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Mickeyslittlehelper
07-20-2003, 11:30 AM
I have been looking at renting a car at a weekly rate for 2 weeks. I was wondering if people could help me find the best value, tell me past experiences, and give me suggestions?

Thanks,
John

30 DAYS!

parveen50
07-20-2003, 03:10 PM
Hi There,

We've just rented a mini-van for 2 weeks - at end of August.

In searching for the best deal - I found the travel agents to be the most expensive. I then started to look online - and found some reasonable rates - especially at alamo and budget. But I also found it really confusing - having to enter all those specific rate codes, etc.

In fact, most of the specials had a lot of "ifs/ands/ and buts..." In the end, I got the best rate I could find - by simply phoning our local airport location. Plus they were very helpful - I told them I was specifically looking for a mini-van, etc. And they could answer questions like - "Can I take this to California - is it unlimited mileage, Is there an extra charge to have 2 drivers, etc."

I had also phoned the 1-800-lines for a lot of the rental companies - but in general, I didn't find them that helpful. In fact, one of those agents told me to phone my local location - to get all the details. Most (95%) of these locations are owner operated franchises - so terms of rental, etc. can vary widely.

I also have the Entertainment book - and tried using those codes (i.e. free upgrade, etc.) - but I found that most of them didn't work for a longer (i.e. 2 week ) rental.

Anyway - my best advice would be to get on the phone - Good Luck!

parveen50
07-20-2003, 03:12 PM
Sorry for the double post - but I noticed you were from Victoria.

I'm from near Vancouver - and found the best rates at the Vancouver airport.....at Budget.

Also - don't forget to factor in the cost of the taxes - about 15%.

Good luck!!!!

hmbldr
07-20-2003, 06:20 PM
Originally posted by Mickeyslittlehelper
I have been looking at renting a car at a weekly rate for 2 weeks. I was wondering if people could help me find the best value, tell me past experiences, and give me suggestions?

Thanks,
John

30 DAYS!

I recently spent 2 weeks in CA. I checked online several of the major Rental agencies....Hertz, Avis, Budget, Alamo, National...

Also looking for a mini-van, as we are a family of 5 and the added seat arrangements would allow for differnt variations when the kids get under each others skins. The best rates I found were from Hertz using AAA discount. I tried coupon books and specials, etc. Some of the agencies did not have minivans available for our time frame. The smaller ones probably don't have that many of them and they book out early. I was checking 45 days prior. My rate for 2 weeks, with all the taxes and charges and a different dropoff location was $628. A minvan is fairly high up on the rental scale.

When we checked in after landing in S.F......they didn't have a minvan available. :~D Friday afternoon and not a manager to be found. The woman behind the counter was very apologetic and helpful though. She offered me a Ford Explorer, which is one class down, so a lower rate. If I were to stop at any Hertz along the way and exchange it, there would be no charge back to the higher price. In addition, the Explorer had a GPS system installed and I was given that at no additonal cost. My cost for 2 weeks was $570. I was also given a $50 voucher on a future rental.

The GPS system was awesome. We covered over 1100 miles from San Francisco to L.A. City, mountains, back roads, everything. I would never rent a car for a road trip without it ever again. It was just the biggest help, we used it for all sorts of things. My 13 year old loved being copilot!

tjrj
07-21-2003, 08:14 AM
Gosh, I think rental car rates vary as much as airline tickets. I've seen everything from what seemed to me to be hugely overpriced to beyond reasonable. Expedia and Orbitz are 2 sites I use to begin to check prices. And I wouldn't automatically rule out travel agents. On our last trip in June our AAA travel agent saved us over $200 from the rate I was just quoted by Hertz(partner with AAA) by asking if we could delay our pick up of the car by just an hour.

Mary's Disney site(mousesavers.com) has some good tips on rental cars-whether or not one is going to Disney.

robsmustang
07-21-2003, 09:12 AM
i am from surrey bc and i rented my car from avis i found they had the best rate by along shot. i rented a Impalla in may for 15 days drove to disneyland and las vegas my bill was only $445.00 cdn. it also helps to book in advance. i booked almost 1 year in advance for that the took a hundred dollars off.

parveen50
07-21-2003, 05:31 PM
Wow - those are awesome rates!

I'm from Abbotsford - and the best rate I can get is $850 Cdn. for 16 days - and I have tried Avis....and I booked about 6 weeks ahead....maybe I should try again??? Did you book via the 1-800 line or did you call your local office - if you called local, which location was it??

By the way - it's a small world - we're driving to California and Las Vegas as well....Any other tips - i.e. driving time, routes to avoid, etc.

Thanks!!

awinner
07-21-2003, 10:05 PM
ummm...as a car rental guru, you should be checking Enterprise (http://www.enterprise.com) !!!;)

robsmustang
07-21-2003, 10:53 PM
i went into the avis office when i booked mine. i went to the avis location across the street from surrey place mall, you also get a extra 15% off if you are a BCAA member. the Impalla they gave me was brand new i was the first person to drive it. i have also learned to book the car befor the rental place gets there new cars for the year. this last time i drove down i took 2days to get to anaheim instead of the 22 hour straight thru i did 3 years ago. i stayed the night in redding california. that is a 12 hour drive from surrey and the next day i drove another 10 hours to anaheim. one route to avoid is when driving back from vegas don't drive north to reno it will be the most boring day of your life nothing but sand.

mom_rules
08-04-2003, 09:39 AM
Hi all, We are flying in from Toronto, Ontario and I booked a mini-van for the end of September -9 days with Budget at Santa Ana airport for $262.08 plus $20 discount coupon (so $242.08 total).
Try the Budget site to see if they have an internet special for the location you would rent from.

yen
08-04-2003, 10:26 AM
I reserved a mini-van for 9 days at end of September for about $308.00 from Dollar online.