Your questions answered, with Joan Scales
What's the story with the cost of hire-car insurance?
Q We are going to the Algarve, in Portugal, in April and will need a hire car. I have been looking at several websites, but there seem to be a lot of grey areas regarding insurance. It appears that most companies offer only third-party cover, with an option to upgrade to fully comprehensive for an extra charge. What would you recommend?AS, Enniskillen
The insurance offered with rental cars is usually the minimum required in the country where you are hiring. There is also usually an excess, which means you have to pay a certain amount – typically €500 – before the insurance covers any damage or liability. So if you scrape the car your policy might not cover the repair. Car-hire firms sell Super CDW, which waives the normal excess, for €10 to €15 per day. That can add up on a two-week rental, so you might consider buying a policy from a specialist website such as www.insurance4carhire.com. It charges from €56.84 for a year’s cover against any excess you have to pay, for rentals of up to 31 days at a time. Car-hire firms also offer personal accident cover for €5-€8 a day; again, this is usually provided by your travel insurance, so only buy from the hire-car firm if you still need it.
Q We have a six-year-old boy with severe food allergies. Because of this, holidaying can be quite challenging, and we have tended to self-cater in Ireland. When we stay in hotels we find that although they generally appear willing to help, their knowledge of allergies and ability to cater for us are lacking. Would you be aware of any destination (home or abroad) with a record of successfully catering for children with food allergies?KC, Cork
It is very difficult to find places that can cater for children with food allergies, and I think you should continue to consider self-catering. That said, many restaurants and hotels in Britain are used to catering for food allergies. Perhaps you could consider a holiday in somewhere such as Cornwall, which has a growing range of good-quality restaurants using local and organic produce. There are flights to Cornwall from Cork in the summer with Air Southwest (www.airsouthwest.com). Cornwall has a great selection of holiday homes; try www.visitcornwall.com and ww.beachcomberapartments.com. Cornwall has a lot to offer families for holidays, with a great variety of sights, good beaches and plenty of activities.
Q We are a family of five: two adults, five-year-old twin girls and a baby. We have been to Greece several times and love the less commercial side of island life there. Sadly, it seems the better islands are accessible only via British airports. The issue of travelling to England and the additional expense of further flights is a nightmare. We are very keen to obtain a family villa in Skiathos for two weeks at the beginning of the primary-school holidays, in late June. Does any Irish operator that we can fly out of Dublin with have property with a pool near a beach? All I can locate are UK agents that refuse to quote for a family organising their own flights. We found a place on the web called Tzaneria Bay that looks ideal, with two or three tavernas and a supermarket – about as commercial as we would like.PB, Sligo
Since XL went out of business, last September, there are no direct flights to Skiathos from Ireland. There are direct flights to Athens, Rhodes, Crete, Corfu and Zakinthos. Whichever route you choose, you are going to have to spend a night in Britain or Athens. Your options are to fly with Aer Lingus (www.aerlingus.com) to Athens, then on to Skiathos with Olympic Airlines (www.olympicairlines.com), or to go via London Gatwick or Manchester with Monarch (www.flights.monarch.co.uk). You can fly from Ireland West Knock airport to Manchester with Bmibaby.com.
Skiathos is a beautiful island that has not succumbed to mass tourism. It has a good selection of holiday villas and apartments (see www.skiathosinfo.com). These are mostly rented directly by the owners. A reader stayed in one of Zorbathes villas last year and highly recommended it. They have a converted inland farmhouse and barn with pool, about seven minutes from shops and beaches; prices from €175 per day. Tzaneria Bay looks like a typical small Greek seaside village – a nice quiet location for a family.
Q I hope to start my tour of Spain in Seville at the end of the month. Can you give me any tips about this fabulous city's nightlife, tapas bars and sights? Also, can you recommend a friendly youth hostel for a solo traveller? I am flying from London Stansted to Seville with Ryanair. What's the easiest way to get from the airport to the city centre? I hope to spend three weeks there. Would you recommend any nearby cities to visit – perhaps cities I can access by rail?MR, Dublin
Seville retains the grandeur of its time as the capital of Spain, with wide, orange-tree-lined boulevards. There is a bus connection from the airport to the city centre. See www.hostelworld.com for a good variety of budget accommodation rated by guests. The best area for entertainment is the old town, behind the cathedral, where you will find great tapas bars, shops, restaurants and nightlife.
A good train service connects Seville to many towns and cities nearby. Ronda, high in the mountains, is a lovely day out. Its bullring has a costume museum of bullfighting regalia. Jerez is also interesting; the old town is a warren of medieval streets and unspoilt Spanishness. It is also known for the bodegas of the famous sherry producers. You’ll find train timetables at www.renfe.com.
- E-mail questions, with your name and address, to jscales@irishtimes.com