Question 1

How does Easy Escape make money?

Accepted Answer

We charge one flat service fee per trip. That is how we make money. Some wholesale channels we book through have standard industry margins built in that no agency can remove, but because our fee is flat, we have zero incentive to steer you toward anything. Where wholesale rates save money, the savings go to you, not us. The full explanation, in plain language, lives on our How we make money page.

Question 2

Why not just book the car and hotels myself?

Accepted Answer

You can, and for a single hotel stay you probably should. A multi-country self-drive trip is different: a rental voucher, cross-border permissions, five to ten hotel bookings, parking in old-town centres, toll systems that change at every border, and routes that avoid closed mountain passes. Our fee buys you a route designed by people who live in Europe, plus one place, the companion app, where everything already works together.

Question 3

Will I pay more than the rental company's or hotel's own price?

Accepted Answer

Our fee is flat and shown separately, so you always see what the trip itself costs versus what our work costs. We book through wholesale trade channels where available, and when those rates beat public prices, the savings go to you, not us. Whether you choose a guesthouse or a five-star palace, our fee stays the same, so we have no incentive to upsell.

Question 4

Is my payment safe? Who am I actually paying?

Accepted Answer

You receive named confirmations in your own name for every hotel and for the rental car, so each booking can be verified directly with the provider before you travel, and everything is stored in your companion app.

Question 5

Is there a minimum trip length or budget?

Accepted Answer

Because our fee is one flat amount for the whole trip, it makes the most sense on trips of roughly a week or more. If a shorter trip would not be good value for you, we will tell you so before you spend anything.

Question 6

Do I need an International Driving Permit with an Indian, UAE or other non-EU licence?

Accepted Answer

For most of Europe, yes, carry one. Italy, Spain, Austria, Greece and others legally require an IDP alongside a non-EU licence, and rental desks frequently ask for it even where the law does not. An IDP is only valid together with your original physical licence, and an Indian IDP is valid for one year and cannot be renewed, so time your application to your travel dates. We remind you of exactly this during planning.

Question 7

Does my self-drive itinerary work for a Schengen visa application?

Accepted Answer

Yes, and this is a common worry we design around. You apply to the country where you will spend the most nights, the main destination rule. If nights are equal, you apply to your first port of entry. Your itinerary, hotel confirmations and travel dates need to match your application, which a fully booked self-drive plan does naturally.

Question 8

Is there a minimum or maximum age to rent the car?

Accepted Answer

Most European rental companies require drivers to be at least 21, some 19, some 23 for larger cars, and to have held a licence for one to two years. Drivers under roughly 25 usually pay a young-driver surcharge, and a few suppliers add senior fees or caps around 70-75. We flag any age-related fee before you confirm, so it never appears as a surprise at the desk.

Question 9

Can a second person share the driving?

Accepted Answer

Yes, but they must be registered as an additional driver on the rental agreement, usually for a small daily fee, and they need the same documents as the main driver: licence, plus IDP where required. Never let an unregistered person drive. It voids the insurance entirely.

Question 10

What happens if I get a speeding or parking fine?

Accepted Answer

Cameras and restricted zones, like Italy's ZTL old-town zones, send fines to the rental company, which passes them to you with an admin fee, sometimes months later. The best defence is knowing where the traps are: our routes and pre-located parking garages are designed to keep you out of ZTLs and other easy-to-hit restricted zones in the first place.

Question 11

What kind of car will I get, and can I choose?

Accepted Answer

We book with premium, internationally trusted rental partners running modern, meticulously maintained fleets, and you get a genuine choice of vehicle, not the standard chauffeur lineup. We match the car to your party and route: an automatic compact for two people doing hill towns is a different call from a seven-seater for a family with luggage.

Question 12

Are automatic cars available? I have never driven a manual.

Accepted Answer

Yes, but in Europe automatics are the minority and they sell out first, especially in summer. This is one of the biggest first-timer traps: booking late and finding only manuals left. We reserve the transmission you actually drive, well in advance, and it is confirmed on your rental voucher.

Question 13

How big is the deposit, and do I need a credit card?

Accepted Answer

Almost all European suppliers block a security deposit on the main driver's credit card at pickup, typically covering the insurance excess plus a tank of fuel. Depending on car class this commonly runs several hundred to a couple of thousand euros. It is a hold, not a charge, released after the car comes back clean. Debit cards are often refused, so bring a credit card in the main driver's name.

