Mildura car hire costs: Do I need a car in Mildura?

Mildura car hire is cheap if you take an economy car from the airport rental desks. But to explore the national parks around Mildura, you’ll need a 4WD rental. 4WD hire in Mildura costs at least $100 a day.

The Victorian city of Mildura is best known as a fruit-growing region. Lots of Australia’s table grapes are grown on farms irrigated by the Murray River, along with almonds, stone fruits and anything else farmers can make a profit on.

It’s also, however, a logical base on a Murray River road trip. After stops in Albury, Echuca and Swan Hill, Mildura makes a good final stop in Victoria. Afterwards, you can move on to South Australia and the Mouth of the Murray in the Coorong near Goolwa, before passing through the Fleurieu Peninsula and McLaren Vale on the way to Adelaide.

Do I need a car in Mildura? National Parks

However, Mildura can make for an interesting holiday destination in its own right. This is partly because you can go wine-tasting at several cellar doors, but mainly because there are several fantastic national parks on the doorstep. These include the historically significant Mungo National Park, and the Murray Sunset National Park. The latter is great for Australian wildlife, mallee scenery, pink lakes and camping under the stars. Be warned: The Mildura weather is stiflingly hot in summer.

It’s also possible to visit the Hattah-Kulkyne National Park. Tours go to the Hattah Lakes, but if you want to explore under your own steam, you’ll need a car. Many visitors will simply drive to Mildura from Adelaide (395km) or Melbourne (542km). But it is possible to fly to Mildura and hire a car upon arrival. At Mildura Airport, Hertz, Avis, Thrifty and Budget have counters within the airport building. Hertz also has an outlet in the Mildura city centre.

Mildura car hire deals

Searching two months in advance for Mildura car hire, Australia Travel Questions found car rental from Mildura Airport for from $45.30 a day. This was using the Vroomvroomvroom comparison site, for a week’s rental. The cheapest Mildura car rental deal was for an economy car such as a Holden Spark, via Budget. This also had a 100km per day limit – not much use for exploring the area.

Standard cars were more expensive. The best deal was again through Budget, for a Hyundai Elentra or similar. This cost from $76.32 per day, including a 150km per day limit.

The problem is that four wheel drive vehicles are really needed to explore the national parks around Mildura. And they’re more costly – you’ll pay at least $100 a day for 4WD car hire in Mildura.

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