For $126 would you rent a car?

[puffkin]

Absolutely. We will NEVER do Disney without a car again. Each trip I have found the busses more and more stressful. I just love the convenience of being in control of my own transportation.

We too were resistant at first (10+ trips without), but now we will never go back to no car.

 

[MikeP22]

Just curious, but any chance they offer better parking spots to guests staying on property?

 

[robinb]

I would also rent a car. I have stayed onsite without a car, but I like being able to come and go as I please.

Just curious, but any chance they offer better parking spots to guests staying on property?

Sorry, no. You can park closer to the park entrance if you book your vacation through AAA. They will give you a special pass for their "Diamond Parking" area.

 

[las3888]

Yes - we love having the car! It's worth every penny!

I would also love to know the codes you have and/or what timeframe you are booking!!!!

 

[Momof4DisneyLuvrs]

Yes - we love having the car! It's worth every penny!

I would also love to know the codes you have and/or what timeframe you are booking!!!!

Yes, please share!!!

 

[mdsoccermom]

I would not. You have to pay for insurance, gas and parking at parks. Adds up and you don't need it!

Plus++++ I love the buses there.

People actually pay for the insurance with a car rental?

And if you are onsite your parking is free.

 

[tuckerkeys]

Yup! We always rent a car - esp when it is cheap! My next trip for 7 days via national I got a midsize car for $77! With all the taxes and fees it's $124!!! there are some great coupons for national on mousesavers dot com. I got a $35 off one and also was able to get a discount of $12 just for being an emrald isle member...

 

[lisaross]

thats how we feel, BUT we never take a taxi anywhere so i guess that could make a differnece if they r planning on using one

I, personally, would not rent the car. One of the reasons that we go to Disney is that we can have a break from driving. We enjoy not having to drive ourselves.

 

[rigs32]

I always used to use ME and the busses. This last trip we rented a car. We had the free dining plan and used the car to eat at many resorts that would have taken hours to get to by bus. We rode the buses to MK (to avoid the TTC) and Epcot on the day we drank around the world. I am now a convert.

I signed up for easy check in through Alamo, so I had my rental agreement in hand before the luggage came out into the claim area. We chose any of the cars in our row and were off.

Also a help with mugs. I would walk over to fill them in the morning, we'd finish our tea in the car on the way to a park. Then at the end of the day, one of us would get dropped off at the food court to fill them for in room drinks, then drive back to our far flung room. I would not have enjoyed our otherwise quiet and isolated location if we didn't have a car.

 

[sdzimm]

I was not going to rent a car, because it is my first solo trip, and I wanted to enjoy the whole trip as an adventure.

But after hearing the low price you were quoted, I figured what the heck.

After playing with multiple codes, I was able to rent a 4 door for 3 days May12-May 15th. I worked the price down from 176 to 112.05.

Now to work it into my budget

 

[Thumperr]

Without a doubt for that price rent the car!

That! then again, I would never go again without a car, it's so much easier, also to and from the parks.

 

[labdogs42]

I love having a car at Disney. For that price, it is a no-brainer. Get the car, you won't regret it. And, parking is free because you're staying on-site.

 

[alyssa810]

I'm another "rent the car!" person! The convenience of having your own vehicle is so worth it. If you're the type who likes to vacation from driving, you can still take the Disney transportation too. We've often taken the boats to DTD or around the resorts, then taken the bus back (but we usually skip the bus)...we too did one trip onsite without a car -it was our first and last time doing that! The convenience is well worth the added cost, and we too have consistently got rates less than $130 from the major rental companies. Getting the rates down daily is like a game for my DH - he loves the challenge. Our current ressie started out over $200 and now it's down to about $125 for 6 days. Don't let the price scare you! Rent a car!

 

[patsal]

Rent it, the busses get worse for us every year. I would not hesistate at that rate. Taking the buses sounds all good until you waste an hour getting to the parks and now they are saying allow 2 hours for transportation to get you to your restaurant of choice---totally easier to just have a car. Plus you are not captive you can eat off site, visit the outlet malls and get back to your hotel on your terms! Nothing worse than cramming onto the already crowded bus with kids that can barely keep their balance while standing when the bus speeds around the corner, or waiting for the third bus to finally get you back to your resort an hour after the park closes!

 

[SarahKate]

Oh my gosh, that's a wonderful rate. DO IT. We rented a mid-size SUV in mid-February and it was about $250 for the same length of time and I thought that was a good deal!!!

We never do the insurance, we don't do ANY of the extras. As far as gas, we use no more than one tank of gas and that's even with a trip to the beach one day.

On our first trip, we used buses. On all four other trips we have driven ourselves or rented. NEVER will we not rent a car or have our own car. It's just not how we want to spend our time.

Many people prefer not to drive while on vacation, but I guess I don't really understand that. For us, it's truly not a big deal and the advantages make it worth it.

