The crisis has its advantages in terms of travel: air fares fall, hotel prices plummet, even cruises are cheaper. But car rental is more expensive than ever, according to the New York Times, which says that prices are drastically up on 2008, in some cases by over 70%. And while I don't have hard evidence that the trend is being repeated outside the US, the indicators are pointing that way. Spanish media are clear - car rental firms have greatly reduced the number of vehicles on offer. Diario Sur, for example, has found out that the number of cars available for hire on the Costa del Sol has fallen in the last year from over 40,000 to something like 25,000. The implications are evident: you need to search harder for a good car hire deal, and if you leave it until the last moment, you may end up without a hire car altogether. For July, it is probably too late already.

Spain is about to introduce a driving licence system by points, similar to that in Britain and other countries. The difference is that Spanish authorities will subtract instead of add - Spanish licences will initially have 12 points, or 8 in the case of newly qualified drivers. Driving offences will result in points being deducted, and a licence with zero points will be invalidated.

In a survey of drivers' knowledge carried out in 12 European countries, Spanish drivers came in next to last, only Slovenians being shakier. But if you are a UK driver you have no reason for smugness: British drivers came in tenth (considering the awful reputation of Portuguese roads, Portuguese drivers emerged in a remarkably good light, in third place after the Germans). And the EuroTest consortium's website does not even spare the top-scoring Austrians from criticism: it concludes that "We all think we are better drivers than we actually are." Read more, or see Spain and Portugal for Visitors' tips on Driving in Spain.

British passenger transport giant National Express and the family-owned Spanish bus company ALSA (Automóviles de Luarca, S.A.) are holding talks with a view to a possible merger. Such a merger would produce the largest passenger transport company in Europe, just in time for the EU liberalization of the sector scheduled for 2006. Find out more about Spanish and Portuguese bus companies, or read on.