Trusted Partners
Compare top suppliers
1,700+ Suppliers
Why choose us
Compare offers from all major rental companies at Kristiansand Airport Kjevik.
Leading suppliers ensuring a safe and reliable booking experience.
Cancel or modify bookings easily - no hidden fees.
Our team is ready before, during, and after your rental.
Kjevik is one of the easiest airports in Norway to pick up a car at — the arrivals hall is small, the rental lot is a short walk from the door, and you can be on the coast road within minutes of baggage claim. Here's how to compare suppliers at Kristiansand Airport (KRS), what you'll pay, and everything worth knowing before you drive off into Southern Norway.
The bus into Kristiansand is cheap and frequent, so a rental only pays off if you plan to leave the city grid — and along Sørlandet, that's exactly the point. This stretch of coast is a chain of white-timber towns, skerries and swimming coves that public transport reaches slowly, if at all.
A car turns the whole southern coast into an afternoon's range. Lillesand and Grimstad sit a short hop east; the Lindesnes lighthouse, at the very bottom of the country, is an easy day trip west. With children, cool-boxes and beach gear in tow, loading the boot and going is far less painful than dragging everything onto a coastal bus.
Kjevik also happens to be one of the least stressful airports in Norway to collect a car at. It handles a little over a million passengers a year, the arrivals hall is compact, and the rental lot is a few paces from the door — no shuttle, no multi-storey maze.
Times assume clear roads and no ferry queues.
Everything happens in one building. After baggage reclaim you step into the Arrivals Hall, and the rental counters sit along the same concourse — you won't need to leave the terminal to find them.
Hertz keeps a manned desk on-site; Avis, Budget, Sixt, Europcar and Enterprise/National are also represented at Kjevik, with a couple of budget brands running a short shuttle or meet-and-greet from the forecourt. Once you've shown your licence, card and booking reference, you're handed the keys and pointed to the car — parked in the marked bays a minute's walk outside the terminal doors.
Check the bodywork before you drive off. Photograph any existing scuffs, note the fuel level, and confirm whether the tank policy is full-to-full. For after-hours returns, most suppliers let you drop the keys in a secure box by the desk and leave the car in the return bay — just agree the process at pick-up and take a photo of the parked car and dashboard as your record.
flowchart LR
A["Land at KRS"] --> B["Arrivals Hall"]
B --> C["Your supplier's desk"]
C --> D["Licence, card, booking"]
D --> E["Collect keys"]
E --> F["Car in lot outside"]
F --> G["Check & drive off"]
Figure 1 — The pick-up walk at Kjevik, start to finish.
Rates swing hard with the season — a July family SUV can cost twice a wet October compact. The figures below are typical daily averages across suppliers for a week-long summer booking made a few weeks ahead. Treat them as a planning guide, not a quote.
| Vehicle class | Example model | Average daily | Typical week |
|---|---|---|---|
| Economy | Toyota Yaris | €38 · 430 kr | €245 |
| Compact | VW Golf | €45 · 510 kr | €290 |
| Estate | Škoda Octavia Estate | €58 · 660 kr | €375 |
| SUV | Nissan Qashqai | €72 · 820 kr | €460 |
| Premium | Volvo V60 | €85 · 970 kr | €545 |
| Electric | Tesla Model 3 | €89 · 1015 kr | €560 |
| Luxury | Mercedes E-Class | €130 · 1480 kr | €830 |
| Van (7–9 seat) | VW Caravelle | €95 · 1080 kr | €615 |
Three realistic examples across the classes travellers book most. Prices are illustrative — tap through to see live availability for your dates.
All the majors are represented, though only some staff a permanent desk. The rest hand over from the forecourt or a short shuttle. This is the practical picture rather than a marketing list.
| Supplier | At the airport | Known for | Automatics | Free cancellation |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hertz | On-site desk | Widest fleet, EVs, quick handover | Good stock | On flex rates |
| Sixt | Desk in Arrivals | Newer cars, premium & SUV | Strong | On flex rates |
| Europcar | Desk in Arrivals | Reliable mid-range value | Moderate | Yes |
| Avis | Desk in Arrivals | Business hire, loyalty perks | Moderate | Yes |
| Budget | Desk / forecourt | Lower headline prices | Limited | Yes |
| Enterprise / National | Meet & greet | Service, one-way hires | Moderate | Yes |
Southern Norway is some of the gentlest driving in the country — the dramatic fjord passes are further north and west. Roads here are well surfaced, well signed and rarely crowded outside the July peak. A few local specifics are worth knowing.
Limits run 50 km/h in towns, 80 on rural roads and 110 on the E18/E39 motorway sections. Enforcement is camera-heavy and fines are income-scaled and eye-watering, so the local habit of driving barely at the limit is a good one to copy. Dipped headlights or daytime running lights must be on at all times, and the drink-drive limit is effectively zero at 0.02%.
Norway's tolls are automatic — cameras read your plate and there are no booths. Rental cars are registered to the AutoPASS/Epass24 system, and charges are passed back to you afterwards, usually with a small admin fee per trip. Around Kristiansand the tolls are modest; ask your supplier exactly how they bill so nothing surprises you weeks later.
Petrol and diesel hover around 22–25 kr per litre, so a diesel or an EV pays for itself on a longer trip. Charging is exceptional — Norway has the world's highest EV uptake, and fast chargers line the E18 corridor. Apps like the operators' own or a roaming card make paying painless.
