garages were open, plus no Fiat garage was listed in the book until Belluno (which wasn't open because it was Saturday by the time we got there). We were able to get the camper started again and made it to Venice without turning off the engine (once we got it started). We enjoyed our weekend in Venice, managed with some help to get the camper started again on Monday, got to a Fiat garage in Venice but they were too busy to fix it, got to Vicenza (the next Fiat garage) where they were out to lunch and finally almost made it to Verona when the engine died at the autostrada tollgate just four kilometers from the garage. We were towed to the garage where it was fixed within an hour (new battery had to be put in -- unusual for a new camper -- 2008!). We lost only a few hours from our trip, but had a lot of anguish trying to figure out what was wrong.
We had to fix the bathroom door handle and a button on the cupboard which was caused by a loose hinge, faults which were present at pickup but not noticed. But no big deal!
We took our Tom-Tom with us and it worked just great -- took us to the address every time. We also picked up an ADAC travel atlas, camping guides and roadside park places guides and maps and they were super useful (but one might need to know German). We left them with friends at the end of the trip along with cleaning supplies, etc.
The return of the camper went smoothly too. We unfortunately were hit with a hailstorm on the autobahn in the Allgau and had to pay the 300 Euro deductible for hail damage to the top of the camper. Our son, who had also rented a camper, was with us and he had to pay the deductible, also. But we were reimbursed for the towing at the tollgate in Italy. All in all, none of this put a damper on our trip and we had a wonderful time. We would do it again in a heartbeat!

Lindsey and Keven Grogan, lin-kev@bigpond.net..au, 25 august 2008
My husband and I have just returned to Queensland after renting 20ft Dethleffs Motorhome from Frankfurt,Germany Depot. Our collection was held up for a couple of hours as they awaited the delivery of a brand new vehicle.. This was great and we found it all to excellent. We choose to have the configuration East West which meant we had a small ladder to climb each night... next time we would choose the model with the bed down. but apart from that we loved the vehicle.. We found the Gas Cylinder refilling to be quite a drama as we hired on March 13 and struck snow in Geneva. We had been told that we could exchange the cylinder anywhere in Europe except France... We finally sorted the problem in Portugal but upon returning to Frankfurt we were then informed that they also realized the problem and equip the vehicles with universal fittings that enable the bottles to be filled. We would suggest that this is estential if renting long term and in the cooler months. Otherwise we loved the vehicle, we travelled. Germany, Spain,Portugal,France, Belguim,Netherlands,Luxemburg,Switzerland,Italy,Croatia,Slovenia,Czech Repulic,Austria and Bavarian Region and back into Germany. We travelled 18000klms over the 4 1/2 months hire... We found the staff wonderful in Frankfurt and Doug Bredesen just wonderful and always available to help with any questions. I would highly recommend dealing with Doug as we will again, and also the staff at Frankfurt. A great trip, with fantastic memories and experiences. Just sad that it is all over. Thanks Doug and Suzzane for all the wonderful service. We will recommend you to everyone. Lindsey and Keven Grogan Queensland Australia.

Arno, 19 august 2008
The check-in and check out process was easy and quick. Deposit was promptly returned. The camper had a strong engine and was comfortable. The only minor I would say was the fact we could not leave our car on the premises when we picked up the camper. We had to park in a residential area on the street in front of somebody's house, which turned out to be no problem but still. I would also suggest to upgrade the kitchen utensils they were very basic and not adequate. All in all a good experience.

David, david@semmel.com, 19 august 2008
My wife Jocelyn posted below. I'll just add a few items from a “first timer’s” perspective:

The Fiat-Globus drives great and is remarkably easy to handle. You are up high and get great views out the front. It took a day or so to get comfortable with the width, especially in the mountains. Using the levelers (plastic wedges) is important to master – a level RV makes for a comfortable night’s sleep. Also, be aware that tolls on motorways and mountain tunnels are VERY high by US standards.

The dishes/kitchen supplies are just the basics - plan on buying or bringing a few things based on your camping style. One or two stops at a hypermarket, a few dozen euros, and you will be happily outfitted. For us, it was a coffee pot, cereal bowls and pillows. Bring good, detailed maps or a GPS and bring your own camping guides. I brought a good pocket knife and a cork screw. If you plan to go to mountains, even in summer, bring/buy a blanket. The bedding provided was not adequate. An outside doormat would have helped keep the interior clean.

We are gadget freaks. Know that the RVs electric outlets work only if you are externally plugged in. Charging things like cameras can be a problem if you are off the grid for a few days. The cigarette lighter on the dash (no smoking!) works when the engine is running for cell phone charging but next time I would bring a 12v cigarette to 110v plug inverter (cost ~$10).

Other than as noted by Jocelyn, McRent was great. We cleaned the night before and our full deposit was returned promptly. Two suggestions:

1. It would be REALLY nice if McR or a third party would rent bicycles. Most camp sites are on the edge of town or further and a bike would really add to the overall enjoyment of the trip.

2. Tell us the height and weight of the rented vehicle! You need this for underpasses and speed limits and it is not listed in the van’s instruction booklet which is generic for Dethleffs vehicles.

All in all – we loved our caravan trip and strongly recommend IdeaMerge/McRent.

joel and emma, 19 august 2008
We had a great experience in our motorhome driving for 4 weeks around France and Northern Italy during July 2008. The van was great, we drove 4,500km and had no hiccups at all. The pick up and drop off in Frankfurt was very smooth and easy. We did need to mention the complimentary dish set as it wasn’t in the van, but that was no problem and quickly supplied once we reminded them about it. A thorough check of everything before we set off ensured we had listed all the problems (eg. We noticed and documented that a pin was missing which secured the electricity cap, therefore when the cap came off completely in transit there were no questions asked upon our return). Our deposit was promptly refunded upon our return with a small deduction for a dint in one of the tables which we were responsible for.

Cleaning wasn’t an issue – we spent a couple of hours thoroughly cleaning the interior the night before we returned the van – If you’re not willing to buy some wet wipes or sponges and spray cleaner from a supermarket and spare a couple of hours I think you shouldn’t complain about the cleaning fee. We took along some non-slip matting (used with rugs/carpets and you can buy it from Ikea) and cut it up to fit the cupboards, and that was great to prevent the dishes & pots from sliding around. We took our own TomTom (cheaper for us to buy than rent) which was a life saver, we wouldn’t have done the trip without one. We took along our own linen & towels and bought a cheap blanket, but on reflection bringing a few less clothes and adding a goose down sleeping bag instead (to use as a duvet) would have been better.

We utilised the France Passions book to stay at vineyards along the way and found the ‘Aire De Services’ book excellent to find the nearest chemical toilet drop and drinking water fill-up places. We rented the camping table and chairs with the van and used them almost every day. We also took our bikes which was fantastic. We agree with a previous comment that the rental company MUST put a sticker somewhere prominent on the dashboard showing the height of the vehicle. We looked through all the booklets, and not remembering which ‘category’ of vehicle we were in meant we had no way of knowing the height. This meant one of us getting out of the van to judge while driving very slowly under some low bridges – quite inconvenient when it’s something that could easily be fixed with a sticker.

Overall we had a wonderful trip, so many great memories and would really recommend the rental companies (Idea Merge and McRent).

Jocelyn, jocelyn@semmel.com, 18 august 2008
We picked up our rental in Frankfurt on July 9; it was clean and ready even though we got there early. We watched the movie and then went out give it the once-over with the clerk from the rental place; she didn't know much AT ALL. For example, she couldn't tell us the height of the vehicle ("Just make sure the bridge says 3 metres and you'll probably be OK." Probably?????????????) and when I asked her how to make the front seats swivel around, she said that they didn't swivel (they did - we figured it out the next day). The bathroon door lock was broken, but they noted it at the time. It was functional but touchy for most of the trip, and when it wasn't touchy, the lock was actually non-functional. No matter - everything else in the Globebus worked just perfectly, and we drove that thing over, among other Alpine passes, the Col de la Bonnet, which is the highest paved pass in Europe. Gas mileage was pretty good; the bed was comfortable; the gas power worked fine when we were "off grid", the shower worked well - I was even able to wash my hair, and I have thick, long hair. We used our Globebus to follow the Tour de France, and had an absolute blast. We did not rent tables and chairs from the rental place, but we bought some at the first hypermarket we found; ditto with towels, decent coffee mugs, decent cereal bowls, decent pillows, a decent tea kettle and a decent coffee pot. I carried 2 pounds of ground coffee from Starbucks with me from the States, so we were in good shape.

Here is a helpful tip for first timers: Buy a large pack of paper towels and use the rolls as padding for the dishes when you store them in the cabinets for the drive. Day-old bread also works well as "packing material." I had a lot of handiwipes with me (what my mom used to call Wash-n-Dries). Every time we used one to clean off our hands, I would clean dust, dried mud, and crumbs out of the crevices in the vehicle. I also used them to clean the floor frequently. We had NO PROBLEMS upon our return - we passed the inspection with flying colors and got our entire deposit back (I think it helped that the couple who returned their vehicle just before we did had scraped the top off of theirs trying to go through a too-low tunnel. Ours looked pretty good in comparison!)

I'm ready to go again!

Iddo Riemersma, 18 august 2008
Dear Doug,

Thanks for your mail and your interest in our trip. Yes, we made a very nice trip, all the way up to the North Cape (most northern part of European mainland, next stop is the North Pole). We have driven for 3,5 weeks, every day, on average 300 km per day, 6800 km in total. The camper itself proved to be a very good travel mate, and made it possible to travel so far. You can see some of the pictures in a slideshow on my personal page http://iddo-r.hyves.nl/

The pick up and the drop off were just fine. The guy at the Hannover rental shop was very kind and friendly. Only strange thing was the the 'speed pass for pick up' that we filled in and e-mailed never arrived at Hannover, while we got confirmation that it was received in Germany in good order. Concerning the trip, I must say that we had quite a number of incidents, some of them due to the fact that we are not experienced camper users. They were the following:

- a punctured tire, which we luckily discovered before it was flat. It was repaired at a tire shop with a plug
- the north of Sweden is known to have millions of mosquitos. They kept coming into the camper, while everything was closed. Thorough investigations learned that the roof window was not closing good enouth. The mosquitos managed to enter it, passing also a mosquito net(!) and a curtain. Once we found the problem, we bought some mosquito netting in the local hardware store, and taped it in front of the roof window. That solved the problem.
- the dishes that were delivered with the camper were stored in a cabinet up in the kitchen. At a very steep and bumpy downward slope, all of them fell out of the cabinet, despite the fact it was properly locked. The problem was that they were made of porcelein, which applied such a heavy weight on the cabinet door that it gave way. And as a result, all of the dishes were broken. We would recommend to put proper camping dishes in the camper, that are much lighter, and will not easily brake as well.
- Driving through a village, we missed a (not so good visible) speed hump. In an open compartment over the stove we had a coffee pot which was launched in the air and landed on the glasplate over the stove. This broke into thousand pieces and was obviously charged. We would recommend to warn people not to put heavy stuff in places where they can fall out of.
- The most serious incident was when we drove through a -not even so deep- ditch. There is still quite some distance between the rear wheels and the back of the camper, which we did not properly realised. When we drove through that ditch, the front wheels went up at the back of the ditch, the rear wheels were in the middle, while the back of the camper was not in there yet. As a result, the bumper dug into the ground and was badly damaged. We were never aware that this could happen, and the event seriously ruined our day. At the drop off, the damage was estimated at some 500 euro's, a serious amount of money. We would recommend that with this particular type of camper people will be made aware of this. By the way, after that event it happened another 2 times, one time even at the entrance of a gas station on a near flat road!

Despite these troubles we enjoyed staying in the camper very much. We are already considering to rent another one next year, or maybe even to buy one.

We hope you can use this feedback to better inform future customers on the do's and don'ts about camper handling.

Best regards,
Iddo Riemersma

Theo Berden, tberden@optusnet.com.au, 18 august 2008
We picked up our van on the 8th of July and it was practically brand new. We were treated very courtiously by McRent in Dusseldorf and had no problems with the van. We drove 5500Km's in 3 weeks through Germany, Denmark, Sweden and Norway. We had no problems with the van and returned it after 3 weeks. The return proces was quickly completed and our Euro 1000.- deposit was returned to us within 2 days. We cannot fault the rental and will be using them again if we plan another holiday in that area.

