NATIONAL Car Rental at Menorca Airport

The offices of National car hire at Menorca Airport are located in the car parking area next to the terminal building. Customers returning their vehicle at the end of a rental contract should take their hire car to this car park, which serves as a drop off point.

Renting a car at Menorca Airport can cost as little as €47 for a couple of days rental. Menorca is a small island and can be circumnavigated in a day, but visitors to Menorca might like to rent a car for a little longer, since there are several ferry services that allow exploration of neighbouring island Mallorca with the wonderful resort of Manacor and the splendid Palma de Mallorca with its chic shops, glamorous bars and clubs, family amusement parks, cathedral and Royal Palace.

Tourists with a hire car can also catch a ferry service to Barcelona from the ferry ports on Menorca and a round trip could even include a visit to Ibiza.

It is best to book well in advance during the busy summer months and booking online often saves money, too. The contact details are as follows:

- National Atesa, (www.atesa.es, tel +34 971 366 213 / Fax +34 971 369 777, email 212@atesa.es). The National Atesa Menorca Airport office is open daily all year round.

Smaller vehicles are not just easier to drive, they are also cheaper in running costs. National Atesa car hire Menorca Airport can supply the Citroen C2 or the Seat Ibiza and the Peugeot 207 for example, which are ideal for driving on the island.

The Compact or Medianos class offers vehicles like the manual transmission Mercedes Class A, a 3 or 5-door vehicle with room for 5 passengers and space for 3 suitcases. The Citroen C4 can be supplied as an automatic vehicle and can be either a diesel or petrol engine car.

In the Specials category customers will find the Peugeot 407 automatic, the Citroen C5 automatic and the Citroen C8 HDI 7, as well as the Mercedes Class C and Citroen C6. Families or groups travelling together need plenty of room for luggage and space for people and water sports equipment. The Specials category also includes the 9-seater Citroen Jumper, a 5-door diesel vehicle offering space for 4 large suitcases, too.

Some 30 km west of the airport lies the holiday resort of Santo Tomas. The rugged, but verdant green shoreline can be reached in a 30 to 40 minute drive, since the roads on Menorca are not fast, but rather "meandering" in style. The main road on the island is the ME-1 and following this road through Horts de Torralba, Alaior and Migjom Gran will take tourists to the small resort of Santo Tomas.

The public transport situation at this resort is far from satisfactory, since there are only 3 bus services per day. Anyone staying in this resort or along this stretch of coast should certainly consider hiring a car from National Atesa at Menorca Airport, otherwise they will rely on taxis, which works out far more expensive, since the taxis will have to come all the way out from Ciutadella, the largest town along the west coast.

During the summer, large numbers of British families come to this resort, which is a bustling little metropolis during July and August, but is actually only home to 59 permanent residence, who enjoy their little town from the end of October onwards, when the last tourists have gone home!

For more information about National Atesa car hire at Menorca Airport, please visit the official airport site at www.aena-aeropuertos.es or the company's official website at www.atesa.es