Florida fly and drive

Florida is obviously an extremely popular destination for fly-drive packages. Car hire in Florida is generally very good value, with rental rates usually being much lower than they are in the UK and Europe. You should watch out for hidden extras (insurance waivers, fuel costs if you don’t return the car with a full tank etc) which can really mount up when renting a car in the USA. It is well worth doublechecking if you will have any additional insurance cover on your UK car insurance policy, your travel insurance, or your credit card.

Note that despite most cars being automatics (and therefore far less complicated to drive), the road accident rate in the US is roughly double that of the UK. From our (totally unscientific) research we think this is down to the fact that there are far more large vehicles on their roads, trucks are not fitted with speed limiters, everyone (and we mean everyone) talks on their mobile phones whilst driving, and drink-driving appears to be more common.

Take particular care when leaving the airport, and allow plenty of time when returning your car, as these are the times when there is most potential for accidents to occur. Although a number of attempts have been made to reduce casualties, particular accident blackspots include the I 92 Florida Turnpike in Orlando and the US 1 highway between Miami and Key West (Florida keys).

The smaller airports such as Orlando Sanford and Fort Lauderdale are generally a little less troublesome for car rental than the likes of Orlando International and Miami International.