Heinz Kraehenbuehl, 14 august 2008
We picked up a Family camper van in Berlin and went for 22 days on the 9th of July 2008 touring Danemark, Sweden and Norway. Great car with everything working well, we made almost 5'000 KM Pick and drop has been well handled with no delays and professionaly done. The only remark was that my credit card was deducted with a deposit of Euro 1'000 which is not right. I understand, that you block the money on the credit card as a deposit, but if the client is bringing back the car back and everything is fine the amount should not have been deducted. Please in the future pay more attention to the payments.
Note from IdeaMerge: As described on our relevant Payments & Policies pages, the Germany vendors do indeed charge the security deposit to the client's card upon the pick-up occasion and do credit that amount back to the card in whole or part (i.e. minus the cost, if any, that happens to be due from the client for damages and such) upon or after the return occasion. IdeaMerge has suggested to these vendors that for such purpose they merely make an imprint and authorization upon the pick-up occasion and actually charge the card only if necessary and only on or after the return occasion. To that request those vendors responded that they would generally be at too great a risk if they didn't actually make that charge upon on the pick-up occasion.

michael frantum, mfrantum@yahoo.com, 13 august 2008
What a great trip.

We picked up our GlobeR camper car in Frankfurt and the process was easy and efficient. Klaus was very helpful and the RV was in great condition with few miles.

In the the next 3 weeks, we drove nearly 4,000 kilometers and explored 5 countries. We especially liked France, Austria and Germany. We were suprised and pleased to find that nearly every small town had a camping area. We ended up exploring many of the small communities and got to meet real people rather than the big city rat race atmosphere. We would use the McRent/Ideamerge approach again and are looking forward to our next vacation already.

Betsy Bingler and Family, 11 august 2008
What a great experience! The Ideamerge RV people were
wonderful, they answered back very quickly every silly question I
e-mailed mailed them.
We picked up our RV in Sulzmoos after flying into Munich. We tried
to take the public transportation to the rental place using the
directions provide. We got as far as the train station at Passing and
couldn't find the bus needed, we were told that bus no longer runs
the route we needed. We then took a taxi the remainder of the
way. The people at Sulzmoos were wonderful the instructions were
easy to follow. We are campers but never did the RV thing.
We rented for 3 weeks and went through 7 countries with no
problems. We loved having all out stuff in one place , not having to
pack up every night,and if it was raining we didn't have to pitch a
tent. We brought our own folding chairs which we used a lot. We
also sent over food, pancake mixes, tuna, chicken packages,
oatmeal etc. Next time I'd just pay the airlines for the extra
baggage and bring it with us. It was great to have until we got use
to the stores, it was also cheaper.
We also had a GPS which we couldn't of lived without it was
invaluable. The Church's Book Camping In Europe has coordinates
that were a big help in finding a campsite. The information in their
book was also helpful for the public transportation.
I was really pretty worried that every thing wouldn't go smoothly,
but it did.
We are already saving for our next big RV trip and we'll use
Ideamerge again.
JUST DO IT!

Colin Ross Valarie McDonald, 07 august 2008
This was the 1rst time we ever rented an RV. Happily, it was a very good experience. Picking up the camper was relatively easy and we were pleased that it was very new and clean inside. The Fiat camper was very practical & made good use of every available inch of space. Likewise, the drop off went smoothly as well.
The staff at McRent in Frankfurt, Germany were very helpful & we were pleased that they spoke good English as we don't speak a word of German ourselves. I would recommend travelers take way fewer items of clothing than they think they will need as there isn't a lot of wardrobe/storage room in a camper. Also, having a GPS was invaluable & I would highly recommend the Tomtom.Having a copy a Rick Steeves Travel Guide is also very useful.
Although traveling by RV in Europe is not as easy as hoteling it, it certainly makes the trip more affordable and gives you the opportunity to customize your holiday. We're happy we chose the Camper Route!

Valarie McDonald

John and Lisa Bauer, 24 july 2008
We rented a motorhome out of Frankfurt June 17th - July 5th. Doug at IdeaMerge was very helpful and quick to completely answer all our questions.

McRent in Frankfurt was absolutely terrific. The motorhome was immaculate and almost new. We were on our way in less than an hour. Once we reacquinted ourselves with a manual transmission everything went smooth. Two notes about the Dethleff - one don't fill the clean water tank all the way full or it will leak and two - ask them before you leave McRents how to put it in reverse!

We rented a Dethleff 5881. In addition to two adults we have two teenagers. The bunk beds in the back were well worth the little bit of extra money and added length.

We are a camping family and came prepared. Because of the weak US dollar we wanted to buy as little as possible in Europe. We brought an extra bag that had bedding, kitchen and bath towels, toilet paper, paper towels, dish soap, laundry soap, clothsline and clips, shower supplies etc. Worked great and we were ready to camp as soon as we arrived. However, we should have rented the camping tables and chairs from McRents!

Turning the RV in was a snap. We spent a couple hours cleaning it and received our deposit back immediately. The turn in process at McRents took only about 20 minutes. Those folks are fabulous.

Another note - we brought a GPS and it was fantastic, I wouldn't go without it. Mike and Terry Church's book on camping in Europe was wonderful. GPS coordinates were included.

Can't wait to go again.

Kirk Lalwani, 24 july 2008
We rented a Dethleffs FamilyPlus campervan from McRent in Mulheim/Dusseldorf in June for 3 weeks. There are 4 in our family, including 2 children and our plan was to go through the Black Forest, Switzerland, Provence, Riviera into Italy, loop back up to Austria and then back into Bavaria en route back to Dusseldorf.
Everything worked out perfectly. Gregory at McRent was very thorough and very helpful, giving us an excellent checkout. The van was very new, only 6K kms and virtually spotless. We rented a 6 bedder despite us being only 4 so we would not have to re/de construct the table and bench into a bed twice a day, as we had to do in New Zealand, and this made things a lot easier.
The only instruction that I forgot was not to fill the water tank full; on day 2 after I did, we had a trickling leak on the floor. When I called McRent, they assured me it would go away if I filled the tank to 3/4 (a Dethleffs design fault), and it did. Everything worked perfectly during our 4200km trip and the engine was peppy despite the size of the vehicle; it also gave us approximately 20miles/gallon, which was very nice given that diesel was about $9.50/gallon. All in all we spent less on gas than expected.
We really enjoyed the camping experience in Europe. The sites (use Mike and Terry Church's book for the best sites close to public transport) were stunning and well equipped, and very easy to access the city center. You can drive through most European cities and towns with the vehicle, but just beware of the old parts of the city (Vieux Carre, Altstadt etc) which tend to have narrow streets and height restrictions. The only unanticipated adventure was trying to get to a campsite near Moneghlia/Cinque Terre; the tunnels to access it say 3m height limit, but in fact are OK up to 3.5m, as we found out the next day after staying in a hotel. What we also discovered was that the site we were trying to get to through the tunnels had its own 3.2m restriction when I called them. We decided to stay at a different campsite the next night when we discovered the railway tunnels would be OK to drive through despite the incorrect 3.0m restriction. As it turns out, we had a spectacular oceanfront site (Camping La Secca) with panoramic views and steps to the beach. So, all may not be what it seems in Italy, but do ask before driving through!
Return check-in was uneventful. We had cleaned the van thoroughly and had no problems. Gregory was quite happy with the vehicle's condition, which was more or less immaculate, and we got our full refund in a couple of days. I presented him with a little German flag we got in a Toblerone as part of the UEFA soccer championship celebrations and he promised to display it in his office !
All in all, I would highly recommend Ideamerge, McRent Mulheim/Dusseldorf, and campervan vacations in Europe. An ideal way to travel, and it will save you a lot of packing/unpacking hassle, and money both from hotel costs as well as being able to eat 1-2 meals/day in the van. Only caveat....when it gets really hot (as in Italy) and muggy, with mosquitoes, it does get quite stifling in the van despite all the windows being open with the bugscreens active. We had enough after 5 days in Italy, so we headed back into the mountains without going to Rome.
We are planning another trip to Northern Germany and Scandinavia in a couple of years, and Ideamerge it will be!
Thanks Doug and Gregory for making it all so easy!

Patrick Eustace friends, 21 july 2008
Me and 4 friends booked a 5 seater RV near the end of May after finishing college and we toured Europe for 6 weeks taking in 9 countries along the way. Everything worked out great. The RV was a great way to travel as it allowed us to dictate the pace of our travels. I'd highly recommend this form of a holiday to anyone. It was a great experience and if anybody asks I'll point them in the direction of IdeaMerge!!

Thanks again!

Terry and Janet Davis, 19 july 2008
For our recent trip to Germany, France, Italy, Switzerland and Austria, we rented a 19 ft. Davis motorhome from IdeaMerge. The process was easy to do, no problems or hassles. Everything went as stated on pick up and return. The directions to the pick up was good and we had no issues getting there. The personnel were curteous and went to great lengths to show us how everything worked. We felt completely comfortable when we pulled out of the lot.

It was a perfect choice for 2 people with a bathroom, small kitchen and bed. We really enjoyed the smaller size of it, as it was easier to get around the small streets of Europe. We did still have a few issues with the height and parking spots, but nothing that hindered us from doing everything we wanted to do.

Camping through Europe was one of the best experiences of our lives and we definitely plan to do it again. We will also definitely rent a motorhome again!

Tim and Carla Yaworski, tyaworski@shaw.ca, 14 july 2008
We are a family of four, with 2 teenage girls, and just returned from a 3 week vacation of Germany, Austria, Italy and Switzerland. We rented the McRent Family Standard (Dethleffs 5831) flying into Munich and picking it up at Sulzmoos. McRent was excellent having the vehicle ready early and the drop off went smooth. The vehicle was practically new with under 4000 km and worked perfectly. We averaged about 11.5 liters/100 km going 4000 km on our trip. A note about taxi fares, I think they have gone up considerably compared to the rates mentioned on the Ideamerge site, as has everything. Expect to pay 80-90 euro each way.
Our observations about driving the motorhome are with the model we had was the height as this is something to be aware of when driving along tree lined streets due to potential trees scratching. Also the width could be a concern on some of the smaller roads in Italy and some city streets. All of these were mentioned by McRent at pickup.
Camping in Europe exceeded our expectations immensely. Compared to Canada and USA the campgrounds were like small resorts – extremely clean with very good and reasonable restaurants.
A suggestion we would offer that helped us immensely in selecting campgrounds that were convenient to both the driving and using public transportation, to get into the major cities to see the sights, was Mike and Terri Church’s book Traveler’s Guide to European Camping – it is excellent.
Overall we had a great experience, always comfortable, campgrounds were great, no security concerns and Ideamerge delivered with no surprises or problems. We highly recommend Ideamerge and McRent and plan to use them on the next trip.

Erik Robin Wilensky, ewilensky@gmail.com, 14 july 2008
We came to Europe for a tour of Germany, Switzerland, Austria and Northern Italy. If it wasn't for renting a camper, the declining US dollar would have put Europe out of our budget.
The renting process:
I received ample information regarding the terms and conditions of the rental and found the customer service to efficient and understanding through the process of the deposit and wire transfer of the remaining balance. We were to pick op the van in Regensburg since Munich was all out.
Arriving in Munich we used a transport service from the airport on the way to pick up and after drop off we took the train back to Munich which was cheaper.
Picking up the Camper:
The branch manager was very friendly and did give us thorough instructions regarding the camper and its use. He offered us all sorts of rental equipment however we decided before travelling to carry our own equipment in our luggage. Once converting the rental costs to dollars it just wasn’t as cost effective.
The van was almost new and had no issues except the air conditioner did not function. This was not a big deal and I looked at it as saving extra fuel. We were very pleased with the quality of the rental.
Drop off was much easier than expected and just like that we were heading back home.
Everything was up front, no surprises.
Everything was easy, no catches or hidden charges.
We had a great trip, no mechanical problems.

If I could come up with any suggestions, I would ask that English language camping guides be available with the camper or for purchase. I would also reduce the prices of the equipment rentals. I would also have liked the piece of mind of a second or backup propane tank. As it turns out we did not finish the original one but I would have hated to run out in the middle of a cold night in the Alps.

