Most chauffeur bookings run from one address to another. Hourly hire works differently. You book a car and a chauffeur for a block of time, and for those hours the car goes wherever you send it. Perth chauffeur companies usually call this as directed hire, and it is the simplest way to cover a day with several stops, an event with no fixed finish time, or a visitor who wants to see the city without planning every leg in advance.
What As Directed Hire Means
With a transfer you pay for a route. With hourly hire you pay for the chauffeur’s time. You can add stops, change the order, stay longer in one place and skip another, and the chauffeur waits with the car while you are inside. There is no second booking to make and no standing at a rank or watching an app when you are ready to leave.
It suits days like these:
- A morning of property inspections across several suburbs, with the car waiting outside each one.
- A shopping day at DFO Perth and Lakeside Joondalup, with the bags left in the boot between stops.
- Medical or specialist appointments where the finish time is hard to predict.
- A race day at Ascot or Belmont Park, or an evening at Crown Perth, with the ride home ready when you are.
- A business day of back to back meetings across the CBD, West Perth and Osborne Park.
How Hourly Hire Is Priced
Swan Chauffeur charges hourly hire per vehicle, not per passenger, with a minimum booking of 3 hours. Rates start at $110 an hour in the Mercedes-Benz E-Class or Lexus ES, $120 an hour in the Audi Q7 or BMW X5, $130 an hour in the Mercedes-Benz V-Class and $150 an hour in the S-Class. A half day or a full day is simply the hourly rate multiplied by the hours you book, and there is no charge for extra stops.
Each booked hour includes 40 km of driving within the Perth metro area, which comfortably covers a normal day of stops around the city. A day that heads well beyond the metro area, such as a trip down to Margaret River, is booked as a fixed price tour instead. Bookings that run between midnight and 6am attract the late night surcharge, and child seats can be added when you book.
How to Plan an Hourly Booking
- Count the hours generously. Add up the time at each stop and the driving between them, then allow a buffer. Extending on the day is possible when the chauffeur is free, but booking the time up front guarantees it.
- Choose the car by passengers and luggage. The sedans seat up to three, the Audi Q7 and BMW X5 take up to six, and the V-Class takes up to seven with room for shopping bags or suitcases.
- Share the plan, not just the first address. Send the list of stops when you book so your chauffeur can plan parking and timing. The order can still change on the day.
- Tell us how the day ends. If it finishes at the airport or a hotel, say so, and the last leg is built into the booking.
Hourly Hire or a Transfer?
If you are going from one place to another and staying there, a transfer is usually the better choice. If you need the car to wait, or you have three or more stops in a row, hourly hire is simpler and often works out cheaper than booking separate transfers, and there is no gap between rides. For longer days out, see our guides to Swan Valley wine tours by chauffeur and Margaret River by chauffeur.
Booking Hourly Hire
Book online by choosing hourly hire on the booking form and selecting the number of hours, or call 1300 818 033 to talk the day through with us. Rates for every vehicle are on the hourly chauffeur hire page.