If you want to drive a self-drive hired minibus, the first thing to check is whether you have category D1 on your driving licence.

If you passed your car driving test before the 1st January, 1997, then you should have D1 on your licence and can drive minibuses with up to 17 seats.

If you passed your car test after that date, you probably won’t have D1 entitlement, unless you have taken an additional minibus driving test since then.

Despite this, the law does allow people without D1 entitlement to drive minibuses up to 17 seats under certain circumstances.

The problem is that most minibus hire companies require drivers to have D1 entitlement – even if they might be legally allowed to drive the minibus without it. The only possible solution to this problem is to ring around local, independent hire companies who might be more flexible.

The other choice, if you want to drive minibuses regularly – for a sports or social club, perhaps – is to take your minibus driving test and have category D1 added to your licence.

It’s that time of year again – “Mum, please can we go to Alton Towers/Drayton Manor/A N Other Theme Park?” Perhaps you and your friends are planning a day at the races?

Whatever kind of day out you are having, you’ll need to consider transport arrangements.

Public transport often doesn’t work out very well and although using several cars is often an option, it’s not very cost efficient and means several people have to drive and you can’t travel together – not ideal.

One option that often works out better is minibus hire, which comes in two flavours:

• Self-drive minibus hire
• Minibus with driver hire

Both of these options have pros and cons – the right choice depends partly on whether you have someone in your group who is licenced and happy to do all of the driving (many hire companies require drivers of minibuses with more than 9 seats to have category D1 on their driving licence).

If you are not sure about driving or simply would like to have someone else do the hard work, then a minibus with driver hire is probably the best option. This is basically like hiring a minibus taxi for the day – to take you there and then bring you back again. It will cost a little more, but give you a much more relaxing and simple day.

Summer weddings are always popular and are very often preceded by a stag or hen night!

If you’ve drawn the short straw and are in charge of organising the evening, then you will need to give some thought to transport.

Trains, taxis, public buses and feet(!) are all solutions that can work well but one of the best options is often minibus hire – either self-drive or with a driver.

Minibuses can seat up to 17 people (including the driver) – any more than this and it becomes a bus or coach, requiring a professional driver with a suitable licence.

There are pros and cons to hiring a minibus with a driver:

Pros

• You don’t have to collect or return the minibus from the hire company
• No one has to stay sober!
• You don’t have to park the minibus or navigate your way to unfamiliar locations
• You may not have anyone in your party who is comfortable with driving a minibus
• You may not have anyone with the right driving licence entitlement to drive a minibus
• It’s not your responsibility if something goes wrong or you have a bump

Cons

• Obviously it will cost a little more as you are paying for a driver
• You will be asked for a pre-planned route
• If you are staying away for a night and want to keep the minibus, you will have to pay for the driver’s room, too

Overall, I’d say it depends what you’re doing. If you are heading away for a long weekend where you won’t be driving much, then a self-drive minibus makes much more sense. If you’re going to be touring local towns for a big night out, then a minibus with a driver is a much better option.

Click here for a SELF-DRIVE minibus hire quote

Click here for a minibus WITH DRIVER quote

The 2010 World Cup is about to start and some lucky football fans will be travelling to South Africa to see all the action. Many, many more will be gathering in pubs and clubs across England to watch their team play – no doubt with the help of a few pints of ‘refreshment’ to keep their throats well lubricated!

If you’re planning on travelling to South Africa in a group, then you may need a minibus to take you to the airport. Hiring a minibus with driver for airport transfers for four or more people often works out to be cheaper than airport car parking – especially if you are going to be away for more than a week.

Staying At Home? Don’t Rely On Des – Get A Professional

If your world cup plans involve staying closer to home and meeting up with friends and family at a local pub, the chances are that some of you will still need to drive to get there – raising the problem of not being able to have a drink with the game.

One alternative is to hire a minibus with driver to take you to and from the pub – that way, everyone gets picked up and dropped off together and you can rely on a professional driver to take care of the driving – leaving you free to unwind with a beer.

Remember – the police will be on the lookout for drink drivers after big England games. Unfortunately, they know that some people will take the chance on having a few beers and then driving home – despite the possible consequences. Make sure you’re not one of those people – book a taxi or minibus instead or make sure you’ve got a designated driver you can trust.

The end of the school summer term is always a time when teachers and students like to get out of the classroom a little bit – often away from the school altogether on day trips. If you’re thinking of organising school trips and will need to hire a minibus, then we’d recommend making your bookings well in advance.

Most hire companies have fairly limited availability of minibuses and they can soon get booked up at popular times, especially the larger 15 and 17-seat minibuses that are ideal for school use.

Click here for a minibus hire quote

To learn more about minibuses and driving licence requirements for minibuses, visit our minibus hire guide.

The recent disruption to European travel has meant that rail operators, coach companies and cross-channel ferry services have all been at full capacity recently.

We’ve certainly seen a boost in the level of interest in minibus hire over the last few days, with people realising that for groups of people (up to 15 or 17) travelling within the UK, hiring a minibus makes perfect sense and is cost effective, too.

You can find a minibus rental branch close to you and get an instant quote by using our minibus hire search facility – click here to get started.

If your company offers self-drive minibus hire, then we may be able to help.

MyLocalVanHire.co.uk started out as a van hire site but has expanded into minibus hire. We currently rank #1 in Google for the search term ‘minibus hire’ and have a rapidly expanding minibus hire branch database.

Here’s how it works. We list your branch details, website address and the types of minibus you rent (e.g. 9, 12, 15 & 17 seat) in our database.

When visitors to MyLocalVanHire.co.uk enter their location into our minibus hire search engine, they are shown a map with a list of all the minibus hire locations within a certain radius.

They choose the one they want, click on the link and are transferred to the hire company’s site – hopefully yours.

If this sounds useful to you, then visit our advertising page for more information or contact us direct by emailing info@mylocalvanhire.co.uk.

Be quick – we are currently offering an introductory rate for minibus hire directory listing of just £15 per year – but this won’t last for long.

It may not quite be the festive season yet – but that’s no excuse for not organising some group trips out with workmates, family or friends.

UK car and van rental company Sixt is currently offering some great deals on minibus hire to help cut the cost of travelling in groups of up to 15 people.

You can now hire a 15-seat minibus for just £175.50 per weekend - and Sixt’s definition of a weekend is pretty generous. You can pick up your minibus from noon on Friday and you won’t have to return it until 9am on Monday. That’s perfect for long weekends away – such as stag and hen weekends, outdoor sports and camping and trips to big events with a night away thrown in.

This deal is only valid until the 30th November 2008 – so if you’d like to get a minibus hire quote from Sixt then click here to get started.

Alternatively, visit our minibus hire section to learn more about driving and hiring minibuses and to search for a Sixt minibus hire location close to you.