Thanks for the wonderful service and rental!

Curt Mathisen, 10 july 2008
We rented a Fiat Compact Cruiser Motorhome for our 30th Anniv.
trip to the Alps through DRM's Munich branch, The MH was brand
new and performed very nicely. Was good on fuel mileage, which
was good since fuel prices are way up there in Europe.

The unit was very comfortable for two. I would have preferred an
automatic transmission in the vehicle, but a manual was all that
was available. Handled the curvy roads in Austria and Switzerland
nicely.

DRM's branch managers were friendly and efficient. Spoke
reasonably good English.l

Overall very satisfied with our experience and would rent with them
again.

William Pulles, william@phd.co.za, 07 july 2008
We rented a camper from McRent and needed to collect it in Isny - a 2.5 - 3 hour train and bus ride from Munich. We arrived at around 17h00 on a Friday afternoon (late because of transport glitches) and our new 2008 model vehicle was there but with the following problems:

- empty gas cylinders
- no crockery or tables/chairs loaded despite confirming the need for this on booking
- cupboard door that would not stay closed and eventually broke during our trip

I was also dissappointed to discover that the Camping Guide was 3 years out of date and only available in German - nothing in English. The quality of crockery and cutlery provided is also very poor and even buttering a slice of bread runs the risk of bending the knife.

While the owner of the Isny depot does not speak any English at all, he was friendly and fortunately able to contact Lucas, a very helpful young man who took us through the vehicle, showed us how everything works and rectified the problems mentioned above. He also kindly arranged a free camping at a small site next to the enormous Dethleffs factory located in Isny and also offered a guided tour through the factory (which we declined for time reasons).

The van was great - handled very well and had great power on uphills. Diesel consumption was not too bad, provided there was limited open highway driving at 130 km/h when consumption climbs through the roof. It was definitely a challenge and test of nerves maneouvering the vehicle along the very narrow country roads of Croatia and its islands but we got through it without adding a single scrape to the vehicle.

We enjoyed the trip immensely, enjoyed the vehicle and would certainly recommend McRent, provided they can get hold of some English documentation for English customers.

Craig Palmer, craigepalmer@hotmail.com, 03 july 2008
We booked a 5-birth for a week, collected from Hamburg and travelled throughout Denmark. There was only two of us and our dog so we had plenty of room. Anyway, collection was no problem. Staff were friendly, helpful and spoke English which was a bonus. When we set off we didn't realise the radio aerial was missing at first, however when we informed them when we handed it back there wasn't an issue. Everything went smoothly. The van was surprisingly easy to drive and not too expensive to fuel. Denmark was expensive, but the idea of packing up every morning and going someplace new made the holiday great. One day we would stay on a site by the beach, then the following day stay on a site in the country. We soon got into our routine of emptying the waste and filling the water etc. Great week and we will definately do it again next year.

Patsie Otto Bletzer, patsie@bletzer.com, 03 july 2008
Just returned from a very successful motorhome trip through Germany,Austria,Switzerland and Italy. We hired a 6 berth Dethleffs Motorhome from the Offenbach/Frankfurt McRent office. The chap at McRent was extremely helpful, explained all the ins and outs of the vehicle, inspected it with us thoroughly and within 45 minutes we were on our way.We had prebooked all our stops and of these can thoroughly recommend Camping Bella Italia on Lake Garda , Il Pogetto outside Florence, and La Riva on Lake Como. We had no problems at all with the motorhome despite doing 4000 kms in it. We would certainly go through Idea Merge again but the next time would go for a larger version. Although we were only 3 adults in a 6 berth van you do have to be "friendly". Also the next time we would consider towing a SmartCar behind to avoid squeezing through narrow town roads. McRent refunded our 1000 euro deposit within a matter of days. Our only small complaint is that we arrived back at McRent to hand the vehicle in during a "staff meeting" and a very bumped up executive type told us very rudely not to interrupt him ! Keep clear of German staff meetings !!!

Karlene Dawson, 02 july 2008
My husband, 6 month old and I decided it would be a great experience to travel around Europe, visit family and experience life on the road with a little one. We thought that having a camper van would allow for us to create a stable environment for the little one, have flexibility and avoid the hassel of packing and unpacking every few days. Having the van definitely allowed for this however it was a little too restricting in other ways. We had orinally requested a VW California; however at time of contact their were none available in the location we had wanted to start in (or so we were told). So we got something a little bigger but definitely not more convenient for our purposes. I did find this a little frustrating as when I spoke to the representative at the dealership where we picked up the van apparently there were plenty VWs to be had. Irregardless we still had a fantastic time touring around Europe and camping along the way. A lot of people ask if I would do it again and I say yes but differently. Having the van proved to be more expensive in the long run as the size of it prohibited us from going into cities (parking) which meant that we pretty much just used it to travel from one location to the next, park at the campsite and then take transit in the various areas that we were staying at.
Working with Ideamerge was very helpful and they were quite helpful with most things, I just wished I had investigated the options around getting the VW van a little more. Hind sight is always 20/20 I suppose.

Note from IdeaMerge: We never steer clients away from available, less expensive models which they prefer to larger, more expensive models. At the time of booking we exhaust all possible avenues to locate the vehicle which best suits the client's needs and wants.

Stephen Tangney, stephen_tangney@mail.com, 02 july 2008
Steve, Darryl, Eoin & Gregg -Ireland
The original plan was for us to fly to austria to watch the European soccer championships - Euro 2008 - in Salzburg, Innsbruck and Klagenfurt. HOwever the lack of accommodation available and the price of flights proved too high an obstacle to overcome. a bit of lateral thought, and google searching and our new and improved plan rolled out with unexpected ease. We flew dublin-munich, spent 2nights in munich's beerhalls before making a short train ride from the hauptsbahnhof (central train station) to Markt-Schwaben, a 3euro 30min journey of german efficiency and engineering.
Within minutes of arriving, all the necessary paper work was signed and we loaded up for a trip of a lifetime. The ease at which this is done is a credit to IdeaMerge's thoroughness - especially the detailed e mails in simple english without the legal mumbo jumbo. The camper itself was again a hallmark of german efficiency. It was the VW "california" - a VW caravelle converted. less than 3,500kg's so we could drive it on our normal licences. We travelled 997km in week and it cost €140 in diesel, pretty good considering the fuel costs these days (and the fact that we were burning up the autobahns). An example of how cool this camper was would be that a table folded out and you could turn the front seats right around to face back into the camper, open the fridge and crack open a few cans and enjoy a wee game of cards before hitting the party mad Euro 2008 festival.
Our journey took us from Munich to Salzburg for the Greece Sweden game... nice swedish women abounding... then onto Germany Croatia in Klagenfurt... then thru the Alps (and i mean literally thru them, the longest tunnel we went thru was 6.8km... a long tunnel) to Innsbruck for Sweden Spain. The scenary was gorgeous everywhere and these small cities are hugely picturesque against the backdrop of the gargantuan mountains that surround you, always to the background of rushing icy waters that trundled through the hearts of these mainly pedestrianised cities.
We didn't have a hitch our entire holiday. we typically parked up our van in residential areas about ten minutes walk from the city centre, but i should add that everywhere we went there thousands of supporters so there were vans everywhere. I can't reccommend you to follow suit as these cities will never see their streets as vibrant ever again.
And we did it like true men, no map, didn't ask for directions and always landed on our feet.
Thank you IdeaMerge for making it possible, and with such ease of effort too.

"You are a product of your experiences".

Noel and Mary Poe, 26 june 2008
We just returned from a 3 week vacation using a Compact Cruiser Fiat motorcaravan that was rented from Ideamerge and picked up at DRM Rental Office in Frankfurt. The van was perfect for the two of us as we traveled through southern Germany and most of Austria. The staff at the Frankfurt/Kelsterbach office was exceptional and gave us a good orientation taking the time that was necessary. The vehicle was ready when we arrived and within an hour we were out of the lot. Turning back in was also simple. We rented the kitchen set and it had everything that we needed. The van was basically new and we had no problems with the vehicle. We averaged a little over 26 miles per gallon, as advertised. One word of caution for the United States renters and maybe for people from other countries. In the United States the diesel pumps have green hoses and nozzles. In Europe the unleaded pumps have green hoses and nozzles. Be careful and get the right pumps for the vehicle. If the American government gets our act together and the value of the dollar increases aganist the Euro, I would not hesitate to rent from IdeaMerge and DRM again. Noel Poe, Utah.

Jason Scarborough, NSW, Australia, Jason@renewableaustralia.com, 21 june 2008
My family of 5 had an absolute ball travelling around Europe for 9 weeks in the McRent motorhome we organised through IdeaMerge.

Doug is the man! We had several questions to assist in our planning (which for two adults and three children is compariable to a military logistics exercise!) Doug could even tell us if the CD player in the model we reserved could play MP3 files or not! Try asking Avis, Budget, etc this question and getting anything other than a shrug of the shoulders.

He also helped us resolve a SNAFU that our local motoring organisation made in issuing our International Driving Permit. All this made the pickup process at Frankfurt, quick, easy and uncomplicated.

The vehicle itself was clean, in good condition, mechanically A1 and surprisingly fuel efficient. Probably a little on the large side for some of the narrow european roads we encountered, however, we needed the internal size to stay sane.

On minor bone of contention - don't bank on getting your deposit back, and don't think that the 1,000 EUR is all you will have to pay if there is damage to the vehicle. We had 2 incidents on our trip:

1. where I mistakenly trusted a grease monkey at an Itallian filling station to direct us to an appropriate fuel pump. Minor damage to the rear of the vehicle resulted.

2. a car on the worng side of the road clipped our wing mirror in the UK and then failed to stop to exchange details.

Because there was 2 occurances, we lost the 1,000 Eur on the first and got hit for 400 on the second. Thankfully, our travel insurance should cover the shortfall (minus an excess).

This is the ONLY way to see Europe. We plan on writing a book about our experiences and can't praise Doug and Ideamerge enough for their efficiency, assistance and professionalism.

"Don't be jealeous - do it!"

Pat Freeman and Erin Fleming, MD USA, 10 june 2008
We flew to Frankfurt, rode the S-bahn to Offenbach and then took a cab from there to the McRent terminal. Cabs were plentiful at the train stop. McRent in Frankfurt is in a garage but it has plenty of room to drop your bags. Klaus greeted us and asked to sit and watch the video while our paperwork was completed. The video was in English and made perfect sense to me. While waiting for them to finish prep on the RV (we were a few hours early), we took a nap on the couch. Then, Klaus showed us to our Globecar (Compact Standard) rental. It was practically brand new with about 7000km on the odometer. He showed us how to work everything and I had no questions. He asked me to follow him as he looked over the entire vehicle, including the roof, including up and down the ladder, to show the condition of the exterior. I'm glad for this as car rental places never do that and it leaves room for dispute. We had a perfect vehicle!

The rentals are parked behind the McRent building, and there was a narrow road that we needed to use to get out. Other businesses use this as well so we had to share the road. It helps to have some knowledge on operating an oversize vehicle to get in and out of this spot, in my opinion. But, it was no problem. GPS worked great to get everywhere from NW France to SE Germany. I highly recommend the "AA Caravan and Camping Europe" book as this gives excellent information about rates, facilities, locations and dates of operation. I found that just driving until we were tired, then showing up after camping reception was closed, someone was always willing to help and we could pay in the morning. The International Camping Card makes checking-in easy and is a great alternative to leaving a passport with the campsite reception overnight.

The RV engine was peppy and the 6 speed transmission was perfect for downshifting and getting enough power for a quick (as possible) pass for the autobahn/autoroute. They have many grades of Diesel in Europe and this RV took the most inexpensive grade, which was nice. The small size of this RV attracted a lot of attention from locals because it was small, blue (instead of the default white RV color) and had McRent's stickers on it. I loved how this attracted a lot of attention because it gave us a chance to try the language and meet the locals.