There's no fixed calendar date, but winter tyres are legally required whenever conditions demand them, roughly November to April. Reputable suppliers fit them automatically in season — confirm it when you book a winter trip. In town, marked garages are the simplest option and clearly signed; many hotels arrange guest rates.
A rough plan for the region, roughly west to east. None of these needs more than an easy morning's drive.
The Kvadraturen grid, the fish market at Fiskebrygga and a genuinely good town beach at Bystranda. Park in a garage and walk.
Southern Norway's headline family day out — zoo, theme park and the Cardamom Town village. Closest big attraction to the airport.
Mainland Norway's southernmost tip, where the North Sea meets the Skagerrak. Wild in a storm, and home to an underwater restaurant.
Lillesand, Grimstad and Arendal — a string of white-painted harbour towns made for a slow coastal drive with café stops.
The real reason to have a car. Small signed turn-offs lead to skerry swimming spots the buses never reach — pack a towel and improvise.
Norway's southernmost town and its longest sandy beach at Sjøsanden. A relaxed half-day with the family.
| Destination | Distance | Drive time | Good for |
|---|---|---|---|
| Kristiansand centre | 16 km | 20 min | Base, dining, beach |
| Dyreparken | 11 km | 15 min | Families |
| Lillesand | 25 km | 25 min | Coastal charm |
| Grimstad | 40 km | 35 min | Harbour town |
| Mandal | 45 km | 40 min | Sandy beach |
| Arendal | 55 km | 50 min | Day trip east |
| Lindesnes Lighthouse | 90 km | 1 h 15 | The big drive |
An economy or compact automatic. Cheap, easy to park in the grid, plenty for two people and a couple of bags.
An SUV or estate. You want boot space for beach kit and comfortable seating for the runs out to Dyreparken and the coast.
A premium saloon or EV from Sixt or Avis. Quiet, quick to collect, and simple to expense with a clear invoice.
A 7–9 seat van such as a VW Caravelle. One vehicle beats two hatchbacks on both cost and hassle — book well ahead in summer.
flowchart TD
S["What kind of trip?"] --> C["Couple / city"]
S --> F["Family + luggage"]
S --> W["Winter or gravel roads"]
S --> G["Group of 6+"]
C --> C1["Economy / compact automatic"]
F --> F1["SUV or estate"]
W --> W1["SUV with winter tyres"]
G --> G1["7-9 seat van"]
Figure 2 — A quick way to narrow the class before you filter deals.
flowchart LR
T1["Book 8-12 weeks out"] --> T2["Choose free cancellation"]
T2 --> T3["Re-check price monthly"]
T3 --> T4["Rebook if it drops"]
T4 --> T5["Collect at KRS"]
Figure 3 — The booking timeline that keeps you on the cheapest rate.
Hertz operates an on-site desk, and Avis, Budget, Sixt, Europcar and Enterprise/National are all represented at Kjevik. A few budget brands hand over from the forecourt or run a short shuttle rather than staffing a permanent counter.
You clear baggage into the Arrivals Hall, sort the paperwork at your supplier's desk on the same concourse, then walk out to the marked bays a minute from the door. There's no shuttle for the on-airport suppliers.
You can drive a manual, but most visitors prefer an automatic. Because Norwegian fleets are still manual-heavy, automatics cost a little more and sell out first in summer — reserve one well ahead rather than hoping at the desk.
In the winter season, yes — reputable suppliers fit season-appropriate tyres automatically. Norway has no single mandated date; the rule is condition-based, roughly November to April. If you're travelling in winter, confirm the car is winter-equipped when you book.
All Norwegian tolls are camera-based, with no booths to stop at. Rental cars are registered to the AutoPASS/Epass24 system, and the operator passes the charges back to you afterwards, usually with a small admin fee. Ask your supplier how they invoice so the later bill is no surprise.
Most suppliers allow after-hours drop-off: park in the designated return bay, lock the keys in the secure box by the desk, and photograph the car and dashboard. Agree the exact process at pick-up, since fuel and cleanliness checks then happen the next morning.
A full driving licence held for at least a year, a credit card in the main driver's name for the deposit, and your booking reference. Most suppliers rent from age 21, with a young-driver surcharge under 25. Non-EU/EEA drivers should carry an International Driving Permit alongside their national licence.
If you're staying in central Kristiansand, the frequent airport bus (around 45–55 kr) is excellent value and a car adds little. The moment you plan to reach the beaches, the southern coastal towns or Lindesnes, a rental transforms the trip — that flexibility is what you're paying for.
Landing somewhere else first, or building a one-way road trip? Compare the other airports and read the essentials before you go.
Compare live prices from every supplier at Kristiansand Airport, filter for an automatic with free cancellation, and lock in today's rate — you can always rebook if it drops.
Compare KRS dealsOur articles are meticulously written and fact-checked by our content team.
Learn about our Editorial Policy.Join our environmental initiative by planting a tree for every rental booking.
Every review helps travelers make better choices and contributes to global reforestation efforts. Your story matters for both people and planet.
Book car rentals on the go with our mobile app. Get exclusive deals, manage bookings, and access 24/7 customer support from anywhere.
Scan to download
Available on iOS & Android