Car Rental in Tampa

[jjohns]

What recommendations/warnings do people have with the car rental agencies in Tampa?

We have usually rented from Dollar in MCO - never a problem or much of a wait at the counter. We did rent from Dollar in Tampa the one time we flew in there - car got upgraded to a nice SUV, but the wait at the counter was 20+ minutes (three people ahead, only one clerk).

I have found a decent rate from Alamo in Tampa - their counter is apparently on-site, but then you need a shuttle to get to the lot. Has anyone used them, and does that shuttle add much time or inconvenience either at pick-up or dropoff? (We will be travelling with 4 - me, DW, DS-8, DD-6).

TIA, Jeff

 

[bigsis1970]

Hi I used Alamo in Dec 2001 .. the wait for the shuttle was aprox 15-20 mins then when we got there ( 10 min shuttle ride ) i again waited 15-20 to check in for the car.. I got good service though.. hope this helps you

In Nov 2002 I used Dollar and only had 3 people like you and waited 20-25 minutes for checkin..


michelle

 

[danacath]

It's been about 5 years since we used the Alamo agency at Tampa, so maybe this info isn't current enough for you. Our experience was disappointing and I vowed that I would never use them again. I love getting great deals, but this deal definitely wasn't worth the hassle we went through. We waited and waited for the Alamo shuttle to pick us up, then rode out to the lot where we were about 15th in line. We waited and waited some more. It took us over 2 hours total from waiting for the shuttle until we were in our rental car and on our way. We were exhausted and still had to drive down to Ft. Myers Beach to our resort. Checked in with our 2 small children around 11 PM. ugh

Having said all that, maybe their service has improved since then?? I realize that my bad experience is just one bad experience. Maybe others have fared better than we did.

In Dec. 2001, we used National out of Tampa and were very pleased. It was so conveniently located near baggage claim, and we got a clean, roomy SUV. Hope this helps!

--cath

 

[GAIL HAYDEN]

I have used Alamo in Tampa, waited about 5 mins. tops for the shuttle, a 5-10 min ride ( I did not time it) we have Quick Silver, ran the card in the kiosk and were outta there in less than 5 mins.
I have used them twice total in Tampa and the same scenario applies to both visitis.

In Dec. 2001, we used National out of Tampa and were very pleased. It was so conveniently located near baggage claim, and we got a clean, roomy SUV. Hope this helps!

National is no longer onsite at Tampa, they share space offsite with Alamo.