We had no problems with the vehicle except that the water level didn't like to go over 75% and I think that was a design issue. The cap for the water fill was not perfectly sealed and you'd get some leakage there when driving or parking on a hill. We got used to that as I'm sure it happens with most RVs. However, one day we ran the tank dry. After filling it, I ran some water later that day, which primed the system and also enabled the drain valve for the heater. I was a little embarrassed as the locals probably thought I was dumping waste on the street but the panic of me trying to find out how to get this stopped must have entertained them as I thumbed through the German manual. Good thing I could make out some words. The picture also help as I got a revelation moment and climbed into the back in time to save 50% of our water. My advice to others is to never run the water tank dry. Oh, there was also an intermittent buzzer that would sound when a door wasn't shut if you attempted to start the RV. It took a few minutes to realize what that meant as there were no warning lights on the dash. I say that's just the fun of experiencing a new culture.

This was the first time for me to be out of the country and I was impressed by the helpfulness of everyone. But, everywhere we went it was a relaxed atmosphere. US renters should understand that this culture is different. Customer service is not "the customer is always right," stores operate at strange hours and drivers are considerate.

Before returning the RV, dumped and washed out the toilet cartridge at our last campground, then we stayed in a local hotel a block away from McRent. We used the vacuum right down the street at a local car wash and some all-purpose cleaner from a grocery store to clean the entire inside. By cleaning everything so it looked like new, the McRent staff was extremely surprised. I think an hour of work detailing the inside is easy and makes your departure quite quick. We received an immediate refund of our deposit. I recommend this RV and McRent. I hope that others enjoy their European experience as much as we did!

Rex 2008, 09 june 2008
Hi Doug: McRent in Frankfurt is just marginal, may be it is only me, but I have a few things that I want to point out from my personal experience.
1. On pick-up day, customer can opt out viewing the McRent video, boring, especially if you have rented before. Besides, McRent won't let you off the hook with or without the video knowledge anyway.
2. The staff would climb up a ladder to inspect the roof, while the sides, front and back, and the interior of the vehicle are all ignored. This opens room for dispute when the vehicle is returned.
3. When a leak from the fresh water tank was pointed out to the staff, the reply was 'just over-filling', but we had to put up with a leaky tank all our way. At the best, we could only use half tank and the other half wasted.
4. There has never been enough water pressure in the piping systems. We needed to start the pump for a few minutes before we get a trickle of water coming out from the taps.
5. The bed cannot be held in place because of broken hardware underneath the dinning table. We end up with a wobbling bed and faced the possibility of a broken back from the thrill to sleep on bed.
6. The fresh water outlet valve was stuck closed making flushing the fresh water tank an impossible task.
7. When the staff accompanied us inside the vehicle for verbal instructions, we were told just to listen and don't even ask.
8. No tools were provided to change the propane bottles. In the ideal world, I think that can be done by bare hands, but obviously our world was not ideal.
9. The instruction books (manuel) were not English friendly, and obvious not for us.
10. When finished, we returned the vehicle reasonably clean, but we were forced laboured to do a detailed clean-up. The reply was "we are too busy to do this kind of work". My question was "What do you expect if we don't even have a vacumn cleaner and cleaning equipment? Is it just another way to squeeze more money out of their customers.Besides, where is that 125 Euro prep fee, how it was spent?
11. What is basically happened was poor maintenance and maintenance was only performed on complaints. But this can only create unhappy customers and loss of expected service.

Dave and Aileen Peel, 06 june 2008
Doug
Just wanted to let you know our two weeks with the Hamburg rental (Peels May 15-selected vehicle: McRent Family Plus, sleeps 5, e.g.
Dethleffs 5881 HG, to May 29) went very well and the unit and the manager at the rental location were EXCELLENT. NO problems Thanks, worked out well and would certainly book with you again.

Thanks again Dave and Aileen Peel

James Celia Cliff, cliffsintas@bigpond.com, 29 may 2008
We hired a five berth campervan from the Frankfurt depot, for the period April 2nd to May 10th. This was a Detleffs vehicle on a Fiat chassis.
After getting used to six forward gears, it turned out to be easy to drive and performed faultlessly for 5500 km.
However I do not think that it was entirely suitable for an extended trip outside Germany / Austria so early in the season. The cabin heater would only run on gas, and we rapidly became very economical in its use. It had snowed in England and the nights and mornings were pretty chilly. We augmented the bedding with coats and anoraks, but the draught from the cab in the early morning was something to be treated with caution.
THe adaptors which we had bought in Germany, and which were claimed to make refilling the gas bottles easy in foreign parts,turned out to be of no use. The French just shrugged and pointed to their own, incompatible, brand of exchange bottles. In England they even offered to change the gas terminations on the vehicle so that we could use their bottles.

There is a version of this Truma heater that also runs on mains electicity 230vac, as well as gas.

Otherwise all went well.

colin and Julie Westgate UK, 29 may 2008
The collection and return of the Motorhome was seamless. Very quick, no fuss and no extra's to pay at all. The Motorhome itself was exactly how it was described, nearly new and performed perfectly throughout the 3000km trip. We would definately use Ideamerge again and would recommend them to anyone!

Denise Cordeiro-Bennett, bennett_denise@yahoo.com, 22 may 2008
What a great experience!!! We were motorhome first timers and still found it amazingly easy to book the motorhome online through IdeaMerge. We flew to Frankfurt and took the short taxi ride to McRent to pick up our motorhome. The staff was great; very helpful and they took the time to explain everything about the motorhome. It was in perfect condition, easy to operate, and was equipped with everything we expected. We brought our GPS with us, so after a quick stop at a nearby grocery store we were on our way. We scheduled the trip for 18 days in late April and availability of motorhomes and campsites was no problem. We did find that some of the attractions/campsites/parks were not yet open for the season, but this was a minor inconvenience since we still got to see so much while travelling around. We ended up driving 6,000 kilometers, visiting 8 countries and 23 cities in 18 days. About 50% of the time we stayed in formal campsites. The rest of the time we took advantage of roadside stops. Both options worked out perfectly. The motorhome was ideal for our trip...unpacking only once, eating in the most beautiful locations, lots of relaxed together time, no planes, trains, or tours to worry about. The only disadvantage was any kind of travel in or through the biggest cities. Definitely should be avoided if possible. We saw so and experienced so much more than we would ever have been able to without the motorhome. This was a once in a lifetime vacation that we now know we can repeat over and over again!

Elvin Magri - MALTA, elvin1@onvol.net, 21 may 2008
I would like to thank the staff for their co-operation in booking process. Very Well Done!..What was to our surprise was that cutlery, pillows, kitchen ware for cooking and few other items were so called extras..This waste us some time prior to start up to settle!!..No other kitchen consumables were included such as cloths and washing liquid etc!..It's no big deal but if travelling in night it is hard to purchase from anywhere!!..However, on our return we had a light scratch along the side and were to be charged a 1,000 Euros for damages. We believed that by using some polish it would be gone and the staff and management refused to let us do it ourselves. Being in the spray painting industry, I insisted on not affecting such payment and then they handed us some polish and let us do it...IT SAVED US 1.000 Euros!!!...Against all, we will consider renting again as we do such adventures yearly, with the difference of hoping that management will be more fair and flexible!!..

Thks & Rgds

Freeda, linuxgirlis@netscape.net, 20 may 2008
We booked through McRent, Sulzemoos (Münich). Pick up and return was quick and easy. Plus, they spoke English. Everything was as promised. The result was a great vacation in Europe. GPS (now that we own one and know how useful they are) would have been handy. On the good side, the rv was extremely good on gas and compact enough to handle the city roads. Definitely recommend!

Robert Schwabenbauer, robseverest@hotmail.com, 24 february 2008
We picked up our RV just outside of Munich in a place called Sulzemoos. It was easy to get to and the place we rented from was called McREnt. The staff were very helpful and friendly and all the RV's are 1 year old or newer. We were given a brand new Fiat and were the first in this RV and it was awesome. It slept five and had a shower and toilett and the kitchen was great. We had a wonderful trip and managed to put on just shy of 3000 km's. I would recommend renting bikes and perhaps getting GPS for anyone doing this trip. Also make sure you budget for the Autobahn and Autostrasse. It was free in Germany, 8EU in Austria, and 32EU in Switzerland. Italy and France have tolls and we paid about 50EU for France and about 100EU for Italy and the roads in Italy are in bad condition!!! All the campsites were fantastic and I would recommend this trip to anyone. A real great way to see Europe!
"No one's interested in something you didn't do"

Happy travells.

Feel free to email me with any questions.

Rob and Annie, 21 january 2008
Pick up and return from McRent in Frankfurt (Nov 07 - Compact Luxury) went smoothly and staff were very helpful. We suffered two breakdowns in the five week hire - one an injector problem (in a heavy snowstorm) and the other when we discovered we had no rear brakes. We had to pay for the brake repair ourselves and it was then reimbursed on return. The fuel economy in the van was around 11.6l/100km which I was told was high for the van, although it drove very well. The crockery/cutlery/pans were adequate however we did miss a kettle.

The van itself was clean and tidy and a good size for our family (2 adults and 2 kids under 4). We chose this van for its size (it was our first hire) although next time we will go a bit bigger. As first timers we were only concerned once and that was the drive between Pompeii and Sorrento (I would recommend staying in Pompeii and getting the train!). All in all a great trip and we cant wait to do it again!

Humberto Costa, elisacosta@shaw.ca, 18 october 2007
Hilda & Humberto, May 16,2007
We rented your new motor-home in Frankfurt and travelled 10.000 km around 9 European countries without any problems.Fiat and McRent were very helpful would like the motor-homes to be equipped with GPS, TV, propane oven and air condition inside the motorhome.Also we think the deposit of 1.000 euros is too high and CDW insurance should be available.
Thank you, our best regards
Hilda and Humberto

Marc Family (Texas), 26 september 2007
We picked up our RV in Frankfurt in July. The only plans we had were the pick up and drop off dates. WE were scheduled to have the RV for 2 weeks. We purchased a map in Paris before arriving and started reading up on all the places to visit in Germany. The location was easy to find with a hotel just on the other side of the street which was convenient for our arrival the day before picking up the RV. The staff was very nice and all spoke good english. This was great because I didn't speak any German at all. The RV was great, less than 2 years old and hardly any miles on it. It was very easy to drive, I just wiush it would have had cruise control.

With our maps in hand and no plans at all we set out for our vacation and had the best two weeks of vacation we've ever had. Germany was a wonderful to see and tour. We wish we could have stayed longer and will definitely come back again, this time with bicycles as well.

Drop off was just as easy as pick up and we would strongly recommend IdeaMerge to anyone (and we already have).

Cheers, Marc

The Gypsy Sues , 24 september 2007
We are two ladies who hired a 5-6 berth motorhome from the Hamburg depot in May 2007. Most of our travel (3 weeks) was through Scandanavia -which was just wonderful to explore in the motorhome.

We had prior experience with a motorhome (5 months) which helped us get through the introduction session. The staff member did not speak English and one of us had limited German, however, we did take a german speaker with us and this helped immensely with the technical side of things. Suggest that if you do not speak German, make sure that there is someone who speaks your language when you go to collect/drop off the vehicle. They also have videos there which show you the main functions of the motorhome etc. I agree with some other comments re the deduction of the 1000 euro at the time of collection - it should be adequate enough to hold your details should a deduction be required at the time of return. This is usual practice for most vehicle hire arrangements that we have used in the past.

The service was great, the vehicle less than 2 years old and just as we ordered. We needed to complete all our transactions via the internet and there was no problems at all - we were expected and all deposit payments were OK. I would have no hesitation in using the service again.

