JB. How do I get out of the dock area /Southampton

[tucker1865]

I can see on the map (google) where I have to go to get to the Hertz Rental Car from City Dock (Eclipse), but it looks like it is surrounded with a fence. How do I make my way to Hertz? thanks in advance

[John Bull]

The port is a secure area, you have to go out thro' dock gate 8.

But only 6 to 8 minutes walk.

 

Exit the terminal to the right, past the line of coaches.

Through the dock gate, & immediately cut left thro' the rear carpark of Holiday Inn - there's a big well-used gap in the hedge onto the sidewalk of West Quay Road. (the blue line on the googlemap refuses to take that short-cut ;))

In just a few yards, at the traffic lights by the Renault dealership, switch to the one-way service road, past the BSA Premier premises & after the Honda dealership next door to BSA, turn left into the dead end.

 

BTW, look to your right, the offices by the traffic lights are the new Carnival UK HQ.

 

You can drive back to pick up your passengers/luggage, but its just a little complicated & may be gummed up with traffic, so if you've got easy-rolling bags & you're planning to drive out of the city you might prefer to take your passengers & luggage with you.

http://maps.google.co.uk/maps?saddr=Herbert+Walker+Ave&daddr=W+Quay+Rd&hl=en&ll=50.900164,-1.410584&spn=0.005535,0.012124&sll=50.902975,-1.41931&sspn=0.011069,0.024247&geocode=FQyuCAMde2zq_w%3BFSCxCAMdrHPq_w&dirflg=w&mra=dme&mrsp=1&sz=15&t=h&z=16

 

JB :)

[MacThespian]

The port is a secure area, you have to go out thro' dock gate 8.

But only 6 to 8 minutes walk.

 

Exit the terminal to the right, past the line of coaches.

Through the dock gate, & immediately cut left thro' the rear carpark of Holiday Inn - there's a big well-used gap in the hedge onto the sidewalk of West Quay Road. (the blue line on the googlemap refuses to take that short-cut ;))

In just a few yards, at the traffic lights by the Renault dealership, switch to the one-way service road, past the BSA Premier premises & after the Honda dealership next door to BSA, turn left into the dead end.

 

BTW, look to your right, the offices by the traffic lights are the new Carnival UK HQ.

 

You can drive back to pick up your passengers/luggage, but its just a little complicated & may be gummed up with traffic, so if you've got easy-rolling bags & you're planning to drive out of the city you might prefer to take your passengers & luggage with you.

http://maps.google.co.uk/maps?saddr=Herbert+Walker+Ave&daddr=W+Quay+Rd&hl=en&ll=50.900164,-1.410584&spn=0.005535,0.012124&sll=50.902975,-1.41931&sspn=0.011069,0.024247&geocode=FQyuCAMde2zq_w%3BFSCxCAMdrHPq_w&dirflg=w&mra=dme&mrsp=1&sz=15&t=h&z=16

 

JB :)

JB,

I realize that Auto Europe is a broker, rather than a direct car rental agency,but I've had good luck dealing with them before.

However, when I key in "Southampton" as a pickup point (after the cruise), it gives me four options: Southampton City Docks, Gate 8 (western docks); Southampton downtown office (West Quay Industrial Estate); Southampton Downtown Office (West Quay Rd, Unit J); and Southampton Port, City Cruise Terminal. These seem to be clustered really closely together, but when I choose one or the other they give me a different set of rental options. One option shows the least expensive compact as the Vauxhall Astra, the least expensive midsize as the Skoda Octavia; the next one shows a VW Golf as the least expensive compact and a VW Passat as the least expensive midsize. (Of course, all of these are shown as xxx "or similar.") I'm guessing that this

is because they're dealing with four different rental agencies (Hertz, Avis, Budget, whatever), but was wondering if you could confirm this.

I assume your directions for leaving the port would apply to any of these, with minor variations.

