Car Rental from LAX / CAA or Other Discount

[Mama Bear Me2]

Hi All,


SORRY IN ADVANCE if you see this post twice.


I will be posting my questions on the Canadian Travel Planning Forum AND the Disneyland Forum since I’m certain many Canadians will most likely check one (if not both) of these Forums. Thanks for your kind understanding and patience!


We are planning to visit in July for about 3 weeks. We will be spending time with relatives and also at Disneyland. Therefore, we would like to pick up a rental car at LAX upon our arrival.


NOTES:


· For ease of convenience (recall we are spending time with relatives), we are only interested in renting a car (no public bus, uber, taxi etc.).


· We would like to pick up and drop off rental at LAX (again convenience) although I’m aware that rates would probably be cheaper for an “off site” (non-LAX) rental location.


· We will be using Disney’s Parking Lot Shuttles (familiar with them as we’ve used them once in the past). Thanks!!



QUESTIONS:


1) Any recommendations on which car rental company to use?


2) How was their service?


3) How was their pick up shuttle service from LAX departure area to car rental office (specifically how long was the wait for the shuttle to the car rental office AND were the pick up shuttles frequent)?


4) Which car rental companies offer CAA discount? Do we just show our CAA card upon check-in to get discount?


5) Any tips on how to get “other” discount codes? Are these usually better than the CAA discount? Can we combine these “other” discount codes with our “CAA” discount?


6) Any tips on how to get best rate?


7) Any tips on how best to check rates for different car rental companies?


Lots of questions! Please answer what you are able to!


BIG THANKS again for your kind input and help! Have a great day!

 

[Susie63]

I am not sure about a CAA discount. I always rent through Costco. They have the best prices and second driver is free. Their prices always drop closer to your date. I rebook at the cheaper rate and cancel the old reservation. No penalties. My mini van rental dropped from $1400 to $600 for 2 weeks last year in Florida. All car rental companies are off site I believe. They have busses to transport you from the airport to the off site location which is just a couple of kilometers away. At the airport you will collect your luggage and go outside stand under the sign that says rental cars. It does not take long for a bus to come. I don't think I have waited more than 15 minutes. I have rented from several companies. They are all comparable. Very friendly,clean and fast. Make sure you take a photocopy of your insurance card from your personnel vehicle here in Canada. California has different liability laws that will not be covered under your credit card insurance.

 

[Mama Bear Me2]

I am not sure about a CAA discount. I always rent through Costco. They have the best prices and second driver is free. Their prices always drop closer to your date. I rebook at the cheaper rate and cancel the old reservation. No penalties. My mini van rental dropped from $1400 to $600 for 2 weeks last year in Florida. All car rental companies are off site I believe. They have busses to transport you from the airport to the off site location which is just a couple of kilometers away. At the airport you will collect your luggage and go outside stand under the sign that says rental cars. It does not take long for a bus to come. I don't think I have waited more than 15 minutes. I have rented from several companies. They are all comparable. Very friendly,clean and fast. Make sure you take a photocopy of your insurance card from your personnel vehicle here in Canada. California has different liability laws that will not be covered under your credit card insurance.

SUSIE63:

THANK YOU for your info! Good tip about bringing a copy of Canadian Car Insurance ... never did that before but probably a good idea to do so.

Just a note re: Costco ... I never booked through them before BUT when I called to inquire about car rentals the agent said since I was Canadian to "make sure" I booked the car rental via Costco.ca (for Canadian Members) and NOT via Costco.com (for American Members).

Reason: Canadians were subject to "different terms & conditions" than the American members.

The agent mentioned that if a Canadian booked through the Costco.com site instead of the Costco.ca site that our car rental could potentially be "not" allowed when we went to pick up. I mentioned that the Costco.ca site seemed to have higher prices. She didn't have an explanation for this but reiterated that it was important that Canadians book through the ".ca" site.

FYI: when I get info like this I usually will call at least another time and confirm the info given to me with another agent ... haven't done so yet so cannot confirm whether or not the above info is correct or not. I'm just relaying what I was told when I called Costco that one time.

Has any other fellow Canadian been advised the same info as I was? Please share if you can! Thanks!