Chris, chris@duchypaving.com, 18 september 2007
We did this having no experience at all and found the booking system via Doug in the states was seamless. Everything stated in the paperwork was spot on.
We flew to Frankfurt from Heathrow and collected our motorhome from McRent in Offenbach, Frankfurt and found the process fairly straightforward thanks to Suzanne and staff who were all most helpful. The handover was a bit rushed with a lot of info to take in, especially as first timers, but in the end you just have to put your head down and go.
The only initial problem we faced was that I didn't precisely check the electrical connections and on our first night discovered that we were missing one particular connection that we needed. This did lead to us having to drive around the following day trying to find a place to buy the missing item. We had informed McRent and they were fine about it promising to repay on return but imagine the hassle in a foreign country trying to find a particular item that is fairly specialist. So be warned and make sure you understand and try everything before you leave !
We were lucky that the van was very new and had no issues but I did see others that were well marked so a thorough inspection is well worth taking your time over as you will be liable for any damage. I felt that the insurance should offer a CDW option as driving in a different country and a vehicle that I wasn't used to was a recipe for at least one minor incident, especially as we intended to travel through a number of foreign countries. Even if you came back from a visit and found damage done to your parked vehicle you would still be liable. In the end I accepted that the 1000.00 euro deposit for excess should be part of your budget when first costing the whole holiday, then at least if you get it back it's a bonus !
The vehicle proved to be exactly what we'd hoped for, very comfortable and reliable and a dream to drive. We decided to do this as my eldest daughter was off to University and it really was the last time we would be a family of 4 together on holiday. Seeing parts of Europe, in this case, was far more enticing than lying on a beach for 2 weeks. That has it's place of course but I would recommend this as a way to see a lot of things at your own pace and spend some quality time together. We ended up going through Germany to Switzerland, Italy, France, back through Italy to Austria and back to Germany.
On our return we were again dealt with very quickly and 'luckily' had had no incidents to report or damage to show and we did get our full refund so personally I have no complaints. I've read some people had a bad deal when the vehicle was checked for cleanliness on return. True, there wasn't much in the way of cleaning stuff but we kept it fairly clean and tidy during the trip and on the last night gave it a good going over. All I can say is that the staff were very pleased with it and even gave us a voucher for discount on any future hire because it was so clean !!!
My only other beef is having to pay extra for things like the table and chairs - I feel things like that should be included. I understand for bedding as there is laundry required but not for items that you are obviously going to need.
Final advice - get a book on motorhome sites where you can park overnight as this saves a lot of money rather than payng for campsites and they have all the services you need. Some sites are basic but others are really lovely and well sited.
Sat Nav is a must !!
Last word - JUST DO IT !!!

Marc (Australia), 13 september 2007
We rented our campervan from McRent in Frankfurt (via Ideamerge) in July -August 07. The booking process and pick up proved to be very easy and painless. Both comanies were easy to deal with. Our van provided us with no problems at all and I recomend dealing with Ideamerge and McRent.Additional recommendations : 1) On arrival take as much time as you need to list every possible fault or scratch (internal or external)do not assume anything, as the same will happen on return. 2)Make sure you buy or rent a GPS for your journey, 3) have fun and expect some minor hiccups along the way it's all part of the experience.

P Ireland, 12 september 2007
We picked up a VW Californian in the middle of July in Frankfurt, Germany from DRM, and took it on a 3000 mile jaunt through England, Ireland, Northern Ireland, Scotland and back to Frankfurt. We were impressed from the moment Claudia introduced us to the vehicle and its capabilities, and equally impressed with her attitude and helpfullness. One drawback, minor at best, we added an awning at the last minute and it just did not want to stay in its track.

The mileage was excellant, and at those prices we were gratefull. The vehicle ran beautifully, and was excellant for maneuvering in the city and on those narrow roads.

Doug Bredesen, from IdeaMerge, was great to work with and had helpful suggestions and answers from the very beginning.

The 1000 EU deposit and paying the exchange rate on it coming and going is something that needs to be fixed. It seems pretty simple - run the card and hold the slip until the vehicle is returned and cleared.

We will be back, probably next year.

Sincerely,

Paul

Al Puskaric, 10 september 2007
We rented a 2-person motor home in Mannheim, Germany. It was beautiful. We named it Snoopy for its cool look and off we went on a trip through most of Western Europe. The machine performed flawlessly and was a pleasure to drive. The 6 speeds really came in handy in the small mountain roads of Italy. We own a motor home here in America and really appreciated the forward thinking German design. It got great gas mileage and the vehicle required no maintenance during our 5,000 Km trip. I found Simone to be an outstanding, friendly, and understanding person that truly worked hard to insure that we were comfortable with the operation of the vehicle. When we returned it in perfect condition, we were immediately given our deposit back. This is unlike our last experience with a different rental company. They did not return our deposit for several months even though it passed their inspection. I would rent from them again!

Michael Flanagan, mf@oemvendorsolutions.com, 10 september 2007
Picked up a 6 berth camper van at Stuggart, drove down to Bordeaux picked up the family and drove around spain over 14 days. The van was fine and pickup formalities fairly painless. The van was broken into in Seville and on return I lost some of my deposit. However they were fair about the whole process and I knew what I was letting myself in for, being my second year hiring. I would agree with some of the previous comments that super CDW insurnace should be available. Certainly the definition of an incident is not that clear in the T&C's. On balance an enjoyable holiday that I would repeat as you can get right into city centres. However its not cheap if you consider petrol etc and sensible people should assume that the deposit will be lost.

m brockenshire, 10 september 2007
picked up van at berlin very easily.was a bit different driving on the other side of the car and the road.spent 2 weeks in berlin and around hamburg.i would not do it any other way.i would recommend to anybody to spend time in germany in an rv.The only problem i have is the cleaning of the van should be included in the price.we had 4 people in the van an spend quite a bit of time cleaning floors,bathroom,kitchen etc....down on our hands an knees with a cloth and hot soapy water washing the floor and still they charged us the cleaning cost.i was not happy with that. all in all though van ran very well and it was very easy to drive place to place and set up. An A++ to doug at ideamerge for doing things very quickly and making it so easy. I just think the cleaning part of it is stupid. mcrent berlin expect such high quality cleaning with only a small brush and pan suplied.No vaccumn cleaner....no dishwashing liquid....no cleanig equiptment at all.makes it impossible. But an awsome time had....

Alan Stafford, astaffx@gmail.com, 10 september 2007
Picked up the Camper in Frankfurt, directions on Ideamegre paper work were great.After pick up when we stopped for the first night and got a good look at the camper we were un happy with the level of cleaning. We cleaned the camper fully, (bathroom, kitchen area, seats musty and dusty). Only a small brush and pan provided no other cleaning products supplied.

The trip itself was magnificent, the freedom it offers is excellent you can be in the Alps one day and at the Med the next, my two children 7 & 6 had a ball. In all we were on holiday for a month and I would recommend the experience.

The part IdeaMerge played was excellent, however I was un happy with McRent the actual rental company.

Unfortunately we scrapped the side of the camper van, I was told the repair would cost more than the 1000Euro deposit and it was all lost. Like another contributor on the review forum I questioned this, their explanation was their years of experience told them the cost, no break down of the actual cost would be provided. Again why such a high deposit, I can rent a brand new hire car of any value and have maybe 100 - 200 Euro deposit, why is full insurance not supplied.

The camper we rented had a number of scrapes and the awing body was damaged but worked fine. Again McRent stated they collect all the deposits for damage over the season and use that towards repair at the end of the season before sale, this van would be rented out again the next week.
This particular Van had 50K + on the closck and performed ok

After receiving the camper in a poor state we cleaned the camper before return, no portable hoover supplied, on return a different rep pulled the fridge apart opened every press and pulled up all the seats and said she didn't think the camper was cleaned to a high enough standard.

I complained and disagreed, I find it hard to understand how you clean a camper van to such a high level in a camp site, All cleaning products, have to be provided by the renter, If we rented and apartment or Hotel room no cleaning is expected at the end. Just a level of tidyness to live in for your stay.

In summary excellent holiday and Ideamerge were excellent to deal with but I would not rent again based on the Deposit and would not use McRent in Germany.

John Brackenridge, johnbrackenridge@btinternet.com, 09 september 2007
Pick up at Falkensee - booking great and staff very helpful - Motohome was very good and we had a totally fabulous holiday. I had read the reviews prior to holiday and so requsted that my deposit was returned when we did the drop off ( less one breakage @7.50 euros!). This was done on the spot. Would book a bigger motohome next time. Sorting the '1000 euro ' issue would seriouly help build customer confidence.

Peter Watts, pjw@sherborne.org, 09 september 2007
My wife, two young children (4 and 7) and I flew into Munich early in July and collected a Dethleffs 5881 conversion (6-berth) from the depot there.

Pick-up - this was easy - the camper was ready early and well-presented (although some niggles we had - a bathroom door that wouldn't shut for example - were brushed aside).

Driving - the power unit of the vehicle was excellent coping well with a range of speeds and gradients including some of the higher passes in the Alps. Visibility was good as was fuel economy

Interior - the seats for driving were very comfortable but those for passengers had a habit of slipping forward (the cushions) when adults sat on them but this is a minor detail. Very comfortable accomodation for four for the three weeks that we were on the road.

Route - Southern Germany - Austria - North Italy - South of France - Provence - Bernese Oberland -Southern Germany - all on four fill-ups
Highlights - Venice for the fireworks at the end of the Biennale (sp?) - the Schilthorn in Switzerland - Gorges de Verdon in Provence.

Drop-off - after a fantastic holiday only two things marred the trip. Poor signs and bad planning on our part meant we did not have a carnet for driving on Austrian motorways - we were fined 120Euros for this. On return a small scratch was detected on the side of the camper - probably caused by running along a tree at a campsite - I felt that I had no means of questioning the 300Euros we were charged for its repair. I would have more confidence in the company if I had subsequently received the repair invoice and any funds owing to me. Why do the company not offer CDW?

Still - a great adventure - a great holiday and we will certainly be exploring by camper again.

J.Rudolf, 09 september 2007
Rented VW California camper from DRM in Frankfurt in August for three weeks. Excellent service by Lars who had the vehicle readied ahead of schedule and sent me on my way early, including a thorough demonstration of the vehicle and its features. The van was immaculate (17k) and the TDI engine drove beautifully, taking 8 liters of diesel per 100 km (30 miles to a gallon), 1000 km on a tank. Speeds of 170 km/hr on the Autobahn felt comfortable. Did 2000 km through Germany, Austria, Italy, Switzerland, Czech Republic, and took gas once on the road. The camper conversion is not as good as the older Westfalias as it is now built more like a car than a boat, but it has many more features. Returning from the trip, I had a scratch on the front bumper, which DRM assessed at 50 euro, very reasonable. Overall, the experience was first class and I would highly recommend the IdeaMerge-DRM route for renting a camper in Germany.

Nancy Sullivan, 06 september 2007
Thanks for your help, Eric at IdeaMerge. You are one of the most AWESOME customer service people I have ever dealt with. THANKS and I look forward to talking again even though we ended up not booking an RV rental this time! – Nancy

Peter Wilson, pwilson@chariot.net.au, 03 september 2007
We hired a campervan for 3 weeks from Frankfurt, and had a great holiday, covering about 4000 km and 5 countries with comfort and 100% reliability. Doug and the Ideamerge booking went very smoothly, with excellent communication and attention to detail.

The pickup from McRent in Frankfurt was not so smooth however. We arrived with all of our luggage at about 3:30 (the allocated pickup time is from 3:00 onwards). After a long wait, there was a very slow check-in procedure where we just reiterated all of the info that had already been provided twice (including in the "fast pickup form" which didn't seem to make any difference).

After all of that, the camper was not ready and did not have the crockery and bedding that we had requested. The water tank wasn't even full...

We eventually got going at 7:00pm after a very frustrating three and a half hours.

The vehicle itself (a Fiat Ducato with Dethleffs fit-out) was very good. It was good to drive, comfortable for a family of 4 and gave good economy. It was about 2 years old and many of the small fittings were broken or showing their age, so hopefully it was about to be retired from service.

One suggestion for McRent is that they should put a big sign on the dashboard warning drivers of the height of the vehicle. This was nowhere to be found (not even in the manuals), and we ended up measuring it ourselves to avoid an incident with the many low bridges and tunnels in Europe.

Despite this, we did put a dent in the top of the van due to an overhanging tree branch. This was dealt with very pleasantly by the McRent people on return, and we forfeited our EU1000 deposit. Unfortunately, they have not been so helpful with providing an invoice for the repairs, which is required by our insurance company in Australia.

Overall, it was a fantastic holiday, and the campervan was an ideal way to tour Europe with great flexibility and independence.

Adrian Prince, 18 august 2007
We hired a Fiat campervan from McRent in Berlin. Ideamerge were excellent and the service from McRent was good but we did have a few issues.

The Berlin depot is actually in the Havel See area, far enough outside Berlin that it's not on the extensive suburban rail system. It's in an industrial area half way between two regional rail stations. With our luggage, we had to get a taxi from the station. Also, while it's in the same area as Tegel airport, it's difficult to get there from the airport by public transport. Some advice on getting there and, possibly, a shuttle to/from the local town would be useful. Actual pickup of the van was efficient.

