Car Rental opinions?

[tlcdoula]

I am taking my daughter to DL in less than a month and need to start getting things planned. We are staying at the Desert Inn and Suites for 10 nights and have an 8 day park hopper.

We plan on taking a couple of day trips (seaworld and universal) and I am not sure how to work renting a car. We fly into SNA and could rent a car for the 10 days for about $320 or book a shuttle and rent a car just for the days we are not at disney.

Just curious what others have done in the past, is it too much of a hassle to try to rent the car early in the morning to get on the road in time etc I am at a loss over what to do. So little to plan compared to our trip to Disney world a few yrs ago I can't believe I am stressing over this

thanks

 

[FlameGirl]

I would take a cab from the airport, then walk over to Alamo in DTD the morning you want to drive. I would definitely not pay for a car for every day of my trip unless I was using it.

 

[rune_74]

I think you can do better then that with pricline.

 

[starshine514]

I would take a cab from the airport, then walk over to Alamo in DTD the morning you want to drive. I would definitely not pay for a car for every day of my trip unless I was using it.

I concur, especially when you factor in an additional $8/day (plus 17% tax) to park your rental at your hotel.

 

[dalstitch45]

Your Alamo rental is going to be significantly lower in Anaheim than at the airport. From the airport, you could always take SuperShuttle. There is a coupon at the www.anaheimoc.org, under transportation.

 

[endy]

Do you have a Costco card? I've found them to be a lot cheaper.

I just had a Budget mid size thru Costco for 4 days from SNA. Total cost $62.

 

[DahliaRW]

I agree with just using a shuttle and renting a one day rental from either the Alamo in DTD or another location close to wherever you're staying. I know there is at least one place down by the anaheim plaza inn, so not a long walk at all.

 

[Dash&Maggie]

I would take a cab from the airport, then walk over to Alamo in DTD the morning you want to drive. I would definitely not pay for a car for every day of my trip unless I was using it.

This is exactly what we did and it worked beautifully! We had great service at the DTD Alamo -- I was a little hesitant to use Alamo because of a previous bad experience but the staff at the DTD Alamo were great!

 

[Quinnie]

A shuttle from the airport to your hotel is much cheaper than a cab. Shuttles are better in LA because the price is fixed whereas with a cab you can end up paying a lot more if you hit traffic (practically guaranteed). Prime Time Shuttle is good and has been in business a long time.

If you use PriceLine, you can only rent the car from the airport, not offsite.

If you decide to rent the car for the whole time, I highly recommend getting a fully refundable reservation with the company of your choice. And then a day or so before do PriceLine's Name Your Own Price. I have gotten rentals for $12 and $14 per day the last two times I did this.

 

[Quinnie]

Forgot to say that you can even get a private van (or sedan) through Prime Time, as opposed to a shared ride van. Then you're not sharing with anyone else, but you still have a fixed price. When you do the fare quote online, you will see those options as well.