Driving can be a flexible way to get around when Traveling. You’re not restricted to public transport routes and times, allowing you to plan your own itinerary. You also have a certain degree of privacy when driving by car. However, it can come at a high cost. For this reason, it’s important to compare your options when traveling by car. Below are 5 different ways to travel by car compared. 

Drive your own car

Many people going on Road trips take their own car out of convenience. Taking your own car allows you to set off from home and allows you to drive a car that you’re already familiar with. Of course, you need to make sure that your car is suitable. A small city car may not be suitable for a multi-day through mountains and deserts. You also don’t want to be taking your car if you’re traveling to the other side of the world – flying your car over will likely be too expensive.

Hire a car

If you’re traveling somewhere very far away, it could make sense to book a flight and then hire a car that you can pick up from the airport. Hiring a car could also make sense if your everyday road car isn’t suitable for the conditions of your road trip. For example, if you want to take all the family on a road trip, but you have a small car, you could consider hiring a bigger car with more passenger space. You will have to factor in hire car fees, so bear this in mind when choosing this option.

Buy a temporary car

If you’re planning a road trip lasting several months, hiring a car could work out very expensive. If your everyday car isn’t practical, it may make sense to buy another car to use for your road trip. You can then sell this car or scrap it at the end of your road trip. Buying a used car with a lot of mileage could work out cheaper than hiring a car, although you’ll likely have a less reliable vehicle. It’s worth using sites like Edmunds to work out exactly which car is right for your needs. Be wary that buying a car in some countries may require you to register it at an address in that country. 

Get a taxi/Uber

Booking a taxi or Uber can prevent you from having to drive while traveling. However, it’s not something that you want to really do when planning a long journey. Few taxi drivers will be prepared to drive you across the US or to another country, and those that are willing to do this will want a large payment. Instead, taxi drivers and Uber drivers are better for handling short journeys when you don’t want to drive. For example, when planning a city break, you may not want to go through the stress of hiring a car. Taxis and Ubers are likely to be a good option for getting around for times when you don’t want to use public transport. 

HitchhikeThe cheapest way to travel by car is to hitchhike. However, it’s by far the least convenient and least reliable. You could spend a lot of time by the side of the road waiting to be picked up and you may not always be able to find drivers who are able to take you all the way to your destination. There are also safety concerns to consider when hitchhiking. All in all, it’s best to only rely on hitchhiking when you don’t have a strict itinerary when you’re traveling solo, and when you’re willing to take a bit more of a risk. Check out this guide to hitchhiking at Forbes for some success tips.