A road map of the greater Berlin area would have been helpful, especially showing the location of camp sites.

The European camp site book that was included was just one American couple's description of the camp sites they had used. There were just two campsites included in the four countries we went to - neither anywhere near our route. There are good camp site directories available and one of these should be provided.

Like another reviewer, our credit card company hit us with considerable credit card charges for the deposit. Hotels put a claim on a deposit without actually charging it - why can't McRent do that?

George Ulicny, ulicnyp001@hawaii.rr.com, 16 august 2007
We rented an RV in Dusseldorf, May 15 to June 15. The vehicle was new, with many extras: bike rack, roof racks, awning, door deadbolts, & safe. Excellent fuel mileage w/ diesel engine at 2000 rpm. I hated to give it back, and wanted to keep it. If you are to rent an RV in Germany, I'd suggest Dusseldorf, even if it's a bit out of your way. The countryside just north of the vendor is pretty, also. Doug is wonderful, and hopefully is available for adoption.

Ruffolo Family, 14 august 2007
We had an excellent experience with both IdeaMerge Reservations and DRM Rental in Munich. Doug was very helpful at IdeaMerge and answered all our major and trivial questions as this was the first time we rented a campervan and wanted to be sure this would work well in Europe. His recommendations were right on and helpful.

DRM in Markt Schwaben just outside Munich worked very well. We took the train and walked to the rental place. They were waiting for us and were very laid back, yet thorough and helpful. The van itself was in great shape, clean and everything worked well including the raised roof, fridge, stove, etc. Although the 6 speed diesel took a little getting used to, the mileage was much better than a standard engine. The DRM staff was pretty clear on the expectations of the van upon the return, so we were prepared to do some cleaning in and out of the vehicle.

We had no issues during our 2 week travels, so I cannot comment on roadside assistance or any help during the trip.

Upon our return, the DRM center was very busy - however we were taken care of with very little delay and passed our inspection with little delay. I think all renters should consider the old adage - leave in better shape than you got it and you avoid alot of close scrutiny and hassle. We had brought some old beach towels for use during the trip and I was happy to rip up a couple and toss them after cleaning!

We have returned home and told many of our friends about the great experience and highly recommended this option for extended trips, particularly to Europe. We will definitely consider for future trips and other parts of the world.

One more tip, we used Mike & Terry Church's book European Camping as a guide and enjoyed every one of the places they recommended.

Ben, sirfloppy1000@yahoo.com.au, 14 august 2007
We booked our rental through Doug who was very thorough. I’d highly recommend IdeaMerge.

Unfortunately, McRent in Frankfurt were not so good - they were disorganized and many customers were exceedingly frustrated. Having faxed the paperwork to McRent a few days before arrival, we arrived at our scheduled slot (3pm) but had to wait an hour to be served. When we were finally shown our van, it didn’t have a bike rack – we’d booked one, and had mentioned the importance of the bike rack several times, even emailing a week before arrival to reemphasize its importance. It took McRent four hours to source then fit a bike rack and we didn’t leave until 7:45pm! What was more frustrating was that even if the van did have a bike rack, the van would not have been ready, as it didn’t have a radio / CD player fitted. We then had to redo the paperwork – not sure what happened to our fax. Having booked four months in advance and arrived after a 32 hours in transit, this was all very frustrating. Other points: the kitchen set was old and missing many important utensils and the table we were provided with had a broken leg. The cupboards didn’t have any no-slip matting – we had to buy some cheap rags to ‘wrap’ the plates and glasses in whenever we were in transit.

The van itself, however, was excellent. Almost new, and very clean it went well – a Possl Transit ~5.50m long. It was a bit tight inside, but really pinged along the autobahn at 140kph+ and was very easy to drive - Highly recommended for couples who don’t need much space – we’ve used a 6.5m in Europe before, but the for 3-4 weeks, having a smaller van gave us much more freedom and confidence in the small villages and alpine roads. The 5.5m doesn’t come with an awning, which is a shame.

I’d highly recommend IdeaMerge and Doug. But if you pick up from McRent in Frankfurt, be prepared for a long wait and check all the things they provide (tables / chairs / kitchen gear) as most of their stuff is old and broken. There’s a Lidl supermarket over the road which is great for picking up supplies and extra household items.

One other minor concern – the €1000 deposit. I understand the reason for it, but as we were from Australia, our bank charged us a foreign currency transfer fee for the deposit and again for the refund. We then lost more money on the exchange rate moving (just bad luck). So even though McRent gave us the full €1000 back, we lost ~A$150 on the transaction. It’s a problem for customers and their card companies / banks, rather than the rental company, but perhaps something for IdeaMerge (and renters) to keep in mind.

It would also be great if McRent were to provide simple A4 maps of the 2-3 main ways to get to and from the depot. This would be a great to help get you on the road and then to help find your way back to the depot at the end of the trip.

Razia H., trhusain@sbcglobal.net, 10 august 2007
After posting the review the other day, I realized I could mention a few things to prepare the 'first timers' a bit more.
1) Take a GPS system ..life is much better with GPS if you are driving off the beaten path.
2) Do your research, look for campsites in advance the campsite book given at the depot is ok but not comprehensive. It does list star rating and 4 star is recommended for families.
3) Always purchase 'unlimited day tickets' for any city transportation. This takes the hassle of finding fares and purchasing them and gives you freedom to choose your destinations within the city more often.
4) Listen to "Rush-Hour" series of Berlitz for the language of the country you are visiting. It is very rude to not even know how to say hello, thanks and sorry to a person on the street. If you expect others to know enough English to explain the way to you, they probably expect you to know how to say 'thanks' in their language.
5) Do not bother taking travellers check or cash with you. Most credit cards will work and VISA cash card charges only 1% fees overseas. Also ATM machines are available. However remember to call your credit card and cash card and cell phone companies to expect your transactions from the countries you are visiting.
6) Most economical way to keep in touch with your family back home is to take your current GPS enable cell phone (unlocked) and text message back home. You can also take a phone card from your local service company (MCI for example) and use the plenty of available phone booths to call home.
7) Do not throw away any subway, or local transportation ticket until you are back to your RV. We had thrown our one way subway tickets after using it on the turnstile, and were 'caught' at the exit station and were fined for not having the ticket to travel on the subway!!

We had a very ENJOYABLE trip in Europe and hope to make another one in near future.

The Wheating family, rwheating@telus.net, 09 august 2007
This was our second RV rental in Europe and the first time that we used Ideamerge. We chose them because of good reviews, an informative website(motoeuropa)and because their cancellation fees were most favourable. We also appreciated that they did not charge extra for a kitchen set, though this proved to be less valuable than we anticipated (see comments below.)

Our month-long trip in June 2007 was outstanding, though certain aspects of our moterhome disappointed. We arrived at the depot in Frankfurt after a very long (delayed) flight from Vancouver but fortunately still in our agreed pick-up slot. The depot was busy. We were ignored for an hour. Once they turned their attention to us, there were still repeated delays and interruptions. The vehicle they had prepared for us had been gored by tree branches both fore and aft, with large dark putty patches crudely applied to plug the holes. There were also numerous small dings and scratches. An identical unit in much better condition was stored near by, but as my kids, aged 10 and 12, were exhausted, I felt I hesitated to delay further hours by insisting McRent prepare a better condition vehicle for us.

The vehicle also showed wear inside: veneer was peeling from some of the cabinets, chunks of double backed tape remained on the walls where hooks had been removed. Over time we discovered a glove, a gameboy and game, dvds and pencil drawings in our vehicle, leading me to question the quality of McRents cleaning. Clearly the previous renter lost all of his deposit and didn't much care how he left it. The grey water tank was not fully drained and was noxious when we did it a few days later.

My other complaint is that the kitchen set was next to useless: No colander, no spatula; bowls were flat glass soup plates. The frying pan was not non-stick and the pots shared one handle which let go if you tried to tip the pot to drain it. We ended up buying all of these items and more. The table and two of the four chairs we rented collapsed frequently. Just go buy some when you arrive.

So thats all the bad stuff. On the good side, the RV was mechanically reliable and a very economical way for a family of four to have a great month in Europe. The diesel engine got great mileage.We always had a fridge full of good food and cold drinks and a familiar place to sleep. We free-camped a few times with no problems.

The campground book supplied by McRent was very limited, profiling one campground in each of a few dozen major centres. No maps were available at McRent for the countries we planned to visit (Germany, Switz. Italy, France) We did a lot of internet research in advance and it really paid off. We didn't pre-book anything and were never turned away. Our kids liked the 4 star campgrounds with pools, slides and pizzerias, and we generally indulged their preferences, to the tune of 30 or 40 Euros/night. If it was just the two of us, we would have free camped and used municipal campsites more often.

My husband found the driving and parking quite manageable, with the exception of one hairy section between Lugano and Mennagio on Lake Como. We didn't get the GPS system but probably would another time though we managed with only minor navigational errors over 4000km. Another time I would also buy bikes for everyone on the first day. Once you get your vehicle parked in a campsite -- leveled and awning out, laundry flapping - you are loath to move it for local trips. We rented bikes often and for the money spent on rental, could have bought bikes for both kids, and probably sold them quite easily in the end - or found a way to donate them where they could do some good.

Return of the vehicle at Frankfurt was much smoother. My husband and I spent a few hours the night prior cleaning the RV from top to bottom and had no difficulty getting our full deposit back without cleaning charges. Just opposite the McRent depot in Offenbach (Frankfurt) there is a McDonalds, two budget hotels, a gas station, and car detailing center with coin-op vaccums that you can access round the clock. We got a room for the kids, then cleaned the RV in the parking lot. We all profited from showers at the hotel in the morning before driving the clean RV across the road and heading for the airport. Doing it this way was well worth the 60E hotel fee, as it alleviated the complexities of sleeping in the RV while simultaneously packing and cleaning.

Doug gave us prompt and courteous assistance and for that reason I wouldn't hesitate to use Ideamerge again. I am disappointed that we ended up with a vehicle in need of significant cosmetic repair -m our reservation was made 8 months ahead - not last minute. We always felt like people were looking at our patched vehicle in wonder at our poor driving skills. Another time, I would insist that McRent prep a better vehicle and very quickly too.

If you are thinking of taking your family on an RV tour of Europe, just do it. We had a wonderful time and only hope we can do it once more before our kids are too old.

Tomas Petersen, sunny@sunnyworld.org, 09 august 2007
We decided with relatively short notice to go on a two week campervan holiday. After a search of the internet, it quickly became clear that IDEAMERGE was offering what was amongst the best prices. So we booked a compact. Within 8 hours, Doug from IDEAMERGE wrote back that there was no vans of this category available for our dates, but offered us the next best option. We picked that and ideamerge arranged all the booking and payment swiftly and efficiently.

The van was ready when we got to Hamburg. It was in excellent condition, and we had two wonderful weeks touring in it.

The German company had problems with their IT systems so offered to email us the final paperwork instead of us having to wait around. We gladly accepted. The email didn't arrive. A quick note to IDEAMERGE got this resolved within 8 hours as well. It is particularly this after-the-event service, long after the money has changed hand that impressed us. Doug could have ignored our note, but he got right onto the case and got it resolved.

I have been very impressed by the service received and have no hesitation in recommending IDEAMERGE to anyone looking for a trouble free campervan holiday.

Razia H., trhusain@sbcglobal.net, 07 august 2007
Our European vacation started with airline reservation and IdeaMerge. we really appreciated the details on the website and after careful thought went with ideamerge as opposed to other options. Our rental was in Frankfurt. Everything was exactly as the website had prepared us for. No surprises except that we expected to get a VW but the six sleepers were all FIAT. Since our van had EXCELLENT fuel economy and did not give us any problems it was alright in the end.
The construction of the bed and tables inside the vehicle was a bit flimsy but bearable for two weeks! The plumbing and heating system worked great and all the guages for water and fuel for the living area worked as they should. The space was tight but we were expecting that. Bed sizes were not bad but walk around space was minimum. The stove and refrigerator were efficient and adequate for normal use.
We relied heavily on our Tom-Tom and had a great time. Without the Tom-Tom, it would have been impossible to find the depot in Frankfurt, as it is well hidden.
We did not purchase any extras because I didn't think they were worth the cost.
The checkout process was smooth, there were no "hidden" costs, no unreasonable penalties (we had minor fender benders and were charged around Eruo 500 more).
Overall it was an extremely painless process to rent and return and we will definitely do it again in the near future. Specially now that we know there is a train from Frankfurt airport to the depot and to the Frankfut Hauptbahnhof etc.
THANK YOU IDEA MERGE!