Question 14

What insurance is included, and what is an excess?

Accepted Answer

Third-party liability is legally included in every EU rental. Collision damage waiver and theft cover are normally included too, but with an excess: the amount you would still pay if the car is damaged or stolen. You can reduce the excess to near zero with additional cover, and we tell you plainly which option is worth it for your trip rather than leaving it to an upsell at the desk.

Question 15

Do you provide child seats?

Accepted Answer

Child seats are legally required across Europe, with rules varying by height and age per country, and rental companies supply them for a daily fee, usually with a capped total. We add the correct seat type for each child's age to your booking before you land, so it is fitted and waiting at pickup.

Question 16

Is the fuel policy fair? Petrol or diesel?

Accepted Answer

We book full-to-full, the only fair policy: you collect the car with a full tank and return it full, paying only for the fuel you use. Your app notes the fuel type on the voucher. Putting petrol in a diesel is a classic and expensive first-timer mistake, so double-check the sticker inside the fuel flap before the first fill-up.

Question 17

How do tolls and vignettes work? Do I need to sort anything before driving?

Accepted Answer

Europe runs two systems. France, Italy, Spain and Portugal charge per distance at toll gates, paid by card at the barrier. Austria, Switzerland, Czechia, Slovenia, Hungary and others require a vignette, a prepaid pass, before you touch the motorway, with fines of 120-800 euros if you skip it. Your itinerary tells you exactly which vignettes your route needs and where to get them, so you are never guessing at a border.

Question 18

What if the car breaks down or I have an accident?

Accepted Answer

Every rental includes a 24/7 assistance number on your documents and in your app. Call it first and let the rental company arrange towing or a replacement, because self-arranged repairs can void your cover. The pan-European emergency number 112 works in every EU country. Report any accident to the supplier and, where required, local police within 24 hours, photograph everything, and keep receipts.

Question 19

Can I cross borders with the rental car?

Accepted Answer

Within Western Europe, usually yes and often free, but the rental company must know your route. Some borders, especially into Eastern Europe or non-EU countries, carry a cross-border fee of roughly 20-60 euros or are excluded outright, and driving somewhere unauthorized voids the insurance. Because we plan your exact route in advance, the correct cross-border permission is on your rental agreement before you collect the car.

Question 20

Can I pick up the car in one country and drop it in another?

Accepted Answer

Sometimes, but international one-way fees are the single most expensive surprise in European rentals, routinely 500 euros and up. That is why most of our routes are designed as loops or same-country drop-offs, and where a one-way genuinely makes sense we price the fee transparently into the quote before you decide.

Question 21

Is a winter road trip realistic? What about snow, winter tyres and mountain passes?

Accepted Answer

Yes, with the right route. Several countries mandate winter tyres seasonally, and rental cars are equipped locally, sometimes for a fee. High Alpine passes close from roughly October to May or June. Knowing which pass closes in October is exactly the kind of thing our Europe-based designers plan around: winter itineraries stick to valley roads, tunnels and cities that work in the season you travel.

Question 22

We are vegetarian, or need Jain or halal food. Will we manage on the road?

Accepted Answer

Yes, with planning. Big cities are easy. The real gap is lunch stops on driving days in rural areas. Because your route is designed by people who live in Europe, we mark restaurants that genuinely work for your diet along each day's drive, including which ones need no booking, instead of leaving you to roulette at a motorway services.

Question 23

What if I need to change dates or travellers before the trip?

Accepted Answer

Hotels and rentals each carry their own change rules. We tell you at booking which parts of your trip are flexible and which are locked, and we handle the re-booking work when plans move.

Question 24

What is your cancellation policy?

Accepted Answer

Supplier refunds follow each hotel's and rental company's own terms, and we show you those terms before you commit. Whatever the final policy says, it will be written here in plain language, not buried in fine print.

Question 25

What if something goes wrong mid-trip, like a hotel problem or a closed road?

Accepted Answer

Routes can change mid-trip. Your companion app always shows the current version of your trip, and when something needs rearranging, we do the phone calls in the local language while you keep driving.

Ask us anything

The money questions first, because that is where trust starts.

Licences, permits and visas, sorted before you think to worry about them.

What you drive, what it costs at the desk, and what is already handled.

Tolls, borders, breakdowns, winter passes and lunch that actually suits you.

Plans move. Here is what happens when yours do.

The easiest way to get answers is to start planning