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Want to see the sights in style? Rent a Vespa

Vespa

If you want to look like you’re from out of town, hop on a tour bus or, better yet, a Segway. But to play it a little cooler (no disrespect intended to said Segway), a scooter’s really the way to go. Conveniently, EagleRider has added Vespa and Piaggio scooters to its motorcycle-rental fleet, which until now has been primarily populated by Harley-Davidsons, Hondas and BMWs. Earlier this month, the motorcycle-rental company began renting out scooters at its stores in Los Angeles, Las Vegas, San Francisco and Orlando, Fla.

Scooters are a fun, cost-effective and time-saving way to zip around a city and see the sights. Fuel efficiency depends on the model as well as other factors including number of riders and rate of speed, but the 150cc Vespa GTS, for instance, gets 65 to 70 mpg, according to Vespa USA.

And don’t forget about ease of parking. In a city like San Francisco, for instance — when I lived there, I was a proud scooter owner — there is no better way to zip around efficiently while avoiding the typical headaches that come with seeking parking, which is scarce.

Cost: Rentals of Vespa scooters start at $39 per day (pre-tax) and come with helmets and unlimited miles. Jackets and insurance are available as add-ons. Note that, to rent a scooter, you must be 21 years old and licensed to drive a motorcycle.

Contact: EagleRider, (888) 817-7660

- Susan Derby, Special to the Los Angeles Times

[Photo: EagleRider]

This entry was posted on Wednesday, October 22, 2008 at 3:00 pm by Susan Derby and is filed under Florida, Las Vegas, Los Angeles, San Francisco. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a comment, or trackback from your own site.

3 Comments on “Want to see the sights in style? Rent a Vespa”

Craig Says:
October 23rd, 2008 at 4:47 am
I love Vespas too, but don’t be too quick to say no to a Segway either. I own a Vespa AND a Segway, and they are both great, and my Segway gets 24 miles to a charge and is really cheap to recharge, about 10 cents. I can take the Segway places that the Vespa isn’t allowed, and it’s much safer to ride on the sidewalks on my Segway a lot of times. I just don’t feel that safe on the Vespa in a lot of situations.
Chris Miles Says:
November 25th, 2008 at 7:32 am
Jupiter’s Motorcycle Rental NYC will be accepting reservations for the Spring of 2009 at the beginning of next year.

In addition, Jupiter’s will be offering cross country trips from NYC to LA in the Fall of 2009.

Finally, there will be special rental pricing for local residents who want to get out on a motorcycle regularly without having to own a bike,

For more information about motorcycle rentals in new york city please contact chris@jupitersnyc.com.
Vespa Rider Says:
January 20th, 2009 at 10:55 am
Hi,

Just thought I’d point out that it’s $39/day for a 50cc Vespa which will barely go 35mph downhill… they also don’t discount for a weekly rental.

A 150cc-250cc starts at $69/day and the MP3 starts at $85/day.