Is there an economical way to have a car for six months in England?

My wife and I plan to spend six months in England, basing ourselves for one to two months in various villages and towns, and taking our time to explore. A car would be handy. What are the best and most economical options for having a car for that length of time?
S. Ryan, Wahroonga, NSW

A car is going to be essential, and the answer depends on your budget, how much driving you’re planning and whether convenience or lowest cost are priorities. Major rental companies such as Enterprise, Sixt, Avis and Hertz usually offer long-term hires by the month. These are very convenient since they come with service backup and roadside assistance.

A lower cost option is a short-term lease from a dedicated provider or a dealer program that offers fixed-term contracts such as Flexed or Flexilease. Either Renault Eurodrive or Citroen EuroPass will put you behind the wheel of a brand-new vehicle at a very reasonable cost, however these are left-hand drive vehicles and less than ideal for driving in the UK.

We are a couple in our late 60s, travelling to Italy, planning to fly into Milan then spend about a week based in a smallish town near the mountains to do day walks. Then we head to Bologna for a week and finally three weeks in Sicily. We would like to use public transport but maybe hire a car for a couple of days in Sicily. Any suggestions re itinerary?
M. Hollins, Helensburgh, NSW

There are several outstanding possibilities in northern Italy, starting with Varenna or Bellano on the shores of Lake Como, both easily accessible from Milan by a combination of train and ferry. They’re both small, charming lakeside towns on the Sentiero del Viandante, a hiking route of about 70 kilometres, which goes along the eastern shore of Lake Como.

At several points, the trail intersects with towns on the lakeside ferry route or on the Lecco-Colico-Sandrio railway line, which makes it possible to walk the trail in short sections. If you want slightly more rugged walks in awesome scenery, the village of Cogne in the Aosta Valley is the base camp for Gran Paradiso National Park.

From the village a spiderweb of walking trails radiates across the hillsides, from gentle strolls to tough climbs that throw down a challenge to legs and lungs. For Bologna you do not need a car, and there are plenty of short tours that will take you to factories where balsamic vinegar and Parmigiano Reggiano are made.

From Bologna you can easily make day trips to Modena, Ravenna and even Parma by train. In Sicily, a car will magnify your opportunities for exploration. Start with four nights in Palermo then pick up your hire car and drive west to spend three nights at Trapani and the Egadi Islands, and take the cable car to medieval Erice. Drive south-east from here to visit the incredible ruins of Agrigento over two nights followed by a journey through the interior to Villa Romana del Casale, the remains of a Roman villa with beautiful frescoes.

Continue to Syracuse and stay four nights on the adjoining island of Ortygia, a glorious baroque city from where you can make short trips to explore the towns in the south-east, including Noto, Ragusa and Modica. Drive north along the coast to Taormina and use this as a three-night base with a guided walk on Mount Etna and a tasting session of the red wines grown on ancient lava flows. Take a ferry from Milazzo to visit the Aeolian Islands and spend your remaining time on Lipari, with ferry trips to other islands including Stromboli.

Return to Milazzo and finish your Sicilian journey by driving west along the coast to return your hire car at Palermo.

I’d like to do a tour of China’s major attractions such as the Great Wall, the Terracotta Warriors, a Yangtze River cruise and Shanghai, including time in Tibet. Can you suggest any tour companies that offer a China Tibet tour, preferably one that spends time in Tibet outside Lhasa?
P. Martina, Warrnambool, Vic

Several tour operators offer the highlights of China and Tibet beyond Lhasa including Gyantse, Shigatse, Everest Base Camp region, Yamdrok Lake and other plateau landscapes. Melbourne-based Intrepid Travel has various tours of China which visit the places on your list, and could be combined with their “Tibet: Beijing to Kathmandu Overland” trip, a 15-day tour from Beijing to Kathmandu that spends eight days in Tibet.

G Adventures has an 18-day Best of China & Tibet tour which starts in Beijing and ventures beyond Lhasa to finish in Kathmandu. WindhorseTour is another operator with tours that combine China and Tibet. For a more immersive cultural experience, Tibet Vision Tour is based in Lhasa and also offers combined itineraries covering China as well as Tibet.

We plan to travel for two weeks in Ireland on a self-drive trip. The flight to either Dublin or Belfast requires two stops, so we’re thinking of a stopover in Europe that can allow us to then fly directly to Ireland. Any recommendations?
D. Smith, Epping, NSW

You can have your pick of just about any capital city in Europe. Almost without exception, capital cities would have non-stop flights to Dublin, although less often to Belfast. My top five stopover cities would be Vienna, Amsterdam, Milan, Paris and Madrid. The airline you choose to fly with to mainland Europe might have codeshare flights to Ireland, which you could arrange yourself on a multi-city booking. If not, book a separate onward flight to Ireland from your stopover city.

Travel advice is general; readers should consider their personal circumstances