Budget Car Rentals

[prymsu]

I switched to Budget this last trip, and virtually there was no line or a bunch of folks waiting for a shuttle there when we returned the car, so we were able to catch a shuttle right away.

The location is only a couple blocks from the Radisson. This worked very well, and I am glad that we made the switch.

 

[ArthurAmish]

I too have booked Budget for a rental car. There doesn't seem to be any add on charge for picking the car up at MCO and dropping off in Cocoa Beach, and vice-a-versa.

2 questions - Are the cars located in the adjacent parking garage at MCO, or do you need to take a shuttle? #2-We have reservations for the night before at the Radisson at Port Canaveral. Is the Budget location within easy walking distance?

 

[prymsu]

Cars are on site at the airport parking garage. You will not need to take a shuttle so this is a big plus.

Also, it is within walking distance of the Radisson. It is on the same side of the road and just a couple blocks further south from there. It worked out really great. AND the price was cheaper than Avis.

 

[mkauffman]

We rented our van from Budget at MCO in November. It went without a hitch! The garage where the cars are parked is just a short walk from the terminal and we had no problems.

Michelle

 

[disgirl]

Hi! Just wondering: when and if we do our cruise in 2005, I was thinking of flying into Orlando spending one night there and then driving a rental to the Budget terminal to return the car before the cruise. I thought we would rent a car on our return from the cruise and head back to Orlando for a couple of days. I see from your posts that the Budget car rental is close to the Radisson, but how close is that to the port? Has anyone done this without staying at the Radisson? Any advice or suggestions are appreciated. Thanks.

 

[Grumpy's Mom]

We cruised last week and picked up a car at MCO two days before the cruise, drove to WDW for those days, dropped the car off in Port Canaveral - have to shuttle, but no problem.

The only problem with our whole vacation was on the return - there were not enough drivers at the time we disembarked (9:02 a.m.). So we waited for the second van. The second van came, and instead of stopping at the canopied line, he stopped about three car lengths before it and picked up a family who had not been waiting in line (we had waited 20 minutes). I pointed this out to the driver, and he told me he could not kick them off. We were in the process of loading our luggage, and had loaded 5 suitcases onto the van when the other family got in. Someone standing in line behind me saw what had happened and told me to get in the van and get the paperwork done while the rest of the family waited for the next van. He actually went over to the driver and told him I was getting on, and the driver left!! Was I HOT???

I called the Budget Office at Cocoa Beach, and spoke with a nice young man. By the time I got a hold of him (after being transferred to their national reservations several times) the first van had arrived. I heard the van driver tell the person I was speaking to that I had better check that my luggage was out on the side walk when I arrived to make sure it had not gotten mixed in with the other family's luggage-- can you just imagine my response to that???? I told the young man I spoke with that it was the driver's responsibility to check my luggage, since he took it without my consent, and transported it back to the office.

Needless to say, when we finally arrived (costing us about an extra hour of our five hours we had available before our flight) the young man had streamlined everything for me and we had no wait.

I am going to be copying this to the Florida GM of Budget - as this was the only glitch in our whole vacation.

I would reserve with budget again, as it was a very good price for the holiday week, but make sure to watch where the vans stop and load.

To the other family that got on before us, we hope you go to where you needed to go on time - as that was about the rudest thing I have seen in a long time.

 

[mthurn]

Can't you let your family sit & relax in the port, while you take the Budget shuttle by yourself, then come back in the car to pick up the family & luggage?
Same thing to start the cruise -- drop off family & luggage at the port, then return the Budget car and take the shuttle back to the port by yourself?

 

[Grumpy's Mom]

Yes - my DH dropped us at port and took the car to Budget and shuttled back over. That all went very smoothly, and we had anticipated the same at the end of the cruise. We initially thought it would save time just to get in the van with our stuff and go - the van was there, but in the end, we could not get in, and could not even send one passenger.

 

[disgirl]

Grumpy's Mom : I am sorry your return trip with Budget was so frustrating. I really hate when things like that happen. My husband would have been really upset if that were us. I am glad it did not happen on your way there as it might have really started your trip in a bad way.
Glad you had an otherwise good trip. How long a shuttle ride to the Budget car rental? Just wondering, how close to the port. Are there other car rental places close to the port as well? Thanks

 

[prymsu]

i think that the pier is three or four miles from Budget. The shuttle ride was a short one. There is also Avis which is a couple blocks away from the Budget office. Dave has a bunch of car rental info listed on his site.

www.dcltribute.com

 

[Grumpy's Mom]

Thanks, Disgirl! I too, was afraid my DH was going to blow a gasket - but he kept his cool better than I did.

The shuttle ride is about 5 - 7 minutes. www.dcltribute.com has a list.

One other thing - look at the Dis board Transportation site. There was a discount code for Budget in September, I believe it was up at the top of the page. I used it - it got me a far better price than anything else I had been able to find - almost 35% lower - and I had absolutely no problem with it when I checked in both times.

Have fun!

 

[disgirl]

Thank you so much for your quick responses. You are the best!! I just hope I remember all this info when it is time to book. LOL. I love dreaming and planning in my mind early, it makes it seem like it is closer than it is. Seriously though, thanks so much. This board has such great people with so much advice.

 

[ArthurAmish]

The aforementioned discount code does give a very good rate for a late April rental. The code is:U054944. Great savings - thanks for the help!