April 2021 Car Rental Thread

[gharter]

Wow! Will prices come down? I haven't seen prices this high for years and so far they are not dropping.
We are looking at a week toward the end of April and the best price through Alamo is $360 for a week? Not really a deal.

 

[LadybugsMum]

Thanks for starting this thread. I’ve got an intermediate SUV for $394 from Alamo for the second week of April through Costco. I’ve been checking back for price changes but there haven’t been any yet.

 

[Gina-Gina-Bo-Bina]

We just booked our flights for April this evening, and subsequently our rental vehicle.

Initial prices are painful ($424 for a standard SUV, Alamo through Costco) but I am certain they will drop at least somewhat in the next 100 days.

 

[gharter]

Hoping you are correct.
Before we cancelled our October trip, rental prices had not really dropped much at all. Nearly double what we had paid a year before.

 

[Akck]

We just finalized our air travel and I have a standard car through Alamo for $463 for 10 days (via Costco). My hope is the price drops at some point and we can upgrade to a SUV. Covid spoiled us as the mixed reviews on Disney transportation caused us to get a rental in September. The freedom to drive offsite and to the parks, plus being able to remove masks in an air conditioned car was well worth the cost.

 

[LadybugsMum]

Hoping you are correct.
Before we cancelled our October trip, rental prices had not really dropped much at all. Nearly double what we had paid a year before.

i had quite a drop for my Jan rental - $400 down to $187. I canceled it since we’re driving down instead of flying. I did a lot of stalking and checking every week, but it would have been worth it if we had flown. I’m doing the same for our April trip.

 

[gharter]

i had quite a drop for my Jan rental - $400 down to $187. I canceled it since we’re driving down instead of flying. I did a lot of stalking and checking every week, but it would have been worth it if we had flown. I’m doing the same for our April trip.

hope you are right and the prices drop for our April trip.
I was watching for our October trip before we cancelled and prices never really dropped.

 

[katallo]

I think you will see lower prices. We were planning a spring trip and had a car reservation but cancelled it recently (Our prices began to lower slightly this week) We were hopeful the covid situation would be more under control, especially in FL, but don’t see it happening in a few months. As plans change prices will probably go down with less demand.

 

[Gina-Gina-Bo-Bina]

Hoping you are correct.
Before we cancelled our October trip, rental prices had not really dropped much at all. Nearly double what we had paid a year before.

We ended up with an all-in price, including fuel, of $190 for our October trip, and started at right around $450.

For our December trip, we again started in the $400's and ended up still under $300 including the fuel upgrade.

This will be trip #22 for us since 2009, and we have rented a vehicle for 21 of those 22 Orlando vacations. The price has always dropped at least some between that initial booking and our actual departure date. I suppose for the first time for everything, but I'm pretty confident we will see some downward movement of at least some degree prior to April, unless you will be traveling specifically on Easter week.

 

[Gina-Gina-Bo-Bina]

My reservation was down just over $5 today. My midsize SUV is now at $391, Alamo through Costco. Not a big drop but at least its something.

 

[Princess Merida]

Following along...also hoping for April Alamo price drop. Geez these rates are high!

 

[LadybugsMum]

hope you are right and the prices drop for our April trip.
I was watching for our October trip before we cancelled and prices never really dropped.

I think it will depend on which week you are going. The week of Easter will be more expensive. We’re going the week after Easter so I’m expecting the rates to be lower then.

 

[WorldOfPooh]

Wow! Will prices come down? I haven't seen prices this high for years and so far they are not dropping.
We are looking at a week toward the end of April and the best price through Alamo is $360 for a week? Not really a deal.

I think they got rid of alot of cars due to low demand.

This is the type of thing I fear when things go back to normal and demand exceeds supply

 

[jjj444]

Hi we are booked for the 2nd-11th with the end part actually at the parks. I just looked at prices were at $450. Does anyone have any codes or member ID’s to share??

 

[Gina-Gina-Bo-Bina]

Hi we are booked for the 2nd-11th with the end part actually at the parks. I just looked at prices were at $450. Does anyone have any codes or member ID’s to share??

We are getting our best rates through Costco (and for virtually all of our past trips, that has been the case). If you have a Costco membership, log in to the Costco Travel website (its separate from the main Costco website) and compare prices. Remember that Costco car rentals also include a free extra driver, which can be a nice perk and adds even more value.

 

[Gina-Gina-Bo-Bina]

I think they got rid of alot of cars due to low demand.

This is the type of thing I fear when things go back to normal and demand exceeds supply

I agree. And in addition to there being less cars to rent, I think there are more folks who are renting now as we get deeper and deeper into the pandemic. Many posters have commented that they are/were staying onsite but chose to rent a car anyway, because they felt safer doing so versus taking Disney transportation. It has definitely changed the game.

 

[gharter]

I agree. And in addition to there being less cars to rent, I think there are more folks who are renting now as we get deeper and deeper into the pandemic. Many posters have commented that they are/were staying onsite but chose to rent a car anyway, because they felt safer doing so versus taking Disney transportation. It has definitely changed the game.

If that stays true, hopefully they will start adding cars again.

 

[Gina-Gina-Bo-Bina]

If that stays true, hopefully they will start adding cars again.

I suspect they will be very hesitant in adding too many vehicles to their fleet until the Covid effects start to recede for a noticeable stretch. But, that's just my guess.

 

[Akck]

Another thing is that many have made plans to visit, including reserving a car or two. As they get closer to the date, they have second thoughts and delay or cancel their plans. That will increase the supply as we get closer to the month. At least, that’s what we saw for our Nov/Dec rental. Rates stayed high for months then dropped about a month before our trip. Hopefully that will happen again for April.

 

[Gina-Gina-Bo-Bina]

Another thing is that many have made plans to visit, including reserving a car or two. As they get closer to the date, they have second thoughts and delay or cancel their plans. That will increase the supply as we get closer to the month. At least, that’s what we saw for our Nov/Dec rental. Rates stayed high for months then dropped about a month before our trip. Hopefully that will happen again for April.

Agreed.

And just for a very specific point of reference, our last trip was December 5 to 12. Our best rental price was secured on November 10th.

I like to think renting cars teaches me patience lol.