Best rates on car rentals?

[Kitzka]

I was just wondering what your tips or best practices are for getting the best rates on car rentals.

I will be in Chicago for 9 days with my daughter (and a friend and her daughter)and are looking at getting a car rental. The best rate I could find was about $45 per day. Hoping to find something better but nt sure how to go about it since I have ever rented a car before.

I did check a few places online (like hertz, thrifty, etc) but they were all about the same.
And FYI I was looking for an intermediate size car since it will be 4 people (girls are adult size) and all of our luggage.

Thanks!

Lara

 

[kat3668]

Try this site....http://www.carrentalsavers.com/coupons.html
Ive scored some great deals here!

Also priceline is a good option.. I've gotten a full size for $10 a day.

Heres a tutorial to get you started!

http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=2496606

GOOD LUCK!!!

 

[Kitzka]

Thanks so much kat!

Lara

 

[thelionqueen]

I found the best rates so far at airportrentalcars.com. Had never seen or used them before, but got a really great rate @ MCO in October. Best of luck!

 

[robinb]

I was just wondering what your tips or best practices are for getting the best rates on car rentals.

I will be in Chicago for 9 days with my daughter (and a friend and her daughter)and are looking at getting a car rental. The best rate I could find was about $45 per day. Hoping to find something better but nt sure how to go about it since I have ever rented a car before.

I did check a few places online (like hertz, thrifty, etc) but they were all about the same.
And FYI I was looking for an intermediate size car since it will be 4 people (girls are adult size) and all of our luggage.

Thanks!

Lara

Kat mentioned the place I was going to say. You might also want to try Mouse Savers car rental codes as they often work for cars outside of FL/CA too: http://www.mousesavers.com/rentalcar.html

Will you be staying downtown in Chicago, or out in the 'burbs? I ask because you could easily spend another $50 per night in parking at a downtown hotel. You may not even need a car at all! Both airports connect to downtown by subway or you can take a cab for a lot less than what it costs to rent a car and park it downtown. Cabs are plentiful downtown and the public transportation system is pretty easy to use.

 

[Kitzka]

Kat mentioned the place I was going to say. You might also want to try Mouse Savers car rental codes as they often work for cars outside of FL/CA too: http://www.mousesavers.com/rentalcar.html

Will you be staying downtown in Chicago, or out in the 'burbs? I ask because you could easily spend another $50 per night in parking at a downtown hotel. You may not even need a car at all! Both airports connect to downtown by subway or you can take a cab for a lot less than what it costs to rent a car and park it downtown. Cabs are plentiful downtown and the public transportation system is pretty easy to use.

We are staying out in the burbs. Will be driving up to Milwaukee for a day or two as well as the amusement park up that way.

Thanks

Lara

 

[robinb]

We are staying out in the burbs. Will be driving up to Milwaukee for a day or two as well as the amusement park up that way.

Thanks

Lara

You'll need a car then . Are you going to Great America? I think they are running a deal with $20 off if you bring an empty Coke product.

 

[eduk8r26]

If you have a Hertz Local Edition in your town, check them out. You can get better rates from them. Renting from an airport is often more expensive I have found since they charge a concession fee. Also, if you have Costco, they have good rates.

 

[captainjen]

I am renting from autoslash. I have a weeks rental from budge for a standard car picked up at the airport, that started at $470 and now has been cut to $117! They keep sending me memo's that they have located a better price for me and then automatically rebook me at the better rate

 

[thelionqueen]

I looked at autoslash.com and it seems pretty competetive. It also says that the "published" rate isn't their "slashed" rate and to select car for the price to go down. I did that and the price didnt go down at all..am I doing something wrong?

 

[Ishy]

I like the corporate code available on the mousesavers site so that I can list more then one driver without the additional 10 per day fee. It is a good rate too.

Best advice is, whatever/whereever you book, check on rates at least twice a week with and without disccount or promotional codes. That is how I get my BEST rates - like a mini van for 149 a week, or the Pacifica for 102 for a week. I like thrifties WildCard - always do better then a midsize.

Use a credit card (not debit) and coupled with most car insurers, you should be covered in case of an accident. so no extra insurane.

After renting in Houston, where I soon discovered that the Toll roads are NO CASH - and exiting because I didnt opt for the sticker (oh its on the car, and I am sure the agency pays 1.50 but charges me the *fee*) I would make a point of opting for the sticker and paying whatever it amounts to at the end of the trip. I even called to see if they could just turn add it - would have had to go back to the airport. It's not that hard in Houston or Orlando to detour, just unexpected at the time. Other places I dont know about.

have fun, wish I was going to Disney!
suz

 

[tasha99]

If you are a member of usaa, they have negotiated rates on their website.

 

[captainjen]

I booked my car through Budget and autoslash is finding me a ton of discounts,it may be that there are no discounts available for Hertz, Enterprise etc. Try rebooking with budget