One tip - when you check in to get your car, they may try the bait-n-switch on you. For example, we were supposed to have a Jeep Cherokee or something in that range. When we checked in, they said that we could upgrade to a mini-van for X dollars a day. We said thanks but no thanks. So they got us all set, told us which parking spot to go to, and wouldn't you know it - we got a MINI-VAN. It was a Kia Sedona and we really liked it, so we weren't disappointed about not having an SUV. But it's just the fact that had we said yes that we wanted to upgrade, we'd be paying a lot more for something they were going to give us REGARDLESS. Grr.

 

[jgates]

$114.48 is the total as of today again.

When I first started checking a few months ago it was near $400. Then about 2 weeks ago we were at $185. Then it dropped 2x in the last week.

With all of my playing the best codes I had for National were 6600442 (AirTran Code - if you want to be safe you can register for an AT account online - I have one already) & the $35 off a weekly rental thru May (via e-mail code but I think it is the same one that is showing on Mousesavers right now - ND8578ADT (requires 5 days & Sat nite keep)).

Other codes such as Walmarts, etc were running only a 10% discount vs. the 15% (I think) with mine. So they were just a tad higher.

My rental is 5/10 to 5/16 (supper time to lunch time).

I have Emerald Aisle membership (actually executive) so I can just 'pick' a car from the EA or Ex Aisles as long as I book a mid-size. (Executive actually allows you to guarantee book a higher level of car & on the final page it will reduce the rate to the mid-size rate - I have pre-booked the Full Size at the mid-size rate). Emerald Aisle also allows you to bypass the lines - go directly to the EA & pick out your car & head to the gate. They also save your preferences so you aren't getting hit up for insurance, etc. Bypassing the line is the best part. EA is also nice because other family members (or co-workers traveling with) can also drive the car when they are traveling with you (and you don't have to list them & pay for add'l driver).

Tip from my insurance agent:
1 - Take a snapshot of all of the available cars there (just pop a couple off on your digital camera). If you do have an accident & the company wants to charge a daily fee for loss of use, you have the proof that you were not hindering their sales, as there are tons of cars still available. She said this sometimes will get the rental agency to just 'drop' this issue.

I know my insurance will cover it but I have also signed up for American Express's policy - if you use your AE card to pay they will charge $25 to your card for a policy - doesn't matter how many days you are renting for (think it goes up to 30). This just gives me a bit of extra 'comfort' of my own, although my own agent says we should be fine, and if I use my MC, I also have some type of automatic coverage on there. I figure the $25 flat fee just makes me feel better.

Just have to remember to have some cash for the tolls. We are staying on-site so obviously no parking fee. And we won't be wandering all over so probably 5 gallons of gas tops.

Always check your gauge when you get in the car. You KNOW that the previous renter is not going to have bothered to fill it up all the way. If it is not full, make sure the gate attendant notes it. One trip in LV I had to put 5 gallons of gas in to fill it & I only drove 30 miles. Last trip my gauge was less than half full. I noted it when I got to the gate & he entered into the computer to bring back empty. Told me to use up as much gas as I could because I could just bring it back empty. I thought that was very nice of them. Made up for the extra gas the time before.

DD does not want to take a car to the parks, but if I can get a AAA pass, I told her we will take it on days we are hopping so we can come & go without waiting for busses. If we are just going one park open to close we will probably just take the bus.

Now if I could just squeeze in time for a trip to Fuddruckers too............

 

[jgates]

AND TONIGHT'S UPDATED TOTAL:

$98.44

Can you seriously believe that for a 5 day car rental? After the $35 coupon code, the actual base rate is $57.13 before taxes.

 

[aprilgail2]

I would not. You have to pay for insurance, gas and parking at parks. Adds up and you don't need it!

Plus++++ I love the buses there.

Who buys the insurance through there?????
Parking is free at parks!!

I would rent a car in a heartbeat- I actually never NOT rent a car- I HATE HATE HATE the buses there- going from one resort to another can kill an hour and a half! Hop in the car and you are there in five minutes!!
I want to leave the park when I want to leave it and not have to wait on a bus-even just to run back to the room for a quick break and then get right back to the park is a pain on the buses--its all much easier in a car!

 

[Karlzmom]

For $126 I'd rent the car even if it sat in the hotel parking lot for the week! Seriously, the convenience of getting to and from the parks alone...plus the easy MCO/WDW/MCO make it a no brainer. Add in any non-disney locations and its gravy. Great rate, have a great time.

 

[rigs32]

AND TONIGHT'S UPDATED TOTAL:

$98.44

Can you seriously believe that for a 5 day car rental? After the $35 coupon code, the actual base rate is $57.13 before taxes.

I can. I once worked a weekly rental down to $76 including taxes during January. It was cheaper than hotwire or priceline.