1st Timer: Renting Car

[Jedi5]

Be easy on me please...

Looking to rent a car for the first time. I thought I was ready to go with National but then I see how many other rentals are out there and well,
I'm overwhelmed with info.

Just looking to rent a car for 6 days, get a toddler seat, and be able to have 2 drivers. Nothing fancy, just get me back and forth.

What should I look for in a rental?
I see free gas and unlimited mileage to name a few.

If I can keep all this under $200 that would be even better.

thanks to all

 

[Cruz91]

...Take your own carseat. Most rental companies charge something like $9 per day. Most airlines allow two checked bags per person. You can use one of those 'checked bags' for your car seat, plus you already know how to install it because it's your own!

Also, check mousesavers.com. They have various rate codes which should help you a TON. I got a code on there and have my 12 days in a mini-van for under $400. If I can do that, you should have zero problem getting yours for under $200!

 

[Jedi5]

We thought of brining our own toddler seat but I'd rather just spend the $ if that means less I have to carry around.

Sam's Club site has some good prices.
Has anyone ever used their site?
I can't seem to add a car seat though.

 

[Donald is #1]

Let's see my advice:

1) First, if you are under 25 (you don't really need to answer ), check the rules of the rental car company. I believe that most if not all companies have age restrictions.

2) Since you have a toddler, I would probably stick with one of the on-site companies. Alamo, National, Avis, Budget, and Dollar are on-site. Honestly, it is easy to take a shuttle to the off-site ones, but with a toddler, it is one less transfer that you need to do.

3) Go to mousesavers and find the rental car section. From that site, you can get a free emerald aisle card for National. Also check out mousesavers for other discounts on rental cars.

4) Depending upon how much luggage & carry on baggage that you have, you may want to look at a large car. It is amazing how quickly you can fill up the trunk of a rental car, esp for the trip back to the airport!

Have an awesome time!

 

[WillCAD]

Unlimited milage will be included in any rental from MCO.

Others have already mentioned that MouseSavers.com has a lot of current discount codes and coupons. But the unspoken part is that in order to take advantage of these codes, you will have to try a bunch of them, for a bunch of car companies, and play around with the various combinations.

Another tip is to go back to the rental agency sites every so often and re-check the code combinations, because sometimes the rates will go up or down; if the rate goes down, or if you find a cheaper rate with another company, re-book. I have often cut my rate in half by shaving it down a little at a time and/or switching companies.

 

[KEVD]

If you happen to have an Entertainment Book they have coupons for all the major car rental companies. Alamo and National each had a "One Free Day" coupon. Booking through Alamo I was able to use the "One Free Day" coupon combined with a AAA rate to get a Chevy Trailblazer for 7 days for $178 (includes taxes/fees). And don't bother renting the toddler car seat... bring your own.

On a side note I would highly recommend getting an entertainment book if you don't already have one. It costs around $20 and they have coupons discounts for restaurnats travel, retail stores, etc both locally in your area as well as nationwide. We get one every year and I'd say we end up saving at least $200... probably more We got ours in Nov and we've already saved about $200.

http://www.entertainment.com/discount/multipleEditions.shtml