Kathi Ralph Battles, broncobetty1950@sbcglobal.net, 07 august 2007
Thoroughly enjoyed our rental experience with Ideamerge/DRM in Frankfurt, Germany. This was our 5th European vacation and we've always either purchased or rented a VW camper van. This was our van's only second trip out, so it was like brand new and worked great, was very comfortable and easy to maneuver on those skinny European city streets. We visited 7 countries in five weeks and camped every night and met all kinds of friedly people. We really appreciated having the huge German map and camping book--they came in very handy. Also, having the bike rack included was a plus--we formed an international partnership with our German friends and purchased mountain bikes which we rode in three different alps and then left with our friends when we departed Germany. Too much fun!

Our recommendation is to have at least a sheet of van operation instructions in English which would have helped with blood pressure when trying to figure out the electronics. Also, there shouldn't be an extra charge for the table and chairs which were already part of the van.

What we want to know is how Mike (in Frankfurt) did with his extreme mountain bike race? We were rooting for him and his partner!

Laaksonen Family, 07 august 2007
We booked our vehicle from Mr. Doug Bredesen and picked it up at Sulzemoos (Münich). The service was excellent, vehicle was practically brand new and we had fantastic three weeks in Germany, Switzerland and France.

We recommend!

Laaksonen Family (Finland)

Brian Templeton, 28 july 2007
We collected our Fiat Dethtleffs RV from McRent in Mannheim. Our 7 week holiday was trouble free and highly enjoyable in part due to the excellent quality of the vehicle which was both economical and very well presented.
I would recommend this kind of holiday to anyone.
The only matter which did bother us was that they did not supply a spare wheel in case of punctures - fortunately it was not needed!
My wife are looking towards doing this again in a few years time so we will no doubt be in touch with you again.

Bruce, 25 july 2007
Ideamerge and McRent in Hamburg provided excellent service. Check in and checkout were very quick and trouble free. We were surprise at the very good fuel economy with the Fiat van. We enjoyed our five week trip through Scandinavia driving almost 5000 miles.
We are ready to do it again.

Tommie Kenny, 25 july 2007
Having settled back after completing a wonderful holiday in Europe I would like to complement Doug Bredesen for his help and courtsey at all times during our communications to each other while I tried to organise our holiday to suit our family situation .Thankfully everything worked out perfectly.I would like to extend my thanks also to McRent in Mannheim who provided the vehicle in excellent condition and it's facilities were demonstrated by Simeone in a corteous and knowledgeble manner and in perfect English,the pick up and return were without problems..many thanks to all concerned .We were very happy with the vehicle choice, well equipped,comfortable,economical,safe and with low mileage .Also the A/C was appreciated when the weather got very warm. Just one little minor quibble, it would help if the manuals provided with vehicle could be in English covering basic information on warning lights in vehicle/eqpt operation etc. Verdict overall...very satisfied...would use IDEAMerge/McRent again and would also recommend to others

David Stafki, 08 july 2007
Picked up the RV in Dusseldorf in early April. Met or exceeded all expectations. Staff was friendly and knowledgable and we were on the road quickly. We had a great time touring several countries and had no real problems with the RV. Euorpeans are great campers and the campgrounds were wonderful. We loved our experiences there. We originally reserved the unit for almost 3 months but had to cut it short by about 3 weeks. It would have been nice if they would have even some small measure of refund for unused days. Also, when renting for that long it would also have been good to have a couple of chairs thrown in for nothing.
Overall though, no regrets and would do it again.
Dave

Laura from Florida , 07 july 2007
Our family had camped before in the States, but the campgrounds in Germany & Italy were better in some respects. Most had small markets, bars, and the restrooms were clean, and we never had to wait for a shower like you do in the States in the mornings. Great locations...but finding some of them! Yuk. The campground book given to us by McRent had terrible directions in it. I'd get the GPS next time.

Driving an RV on the autobahn was not a problem (of course I drive in South Fla), and the gas mileage was great.

We did not get the motorhome we had reserved in November. We were supposed to get a Group D6B vehicle, like the Dethleffs 7871-2. When we got to the pick-up they would not rent it to us because our US licenses (all 3 said something different) gave our weight class as less than sufficient to drive the motorhome. This was news to us because our reservation had said "though standard US domestic licenses suffice with respect to the Group D6 and Group D7 motorhomes, which have a gross weight greater than 3500 kg, standard European licenses limit their holders to vehicles less than this weight." We figured we had no problem. But someone at the AAA office where we got our Int'l driver licenses had incorrectly market we couldn't drive more than 5,000 lb vehicle. We had already rented and driven a larger motorhome in Alaska years earlier. Also my 15-yr old son's driver's permit said his license was sufficient to drive the motorhome. Too bad he was too young. We went to a website to show we had the correct licenses, they wouldn't budge. It's not like we were going to have obtained CDL licenses in the states just for driving a vacation vehicle! The Frankfurt staff had a smaller motorhome that they quickly cleaned and outfitted for us (over 3 hr check=in), but it was not as new or large and we were a party of six. I was dissappointed that we did not get the vehicle we had reserved so many months earlier.

But if you get the GPS, people from the US should not be hesitant at all about camping in Europe or using McRent. It was much more of an experience than staying in hotel rooms.

Godleman family, frankmaree54@netspace.net.au, 06 july 2007
We have just recently returned from a 4 week holiday in Europe. This was to (most likely) be our last family holiday with our 17yo son before he heads off to Uni & holidays with friends rather than parents. It was particularly important to me that it be a memorable holiday for all the right reasons rather than because it was the holiday from hell! It was all I had hoped for & more!!!! This was in no small part due to the excellent motorhome (Fiat Globebus from McRent in Munich) we had for our 3 week stint on the continent. We picked up from Sulzemoos (about 45 mins out of Munich)& did a loop through Austria (Salzburg), Slovenia (Bled,Ljubljiana & Potorosa), briefly into Croatia (Umag), Italy (Venice & Cinque Terre)across the Mediterranean coast to Nice, up through Frances Provence region (Orange) to Lyon, to Switzerland (Geneva, Rolle, Visp,Lauterbrunnen), Austria (Bregenz, Germany (Fussen, St.Alban on Amersee, and returning to Munich. I had travelled Europe as a single back in the 80's using Eurail which was great but this trip was absolutely awesome. My husband adapted really quickly to the left-hand drive & we did some 4500 Kms without feeling pushed or rushed.
The Munich McRent depot staff (Peter & Michael - who both spoke English thankfully as our German was non-existant) were extremely helpful & the vehicle check-in was both quick & thorough. Our motorhome only had about 1500Kms on the clock so was virtually brand new! Its economy was great fuel-wise. It came map-less though & we hadn't been expecting that so I'd advise that you organise a GPS before you go & take away the need for chasing up maps. I'd also agree with others that some of the Tolls are highway robbery - literally!! We found it to be worst across the Cote D'Azure region so would in hindsight suggest more minor roads if time permits. We could have spent much more time exploring & we would highly recommend both Ideamerge & McRent as very professional teams to deal with. I have read that some folks were not sure what standard of cleanliness was needed to receive their deposit - we had absolutely no problem in this regard. I suggest that as a guide, you return the vehicle in the same clean state in which it was when you picked it up - no hassles!!
If like us you are hesitating about going....DON'T hesitate....JUST GO!!!! Thanks McRent & Ideamerge, we have made incredible memories we will all carry with us forever!

Daniel Fraser, 03 july 2007
I found the IdeaMerge site very helpful and had all the information we needed. Factoring in the discounts the prices it was better than going to McRent direct. One negative point is that we thought we were geting A/C in the cab for our model - but in reality it didn't come with that.

We had a great holiday and traveled 4500km. Some advice is not to be too complacent with your valubles we had our cameras and bags stolen from within the main campervan (out of sight behind curtain, behind passenger seat) during the night while we were in the campervan sleeping! We were parked in a small Motorest just inside the eastern Czech boarder. The lock was forced and we heard nothing. We would now keep our valubles in a cupboard or up on the bed... Don't be put off though, we had a great time, just be careful with passports, cash and cameras, it will save you a lot of trouble.
Dan

Jeff Kauk, jeffkauk@rogers.com, 25 june 2007
WOW...what can we say. Before I go any further if you are planning on renting book the motorhome first then find a flight.
We are from Canada and rented a motorhome for the month of May out of Stuttgart, Germany. Since we had booked our flight into Frankfurt already and couldn't get a motorhome rental in Frankfurt we had to take the train to Stuttgart...not a big deal. The rental place was great, our motorhome (Jerry..we gave it a nickname) was perfect for us. A bed, a kitchen, a toilet...what else do you need. If you are thinking of renting a motorhome....DO IT! We loved it...way better then a tent and much better then a hostel...for us atleast. To see pictures go here http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog/canadianmade/awayin07/tpod.html
We can't wait to do it again. Some tips to make the trip easier.
1. Don't worry about getting lost...you will...just keep driving in one direction and you will find your way out of the city!
2. Get the ACSI guide on DVD and take a laptop..the book in the motorhome isn't very good. The ACSI guide it much more detailed. They have a online map here. http://www.eurocampings.co.uk/en/europe/
3. Our motorhome had a safe so we were not worried about valuables..anyways all the parks were VERY safe. It's all older people except Amsterdam!
4. If you are from Canada then trust me when I say everything is MUCH closer to each other than it is in Canada or the States for that matter.
5. If you like to drive you will LOVE to drive in Europe. Some of the roads in Italy I thought were one lane were actually 2! It was great!
6. Campgrounds are amazing...bars, restaurants, no toilet paper or seats in France...it's a learning experience.
If you are on the fence about going.......just please go! It will be the experience of a life time!

Bob McLaren, 25 june 2007

My wife and I recently returned from 5 weeks in Europe. This was the 2nd time we have used Ideamerge to rent a VW California from DRM in Germany. Using Ideamerge is a no brainer; their website, the booking process and customer service is seamless. (Even easier than 2003) We picked up our VW in Frankfurt. Our plane arrived at 11am, by 1:30pm we were driving away in a brand new (1600km) camper. We drove 5200km to southern Italy and returned to Germany via Paris. The current VW camper is very refined and easy to drive and setup. It's perfect for 2 people, gets about 9l/100km fuel economy and is very comfortable. This time we slept upstairs in the "penthouse". which was very comfy and the views out the little windows were great. We brought our own lightweight cooking gear and sleeping bags etc. which simplified things for us. We particularly like the freedom the VW provides, in terms of size and convenience, to go anywhere we like. For instance, we drove the Amalfi coast road on a busy Sunday without any problems. Also, the switchbacks in and out of the Gargano peninsula (Vieste, Italy) are not to be missed. Also, this time we brought along a Garmin NUVI GPS unit which was very helpful.

The return of the vehicle was easy and we our deposit was returned promptly.

Some suggestions: Bring a tire gauge and check your pressure regularly. One of our tires was quite underinflated upon pick-up and it can affect your handling. Also, the VW manuals are all written in German, so any problems you might have can be hard to decipher.

Another great experience and highly recommended. Happy travelling.

Steve, 20 june 2007
We rented a Motorhome for a 4 week trip around Europe in April/May 2007. We picked up our motorhome from McRent in Frankfurt and had a bit of a slow start as there were some delays in getting our motorhome ready. Once on the road we had an excellent family adventure (5 of us). We traveled almost 7000 Km and toured 7 countries. I was very impressed with the motorhome and the fuel consumption was a pleasant surprise compared to the big North American units. We found the camping guide book, provided with the motorhome, to be an excellent resource (But bring a GPS or really good maps !). Never once had a problem finding a nice camp site (pays to go in the off season !) Ideamerge, especially Doug was excellent for answering our questions and getting our booking established. If you are reading these reviews trying to decide if a motorhome is the way to visit Europe, I can certainly recommend it as a fantastic way to travel!(and I would not hesitate to recommend you book through Ideamerge). Our family had a wonderful time. Thanks

Tim, tim@missionsafari.net, 20 june 2007
We had the trip of a lifetime thanks to Ideamerge. After living in Africa the past 3 years we decided to tour Europe on our way back to the U.S. I had never rented a RV camper before so had no idea how to get started. So, I just "googled" "RV Camper Rentals in Europe" and fortunately came across Ideamerge. It had the best information and the best rates.

