Several car rental companies are offering "Early Bird" rates through the American travel company Best Fares http://www.autoeurope.com . The travel group is the brainchild of Tom Parsons whose travel bargain advice is heard nationally on many top all-news stations. According to Parsons, rates as low as $18 a day are available if the booking is done on the Internet before the end of March. The $18 a day rate is for the Netherlands. Rates are higher in other European countries. For example, the per day rate in Spain is about $32 a day. In the United Kingdom, $36. Advance rates for France for summer rentals are about $37 a day and in Germany $40 a day. Parsons tells UPI it's important that before renting any vehicle overseas the traveler check with his or her car insurance company. By the way, many European rental cars are "straight stick," so make sure you ask all the right questions.

Share you car rental tips here. Have you had good luck with a particular company or have found really good deals with one? Do you have any other tips to share with us?

One thing I always make sure of when I rent a car and go over the entire interior and exterior and make list of any dents, cigarette burns in the carpet, and anything else that I find that the company might want to charge me for when I return the car. I do this with a sales rep with me and actually I make him write the list and I ask him to sign it. This could save you some extra money by taking the time to do this.