Thomas Pretty

With property prices as high as they are many who are looking into buying a holiday home are increasingly looking at caravans and static homes as a cost effective alternative to buying houses. The reason these types of caravan and static homes make an ideal holiday home has much to do with the increase in comfort in recent years.

No longer do static homes and caravans have such a poor reputation with holidaymakers, the old view of a cardboard box that is cramped and uncomfortable has largely been surpassed by homes that offer a great level of luxury at a reasonable price.

Touring the wine making regions of France in a hire car is the perfect way sample all this unique country has to offer. The wines of France are generally regarded as the best in the world and with a long heritage; some say the sixth century BC. This ensures that they have had plenty of practice with wine making methods. Car hire services will allow you to tour vineyards and the quaint villages of France, sampling, reds, whites and some marvellous cuisine.

Germany lies in the centre of Europe and is the ideal place for a fly-drive holiday. With distinct regions throughout the country it offers tourists with a hire car the chance to drive the autobahns and sample much of the culture. The cities of Germany vary from old world elegance to domineering modernism, with a history so rich in culture and events there is little surprise that Germany is as fascinating as it is beautiful.

When looking at a touring caravan there are several quite different layouts to consider.
For families with two or more children, fixed bunks are very popular, particularly if children wish to bring along friends.

Smaller families or couples that occasionally take grandchildren often prefer caravans with side bunk beds that during the day convert into a small dinette area, these caravans usually have large end washrooms with a separate shower.

For those about to embark on a car hire holiday to Germany there are a number of factors to consider ensuring your safety. The roads in Germany are widely held to be some of the best in the world but the rules of the road should be understood to get the best out of your car hire holiday.

The autobahns are seen by many as the pinnacle of the driving experience but this is not always the case.

For years I had thought about travelling to France, using a car hire service and touring the battlefields of the First World War. My family like many in Britain lost loved ones in this senseless power struggle which is why my advice to anyone would be to visit the battlefields and cemeteries to get an idea of the sheer scale of the slaughter that occurred ninety years ago.

Scotland's capital city, Edinburgh is a key element of any trip to Scotland, the use of a hire car service will allow the visitor to get the best out of this unique city and its surrounding area. A city that is almost a thousand years old, Edinburgh has a fascinating history.

The stunning Lothian area that surrounds the city is the perfect excuse for a day trip in a hire car.

Heathrow airport began its life as a small military airfield during the First World War, after this original period it never saw active service as an RAF airport and can trace its heritage almost solely as a commercial airport.

Strangely the layout has found itself limited by the centrally located terminals, due to the fact that airport planners originally thought passengers would be arriving in chauffeur driven cars.

Gatwick Airport is Britain's second largest and second busiest airport. Despite only having a single runway, Gatwick Airport handled over 35 million passengers last year and hopes to improve on that figure in the future. Obviously as a large airport it has a number of accompanying services, such as shops, bars and car hire companies.

Gatwick Airport was the first ever airport with a direct rail link to London, now all major airports possess one but when Gatwick developed its link with Victoria it was a novel idea.

Birmingham Airport can be seen as the gateway to Britain, lying so centrally it is the perfect place to hire a car form and tour the countryside. Nowhere in the midlands is too far from Birmingham Airport, the Black Country, Shropshire, Warwickshire and Wales are all accessible and the use of car hire services makes a great touring holiday.

Birmingham itself is a vibrant and multicultural city.