The camper was awesome and we traveled throughout Germany, Austria, Italy, Switzerland, and France. The only surprise we had were the toll road costs in Europe. More information on the website would have been helpful for budgeting.

Also, understanding the insurance would have been better. Unbeknownst to us, a tree limb made a small dent on top. When we turned in our camper after our trip, the guys at McRent went crazy with everything. Not only did they keep our deposit, they charged us 150 Euros for not "cleaning" the inside (we had washed all dishes, swept the floors, and wiped down the counters, but apparently forgot to wipe out the burners). Not knowing what was expected on cleaning cost a lot.

All in all, we would do it all over again. We will soon forget the dent, the loss of deposit, and the cleaning fee, and remember all the great things that happened during our trip!

Alan Morris, 18 june 2007
We have just returned from Europe and a 7 week hire from DRM. Whilst we were in Germany (Berlin) a large branch fell off a tree (we were in a camp site) and wrecked the camper, it happened around 10am, before the end of the day we were "back on the road" with a new vehicle.
Fortunately no one was hurt but I think DRM should be commended for the excellent way they handled the situation, unlike the campsite who had insisted we park where we had and then charged us for our overnight stay and the tea and coffee (offered to calm us down, two people were in the van at the time but escaped unhurt). We were unable to shower as most of our towels were wet due to the large hole in the roof.
We were also delighted to be told that due to the circumstances we would receive our deposit back, so all in all DRM were delightful and the campers were on the whole "first class"

Regards

Alan Morris
AustraliaAlan

Jennifer Brian from Oregon, U.S., 10 june 2007
We booked a VW van for two for just over one month. We found the
service and information provided from the time of our initial inquiry,
to reservation, to actually picking up and returning the vehicle to be
superb. The van had very few miles on it, lots of great features and
they even lent us several detailed map books and a europe-wide
campground directory. When we picked up the vehicle we had a great
lesson on how to work everything, where the grocery store was, the
nearest fuel station and a small map of the area which was of great
use for the return.
We plan to travel in europe again next year and will definitely rent a
VW again from this company. We had a great experience.

David Steele, 04 june 2007
We picked up and dropped off an MC Rent motorhome in Dusseldorf, Germany, with an 11 day rental. We had selected the "Standard" sized motorhome with carseats for our 4yo and 9mo old children. When we arrived we found things all ready for us, with the exception that they had two forward facing childs seats instead of a rear facing infant seat for the baby. We showed them the IdeaMerge paperwork clearly showing the ages and weights of our children. After a few minutes of consultation, they sent a technician out and purchased a new seat for our use. It was a little difficult getting the seats installed but they obviously were interested in doing what it took to keep us happy. The motorhome was 6 months old with 24,000km and in excellent condition. It even came with a backup camera to help us parallel park in the crowded German cities, which we very much appreciated. We'd definitely do it again, although I'm not sure whether we'd bring the kids...

Lindsey and Keven Grogan, lin-kev@bigpond.net.au, 28 may 2007
We would like to post a complimentary review of booking our motorhome to travel Europe... although this will not take place until March 2008 - we have booked early for various reasons and we have found that Doug Bredesen has been unbelievable with his help... seems that nothing was too much trouble and here we are downunder in Australia and he has made the booking of our Motorhome so easy... I wondered if he ever slept - as I would email with a request and would awake to find his reply... nothing was to hard and he made it all so simple for us and so generous... We can highly recommend him to make your bookings so simple... I cant wait to be able to post yet another review after we come back.. We will be making this motor home - "our Home " for 134 days and we just cant wait... thanks again Doug... your the best..Lindsey and Keven Grogan -Beerwah - Australia.

Danny Julie Giesbrecht, wngntt@shaw.ca, 18 october 2006
Thanks very much for the follow up! We picked up our motorhome in Frankfurt on Sept 18th. The staff (Claudia) was extremely helpful and kind. They offered us maps and useful hints which made our vacation trouble free. Speaking of trouble free, the motorhome ran like a clock and was easy to drive, especially in the busy cities. We travelled through Germany, Holland, Belgium, France, Switzerland, Italy, Austria and back through Germany to Frankfurt. With 4600 km of driving, I can say that i did not feel tired once. The vehicle was very comfortable to drive, eat in, and sleep in. Even when i got stuck going in circles in the roundabout at the "arc de triumph", i felt comfortable driving.
Ideamerge made our honeymoon a trip of a lifetime. Thankyou very much, and thanks again to Claudia in Frankfurt for her assistance and her big smile.
We are already planning for our next trip, 2 years from now. Ideamerge will be our first reservation.

Danny & Julie

Park, Insung, bakis@catholic.ac.kr, 16 october 2006
The motorhome added to our Europe travel usefully. I was very happy and reduce the travel cost. But I appeal you to change two conditions.

1) The insurance system need to be changed. The consumer's resposiblity is 1,000 Euros. Under 500 Euros, customer will feel safe.

2) The time of picking up and replacing should be changed. I wasted my time for travel to wait the motorhome. Without any extra charge customer can hire it, it would be very comfortable and useful.

Thank you for your kindness and help.

Ian Andrina, 16 october 2006
Great way to see Europe with kids (as long as you stop for a few days in one spot to give them some space)...van pick in Frankfurt was friendly and easy with all paper work in order (except take time to watch the video...we didn't realise you could extend the beds even further!)...drop off was also very easy with a no fuss check of the van and the deposit was put credited back into our account there and then at the office!!!...including cost of some minor repairs to the table that we had to undertake enroute...certainly recommend the ideamerge/mcrent frankfurt team

polly schonfeld hermann platschka, polly8@earthlink.net, 09 october 2006
We picked up our van after a long flight from new york city. The staff was helpful, personable and friendly and even offered additional brochures for the trip. The van was a great car and performed beyond our expectations. We drove over 7500 kil. and gas milage was unbelievable. We fell in love with the westphalia and the camping experience. We are already planning our trip next summer and plan to rent another vw from Ideal. Polly & Hermann

FRANK SHERI KOENIG, FRANKKOEN7@AOL.COM, 09 october 2006
WE JUST RECEIVED YOUR EMAIL. THANK YOU FOR WELCOMING US BACK TO THE USA. OUR WHOLE EXPERIENCE WAS "FIRST RATE". WE PUT OVER 2000Km on our RV and we didn't have one bit of trouble. Everything was fantastic with the camper. We got to celebrate our 40th Wedding Anniversary in style! Everyone we know thinks we were crazy to go in a RV, but we put them STRAIGHT! As far as we are concerned this was the only way to see the country's. Our camper was small but compact for us. We loved the bed. You couldn't go to bed mad that was for sure. It was especially nice to have a bathroom. As one gets older we seem to have to make late evening visits and its nice to have that convenience. Driving on the Autobahn was a blast. We never got a ticket, (or got caught). The people at McRent in Munich were very knowledgable and helpful. The RV came fully equipped. We so enjoyed being able to eat outside with our awning and table and chairs. We felt very secure in the RV with all the safety equipment. The only criticism we would like to convey is that they need to make a bigger refrigerator to accommodate all the beer and wurst! Thank you again. We had a WONDERFUL TIME.

Sincerely,

Frank & Sheri Koenig
40+ years

Royce Moncur, moncur@latrobe.net.au, 08 october 2006
A great experience! Driving on the right hand side was a challenge at first [us Aussies drive on the correct side!].
We toured for two weeks through six countries.... that much driving would just about get you across Ausralia. Magnificent.
Great service from a company found 'pot luck' in a web search. Also pretty good service from the rental company... BUT!! Surely Europe can catch up with our part of the world. You basically have to wait for 'business hours' to pick up and drop off these motorhomes. Why aren't they set up like hire cars? We had to hire a car for a couple of days before we could get our motor home. The other problem is that they are set up in an industrial estate well away from anything. In Australia I fly into an airport and the van meets me at the airport. Small gripe in the scheme of things though. On the first day I reversed into a small post. Crack through the lightweight rear bumper. $460au cost. Blast! To finish.. great service from Ideamerge and pretty good from Duetsh Riesmobile

Steven Horne, steven.horne@skynet.be, 08 october 2006
Ideamerge were great and the vacation excellent - shame about McRent RV rental of Dusseldorf. Pick-up was shambolic, no guide in english to wagon, no english speaking staff at that time and the chaop we did get didn't really know basics like what the battery indicators meant. very swift look around van - huge mistake!! Took nearly 3 hours to get out of there. Taking back similar pain - this time they really wanted to look at wagon and found a 2-3cm scratch on side - scrape of paint proabably caused by car door or shopping cart. might have even been there when we picked up. Huge fuss and later a 200 euro reduction in deposit supposedly for re-spray. never seen the invoice for this and it took them a month to put rest of deposit back onto card.
Great organisation by ideamerge, great way to see germany, Denmark etc but lousy local rental company.

Damien Byrne, 06 september 2006
just a quick note to thank you for your excellent service through your website. My friends and I used ideamerge last year for our trip around Germany and were so impressed with how smooth everything went there was only one vendor we were going to use when we arranged this year's trip to the USA. - Many Thanks.

Shane and Fiona, 28 august 2006
What can i say except our Motorhome experience in Germany was well.....interesting...
Let me start by saying the company in Germany (Deutsch Riesemobile)were not the most organised lot which is unusual for German people.(This was no fault of Ideamerge) Our pick up time for the MH was 3pm, we did not leave the place till 7pm. They had no capming guides in English, which made finding a place to camp very hard at times.(We hired the MH for 21 nights taking in 9 countries) They had no english speaking staff to show us the motorhome functions on the day of arrival. Once again, made things a bit hard to figure out.
On the day of return to Deutsch Riesemobile things seemed a lot more functional and we had no trouble with the language barrier as there was an English speaking staff member there.
But all that said, the staff at Ideamerge were fantastic in organising our MH given the high demand during the World Cup.
Doug Bredesen in particular was very professional and punctual in all his dealings with us and should be commended for his good work.

Markus and Family, 24 august 2006
I was very happy how smoothly our RV rental went. The vehicle was clean, new and the staff at the pickup depot were very helpful. I would be delighted to recommend using IdeaMerge for renting an RV to anybody travelling in Europe.

Arturo , Arturom@charter.net, 23 august 2006
My life time dream was to go to a World Cup in Germany; Ideamerge helped me to make it true. Since I put my application Ideamerge immediately started looking for a motor home for me, They even stay late at night, continuously email me with the latest news related to my reservation, even call me to give me the good news that I had my motorhome reserved. The motorhome was a class D. Small but very comfortable. It looks brand new. I was able to drive and park very close to the city centers (downtown). My wife even cook two blocks from the train's main station at Düsseldorf, because I was very hungry and couldn’t wait to get to the RV parking. I did not see a reason to wait we had beer in the refrigerator (and vegetables) and food on the shelves of the motorhome. Those three and half weeks of traveling, eating, sleeping,.........etc in the motorhome in Germany and during a World Cup, was better than our Honeymoon!!! Thank You Ideamerge. By January I will start planning my next summer vacations. I do not know where I am going, but I know that Ideamerge is going to help me. Thank you again.
Arturo and Nazira

Christina Peak, 02 august 2006
I was very impressed with the service from this company when I was trying to find a campervan for our time in Germany during the World Cup. I felt like a valued customer and all of my queries and problems were sorted out promptly and efficiently via email. The vendor company were also very helpful and our van was top quality and in top condition. I would use this company again without a second thought.

Ruth Haggerty, ruthhaggerty@hotmail.com, 16 july 2006
We picked up our Campervan for two at Karlsruhe in Germany and have to say that it was immaculate, almost new. The staff gave us a video to watch initially to help us manage the various aspects of running the vehicle, which was valuable as we had never rented one before. We found it to be very good on fuel and totally reliable, as we followed our team in the World Cup 2006 to Frankfurt, Nuremburg and then Cologne. We found it to be a very convenient and comfortable way of seeing the beautiful country of Germany and thank you for your good service