Iceland Is The Most Expensive Place To Rent A Car
Ready to vacation? Be aware of the total cost before you hop on that plane. According to a new study from Confused.com, Iceland ranks as the most expensive country to take a road trip in, with the cost of car rental averaging $1,383.24 a week. Iceland was followed by popular travel destination New Zealand, with it costing just over $1,200 a week ($1,258.34) to rent a car in the country. Argentina, Jamaica and Israel complete the top five most expensive locations, with the cost of car rental ranging from $762.71 up to $1,069.66 a week for rental and fuel expenses.
Along with Iceland, several other European countries made the top 10 destinations where it costs most to rent a vehicle, including Switzerland, Austria and Ireland, where costs of hiring a car average over $656.41 a week. In fact, European countries dominated the overall top 20 most expensive countries to rent a car in, with 10 destinations from the continent featuring in the top rankings.
Ranking in 16th position was the United States of America, where it costs $656.41 a week to rent a car – less than half of the cost of renting a car in New Zealand or Iceland. Popular European holiday-maker destinations Malta, Greece and Italy follow the US, with it costing between $559.41 and $591.30 to borrow a vehicle and see the sights from the comfort of your car.
| Rank | Country | Capital city | Average total cost of renting a car (USD) |
| 1 | Iceland | Reykjavik | $1,383.24 |
| 2 | New Zealand | Wellington | $1,258.34 |
| 3 | Argentina | Buenos Aires | $1,069.66 |
| 4 | Jamaica | Kingston | $841.11 |
| 5 | Israel | Jerusalem | $762.71 |
| 6 | Japan | Tokyo | $746.77 |
| 7 | Switzerland | Bern | $676.34 |
| 8 | Morocco | Rabat | $671.03 |
| 9 | Austria | Vienna | $664.38 |
| 10 | Ireland | Dublin | $656.41 |
| 11 | Finland | Helsinki | $655.08 |
| 12 | Singapore | Singapore | $647.11 |
| 13 | Chile | Santiago | $623.19 |
| 14 | Croatia | Zagreb | $620.53 |
| 15 | Fiji | Suva | $611.23 |
| 16 | USA | Washington | $604.59 |
| 17 | Malta | Valletta | $591.30 |
| 18 | Greece | Athens | $583.33 |
| 19 | Slovakia | Bratislava | $580.67 |
| 20 | Italy | Rome | $559.41 |
Thailand is the cheapest country to hire a vehicle in
The cost of renting a car in Thailand, the cheapest country to hire a vehicle in, equals just 11% of the cost of renting a car in Iceland, the most expensive destination. Costing just $164.77 on average for a week’s rental and fuel, those looking for an adventure on wheels could roam around the tropical southeast Asian country for over eight weeks, and still not spend as much as if they were to drive a vehicle in Iceland for one week.
Following closely behind is Azerbaijan, with average costs of $208.62, and Lebanon ranks in third position with costs of $244.49 for the week period.
Just missing out on making the top 25 most affordable countries to rent a car in, the UK ranked in the middle of all the countries analysed in the research, with car rental in the country costing $449.12 overall.
| Rank | Country | City |
Average total cost of renting a car (USD)
|
| 1 | Thailand | Bangkok | $164.77 |
| 2 | Azerbaijan | Bakue | $208.62 |
| 3 | Lebanon | Beirut | $244.49 |
| 4 | Jordan | Amman | $252.47 |
| 5 | Malaysia | Kuala Lumpur | $263.10 |
| 6 | Brazil | Brasília | $267.08 |
| 7 | Belgium | Brussels | $267.08 |
| 8 | Mexico | Mexico City | $285.68 |
| 9 | Denmark | Copenhagen | $291.00 |
| 10 | Romania | Bucharest | $293.66 |
| 11 | Turkey | Ankara | $293.66 |
| 12 | France | Paris | $296.31 |
| 13 | Cyprus | Nicosia | $300.30 |
| 14 | Oman | Muscat | $301.63 |
| 15 | Hungary | Budapest | $317.57 |
| 16 | Estonia | Tallinn | $334.85 |
| 17 | Bulgaria | Sofia | $344.15 |
| 18 | Germany | Berlin | $345.48 |
| 19 | Spain | Madrid | $360.10 |
| 20 | Czech Republic | Prague | $362.75 |
To view the findings of the research in full, please visit: https://www.confused.com/car-insurance/most-expensive-car-hire-countries