By the way, the last few times we've rented a car in the UK, we've managed to get relatively new cars, with less than 5,000 miles on them. That seems to me that the rental agencies are turning over their cars every year. Do you know if this is standard practice? It could influence the rental decision (e.g., the latest model Passat has significantly more space in the trunk--pardon, the boot--than last year's model; if I knew that I was likely to get a relatively new Passat, I might choose that rather than another model that supposedly is a better fit for two suitcases).

 

Thanks again.

[John Bull]

JB,

I realize that Auto Europe is a broker, rather than a direct car rental agency,but I've had good luck dealing with them before.

However, when I key in "Southampton" as a pickup point (after the cruise), it gives me four options: Southampton City Docks, Gate 8 (western docks); Southampton downtown office (West Quay Industrial Estate); Southampton Downtown Office (West Quay Rd, Unit J); and Southampton Port, City Cruise Terminal. These seem to be clustered really closely together, but when I choose one or the other they give me a different set of rental options. One option shows the least expensive compact as the Vauxhall Astra, the least expensive midsize as the Skoda Octavia; the next one shows a VW Golf as the least expensive compact and a VW Passat as the least expensive midsize. (Of course, all of these are shown as xxx "or similar.") I'm guessing that this

is because they're dealing with four different rental agencies (Hertz, Avis, Budget, whatever), but was wondering if you could confirm this.

I assume your directions for leaving the port would apply to any of these, with minor variations.

Thanks again.

 

The four locations are one & the same. And if googlemaps shows four different places - well, that's googlemaps :rolleyes::D

Europcar, National & Alamo all operate out of the same premises, as on my map. Hertz are just a couple of doors away.

I don't know how/who Auto Europe tie-in with. Possibly with more than one, and that's probably why you're getting different models showing up.

Major rental agencies trade-in every year or two, its rare to get one with 30,000 on the clock.

But bear in mind you'll not neccessarily be allocated a specific model, just a model from the same grouping.

If you want to specify, you'll need to do so directly with the operator rather than an agency.

 

Remember, if you want auto transmission be sure to specify, otherwise you'll get a shift-stick.

 

BTW, I said driving back to the port from the rental depot was a little complicated. Well, I guess not really - just being a bit motherly toward someone driving their first half-mile in the UK. :rolleyes:

You have to follow the one-way service road, turn right at the lights, then right at the roundabout (traffic circle?) to go back thro' the dock gate.

 

JB :)

[MacThespian]

The four locations are one & the same. And if googlemaps shows four different places - well, that's googlemaps :rolleyes::D

Europcar, National & Alamo all operate out of the same premises, as on my map. Hertz are just a couple of doors away.

I don't know how/who Auto Europe tie-in with. Possibly with more than one, and that's probably why you're getting different models showing up.

Major rental agencies trade-in every year or two, its rare to get one with 30,000 on the clock.

But bear in mind you'll not neccessarily be allocated a specific model, just a model from the same grouping.

If you want to specify, you'll need to do so directly with the operator rather than an agency.

 

Remember, if you want auto transmission be sure to specify, otherwise you'll get a shift-stick.

 

BTW, I said driving back to the port from the rental depot was a little complicated. Well, I guess not really - just being a bit motherly toward someone driving their first half-mile in the UK. :rolleyes:

You have to follow the one-way service road, turn right at the lights, then right at the roundabout (traffic circle?) to go back thro' the dock gate.

 

JB :)

 

Thanks once more. You are a fount of knowledge.

 

The reminder about the stick shift is good for most people, but luckily I can drive one, and I've always rented a stick shift when I hired a car in the UK. I do the driving, and my wife's the navigator; it works out pretty well.

 

(The only time I had a problem was when we stayed in London for a few days, then picked up a car to drive around the rest of the country. We had to get the car in the middle of London, near Victoria Station. They gave us directions on how to get out of town, and I thought we followed them exactly, but suddenly we found ourselves right back where we had started! We did it again, making one small change, and got out of London successfully this time. Now, if we're combining a stay in London with a trip around the country, I try to get the car at the airport, and do the London portion of the trip at the end.)

[tucker1865]

Thanks JB, you know all the tricks. Thanks again.