How to Rent a Car in Rovaniemi (With or Without a Credit Card!)

Post overview: In this post, I will share everything you need to know before renting a car in Rovaniemi. I will discuss what insurance to get, how to rent a car in Rovaniemi without a credit card, how to find the cheapest rates, and more.

I also share my own mistakes with car rental agencies in Rovaniemi, as well as which companies to avoid.

For those of you who are new here, I live in Rovaniemi and before I bought a car, I used rentals! And I have a lot of experience with renting a car in Rovaniemi… both good and bad. In this guide, I share everything you need to know about hiring a car in Rovaniemi.

I include information about how to score the best rental car deals, what type of insurance to get, how to avoid getting scammed, and how to rent a car without a credit card.

Before diving in, I am going to assume whoever is reading this is of driving age and holds a valid driver’s license. If that is you or someone in your travel group, keep reading!

And if you have any questions, comments, or rental car experiences in Lapland, please feel free to share them in the comments (both good and bad).

Why You Should Rent a Car in Rovaniemi

If you are visiting Rovaniemi in summer and hold a driver’s license, a rental car is a fantastic option as it gives you freedom to explore the area.

Are you visiting in late autumn, winter, or early spring and are experienced in winter driving and snowy conditions? Then a rental car is also probably for you.

A rental car gives you a lot of freedom around Lapland and can give you the option to drive into Sweden and Norway, as well as all over Finland. This is great for independent aurora hunting, hikers, and those wanting to explore the areas surrounding Rovaniemi without an organized tour.

Why You Should NOT Consider Renting a Car in Rovaniemi

Are you from somewhere tropical or that doesn’t get snowy weather? Please do not rent a car. I beg you. Don’t like driving in the dark? We have a lot of ‘dark’ in the winter… so many avoid renting a car.

Driving in snowy conditions or with snow/ice on the roads is difficult even for locals and there are too many people traveling here and renting a car without any winter driving experience. Just earlier this year, an Indonesian tourist killed two local women in Norway while driving in winter conditions (he went to jail).

This is too common a problem in Northern Europe, and I highly encourage you to be honest about your winter driving skills and whether or not it is fair of you to put them to the test on our roads here.

I also think that budget travelers should avoid renting a car during the winter months, mostly because the prices are extremely high and that money is better used on tours or taking regional buses between locations.

How to Find the Best Rental Car Deals in Lapland

I have been using the same website for several years to compare rental car rates, and that site is Discover Cars. I have used them in several countries, including across the Nordics as a whole.

The reason I like Discover Cars is that they compare rental car rates, offer affordable full-coverage insurance (although I don’t use it all the time… I explain later in the guide), and also allow you to filter out types of cars and booking conditions with ease. Even though I have my own car in Rovaniemi these days, I still use them when I travel!

How to Rent a Car in Rovaniemi Without a Credit Card

Finally… you can rent cars without a credit card in Rovaniemi with ease. There were always a few companies allowing this, but honestly, it was so hard to get confirmation from the companies. Now, Discover Cars has a filter on their dashboard that allows you to select ONLY companies that allow deposits with a debit card.

This is immensely helpful to many travelers, as I have been emailed this question so many times over the years!

Do be aware that deposits may be larger on debit cards than with credit cards. Sometimes over Є1000. I have found that this price gets knocked down if you book your full-coverage insurance directly through the agency. Do double-check this, however.

Rental Car Insurance

You have two options when renting a car: to get full-coverage insurance at the time of booking or to get it with the rental car agency upon pickup. 

I am going to be completely honest here when I say that I know rental car agencies will ding third-party rental websites for damage to cars. I had a long discussion with a company in the Lofoten Islands a while back about this.

Basically, if there are damages on a car caused by a rental agency’s customer who bought insurance through them directly, they will wait until a third-party company has a booking and charge that company/customer.

The good news is that if you get full-coverage insurance through your third-party company, you won’t have to pay it (or perhaps just the deductible). The bad news is that you still have to deal with it and often pay out of pocket until the third-party agency refunds you.

So why go third-party then? Honestly, it’s way cheaper than booking directly. And if you document every scratch and take videos of the car (including underneath the bumpers), you can often avoid this.

Nevertheless, I have bought insurance through the third-party and directly from the rental car agency, so here are the pros/cons of each:

Getting Full-Coverage with Discover Cars

Getting full-coverage insurance with Discover Cars is cheaper than getting it directly with the rental car agency. Sometimes a lot cheaper! The downside of this is that if there is any damage done to the car by you, you will still have to pay out-of-pocket until Discover Cars issues you a refund.

I have had refunds issued twice by them and both came pretty quickly, and the process was so much easier to deal with than with agencies who never reply back.

Getting Full-Coverage with the Rental Agency

The pros of getting your insurance through the rental car agency are that they are less likely to ding you for damage you didn’t cause (so sad I have to write this).

I have never once been charged by a rental car company that I went directly through for insurance. The cons of getting full-coverage insurance directly through the rental agency is that it can be so much more expensive!

Rental Car Companies to Avoid in Lapland

I have had pretty decent experiences with most, but I had a horrendous experience with Sixt. They tried charging me for damages that I didn’t do over 6 months after I returned the rental car. They apparently tried to email me but messed up my email address.

I literally live down the street from Rovaniemi Airport and gave them a phone number but they never followed up with that, only an email address they typed in wrong.

The reason that this was a big deal is that I was then liable for the damages, not the third party I went through (the claim had to be made within a certain time frame).

I had videos and photos of the car as I picked it up, but they insisted there was damage under the front bumper where usual wear-and-tear would happen. This whole ordeal went back and forth for nearly a year before they gave up after I stated I would get a lawyer.

Anyway, avoid Sixt.

Things to Consider Before You Rent a Car

Some things to consider before you rent a car in Rovaniemi are:

➡️ Let the rental agency know at the time of pickup if you’re driving it across borders. There is usually a small fee of around Є60 or so for this, but you will need to pay it, or you’ll be liable if something happens in the country. You can not drive a rental car from Finland into Russia through the Norway/Russia border.

➡️ Parking in Rovaniemi can be expensive. Factor this into your daily rate to ensure you have enough money to rent a car. Parking on the street will be around Є20/day, give or take. Sundays are free across the city, as is after 6pm daily.

➡️ Many rental cars here are hybrids and pretty decent on gas. There are also e-vehicles you can rent. Don’t worry, this is Finland… e-charging stations are everywhere!

➡️ Cars can be difficult to get going if the temperature is lower than -30C (-22F). I have a special battery and warmer for my car and it was a pain to get it going each day this past winter when it was extremely cold for a long duration!

➡️ You will likely have to pay a deposit to rent a car. This can be pricey if you’re paying with a debit card (can be Є1000+), but on Discover Cars, you can select the filter option for low deposit, which will be helpful in finding one that isn’t so high.

➡️ Winter tires will already be on the car if you are renting within the winter tire season. This is mandatory in Finland. Do be aware that mileage isn’t as good once winter tires are on a car.

➡️ Green Motion isn’t bad. I have rented with them plenty of times. They will ding you if you book rental insurance through a third-party (happened to me!), so I would book insurance directly with them and the rental car through a third-party because it is significantly cheaper.

Renting or Hiring a Car in Rovaniemi FAQ

There are a lot of things to know before renting a car in Rovaniemi. Here are some frequently asked questions… and my answers to them!

Do you have any questions about renting a car in Rovaniemi? Let me know in the comments or feel free to send me a message.

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