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Renting a car:
Sixt in Maastricht do the best rates in general, and cars can be arranged for collection and drop off any of the nearby major regional airports – Amsterdam, Dusseldorf, Brussels, Eindhoven, or Cologne. They have an office in the centre of Maastricht if you plan to come on the Eurostar and need a car, but since it is quite small, we recommend you book in advance. www.sixt.nl . In August, the standard car rental cost is typically approximately 50 euros per day.
Sixt.B.V , Spoorweglaan 18, NL-6211 BS Maastricht Tel: +31 (0) 43 3101737 / Email: erik.van.velzen@sixt.com (Maastricht manager)
Taxis
All taxi companies charge a flat 7.50 e “start rate” at the beginning of your journey. After this, the charge is a standard 2.20e per kilometre. The cost of an airport run (an individual car) is typically 137.50e each way. Shuttles can be booked for less, but you will need to factor in extra time for shared pick-ups.
You can arrange also arrange a shuttle from the airport with Taxi Brull . They speak English since it’s the company used by Vodafone J .
Taxi Brull Maastricht Tel. +31 (0)43 – 34 30 000 Fax. 043 – 34 30 460 or info@brull.nl ATM Taxi: Tel +31 (0)43 321 61 61 or info@werner.nl Schiphol Taxi: +31 (0) 20 405 1013 or reservations@schipholtaxi.nl
A direct express train connects Maastricht with the Eurostar in London and the Thalys to and from Paris.
http://www.maastrichtbrusselexpress.nl/
Crossing the channel with a car….
If you are comfortable driving on the right, our opinion of the easiest crossing option has always been Eurotunnel. The total ferry crossing time - both to Calais and via Hoek of Holland – is slightly longer, although if you pick your times carefully the ferries can be cheaper.
Reservatons Line from the UK: 08705 35 35 35 Group bookings can be made on 08705 20 44 02.
Budgetary Notes:
Fares apply per vehicle irrespective of the number of passengers. There are slightly cheaper crossings earlier in the morning and later in the evening – the difference is about 10 GBP each way. If you are travelling in a group of 15 cars or more on the same crossing, you can get a discount of 15% on the fare. A Mini bus with up to 17 passengers is approximately. 660 GBP Return. Sample mini-bus hire cost for 5 days: approx 750 GBP for hire from 9.00 am on 21/8/2008 to 18.00 on 25/8 2008 from www.selfdrivesolutionsltd.co.uk
Distance from Calais to Maastricht:
327 km / 200 miles 2hrs 59 mins Fuel cost: about 28 euros / 18.60 GBP each way.
Journey Time:
Crossing time from Dover is usually about half an hour. Motorway Calais Maastricht: 3 hours (off peak) travel time.
Recommended route:
A relatively straight forward route (apart from the slightly manic Belgium drivers …- though to be fair, the Dutch are not much better and most of the Germans are speed demons.). Follow the E11 from Calais, via the north side of the Brussels ring road towards Liege (also signposted as Luik in Dutch, once you get into the Flemish part of Belgium). From there Maastricht is clearly signposted.
By Ferry …
(with a car ….passenger travel not highly recommended due to public transport links)
Options are:
Harwich – Hoek of Holland. This route tips you out near Rotterdam. The distance to Maastricht is about the same as from Calais. Dover – Calais (see Eurotunnel for distances and motorway journey time.)
Harwich to Hook of Holland:
Distance from Hoek of Holland to Maastricht 232km. Time on motorways: 02h26. (About the same as London to Exeter and very slightly shorter than Calais to Maastricht)
Budgetary Notes:
There are two day sailings – 9:00 am and 23:45. Prices are dependent on the number of passengers. |
