Car rentals

[katiemac1875]

We will be arriving at SNA in 13 days and I have a car reserved through budget rental for about $500 for 8 days... Does anyone know of any better offers? Oh and I have also reserved a carseat for my 3 year old rather than paying to check ours which will be ab $25 I think! Any insight from recent travelers would be appreciated!!!

 

[FlameGirl]

We will be arriving at SNA in 13 days and I have a car reserved through budget rental for about $500 for 8 days... Does anyone know of any better offers? Oh and I have also reserved a carseat for my 3 year old rather than paying to check ours which will be ab $25 I think! Any insight from recent travelers would be appreciated!!!

Have you tried the Priceline "name your own price"?

 

[katiemac1875]

Have you tried the Priceline "name your own price"?

I just did that and it gave me something unbelievable.... $175 before taxes! Can I trust this? It didn't tell me who it would be through. Pardon my ignorance, but I have never rented a car before and the $500 quote was with an online discount ab a month ago.... Is it reckless to accept this. I dont pretend to undestand all of the legalities, but wow. Are they trustworthy? We will be driving all of So Cal and don't want a heap that is untrustworthy!

 

[FlameGirl]

I like Priceline. You'll get a reputable company and I seriously doubt you'll have any problems. Good luck!

 

[Pidginb]

I'll be in L.A./Anaheim early Sept. and have a Premium SUV reserved thru Alamo. I got it for about $500 with tax n fees for 1 week. If ur going to include a car seat maybe u should check it at the gate before u board. They usually dont charge for that. Or if u have to check it in it might be cheaper to check it in cuz car rentals usually charge per day for car seats and it might end up being more. Google coupon codes for car rentals or visit this site www.rentalcodes.com. I used my Costco membership for discount thru Alamo.

 

[Mouse13]

You can quickly see the prices for all the major rental companies at once at kayak.com. Prices on rental cars fluctuate wildly and deals come and go. If you don't need a car for your entire trip, you might try renting in Anaheim and returning the car to the airport. Lately, I've found my best rates by renting in Anaheim and returning the car to SNA. Super Shuttle will get you from SNA to most hotels for around 10 dollars per person. Good luck finding a deal!

 

[ConnieB]

Personal opinion, but I would never use a carseat from the rental place. We've been warned for decades to not use a carseat after even a small accident and since it's your child's safety, well, I never would use a car seat that I didn't personally know the history of.

When we travelled with the kids we simply brought the car seat on to the plane with us.....they were more comfortable in their own car seat than sitting in that big ole plane seat (if only it felt big to us!!). If your child is young enough that you didn't buy a plane ticket for her, take the car seat along anyway.....they will stow it in the cargo hold for you without charge. Now it's been quite a few years since I've had children that young, but even when we intended them as "lap babies" we brought the car seat right to the plane door....IF there are seats available we were always given a seat to put the car seat and baby in. Now I realize it's been years and they may have finally caught on, lol...and that flights are now regularly over booked so it may not work for you, but since they'll take the car seat to cargo hold right from the door of the plane, you have nothing to lose trying, lol.

 

[GoofyDisneyDaddy]

If you are a member, check Costco. I got a really good deal using the codes on their website for Alamo.

 

[RuthieT]

priceline!! We got a full size car rental for $180 for 9 days

 

[RuthieT]

yes you can trust the price from priceline.. We have used them many times and always get a major name rental car company and had no problems!

 

[DisneyMomma81]

Please do not rent a car seat - there's no way to know if its still "good" *car seats expire - typically 6 years from the date of manufacture, how has it been treated? Involved in a crash, dropped? There is no fee/charge to check a car seat - gate checking is much safer, less chance of getting lost and a bit less chance of being damaged, heck at 3 DD sat in her car seat on the plane - DD's travel seat at 3 years old was the Cosco Scenera - very easy to carry through the airport, I sometime secured it *with it's own latch and tether strap to the stroller and had DD sit in the seat or just slung it over my shoulder using the tether strap *the tether hooks on to a little hole in the plastic frame at the back/bottom of the seat, it's very light....

Best of luck getting a deal on a car ~ I fully trust priceline - never used 'em for a car but a few times for hotels.

 

[rune_74]

I would go priceline...I got a full size for 225 for 11 days...I have used them before and had no problems. I would never pay 500....

 

[dalstitch45]

To the OP, I don't know if you are staying in Anaheim, but here is what we did a couple of weeks ago. The rates were really high at the airport. We ended up getting SuperShuttle to take us to the hotel, and rented from the Alamo on Katella in Anaheim. Their shuttle will pick you up, and bring you back when you return the car. We just took SuperShuttle back to the airport. At SNA it would have been $347 for six days (midsize), but the Katella Alamo it went down to $118. This was booking through Costco. You didn't have the large car selection like at the airport, but it saved quite a bit of money. Plus, we had a really nice car. It is just another option to consider.

 

[ORDisneyfans]

I am at DL now! I reserved my car through the American express travel site. I say reserved because there is no commitment or upfront fee. You can cancel at any time. Also, you do not even have to have or use an American express card when you pay. You do not give them any credit card info when reserving!

The best rates including all taxes and fees. I chose the alamo on Katella also. I was given a brand néw never rented white impala with 13 miles on it! I am paying a total of $163 for 5 days. They will pick you up at your hotel and bring you back when you return it. We took super shuttle from lax for $16 per person and they dropped us off at alamo. The best rate for a similar car I found at lax was $400.

I have also used price line before and have gotten great cars and great rates. They only rent from the top three agencies, hertz, avis and budget.

Sorry for any typos my iPad hates me!

 

[dawnmommy]

I just wanted to reiterate again that airlines will NOT charge you to check your daughter's carseat. it will be completely free.

Rental car company carseats are often gross, and old. And depending on the age of your child, they may or may not fit her correctly (lower harness heights on some brands, etc)

depending on your daughter's age, use the carseat on the plane, it is so much safer if there is any turbulance.

with carseats, you can always check them for free, or bring them to gate to use on the plane (pretty much all harnessed seats are certified to be used on airplanes). or you can even bring them to the gate and gate-check them for free too.

 

[abwdreaming]

I keep reading posts about a SuperShuttle. So from SNA airport to the Park Vue Inn do I need to call and make a reservation for this SuperShuttle. I can't find information on this SuperShuttle. Renting a car from Alamo on Katella seems a great way to save money. Thank you

 

[katiemac1875]

Thank you guys so much! You have been Super Helpful!!!!

 

[Quinnie]

I keep reading posts about a SuperShuttle. So from SNA airport to the Park Vue Inn do I need to call and make a reservation for this SuperShuttle. I can't find information on this SuperShuttle. Renting a car from Alamo on Katella seems a great way to save money. Thank you

I don't know how you can't find information on Super Shuttle ...? They are nationwide chain. Web address is www.supershuttle.com.

Before you book on Super Shuttle though ... do you know about Shuttle2LAX.com? It is like Priceline. They buy empty seats from Super Shuttle and then sell them way cheaper. It is a flat rate - $20 first person, $11 each additional person no matter where you are going. I would try that first.

 

[Quinnie]

Also to add to this post ... I have had very good luck with Priceline Name Your Own Price for rental cars. I was able to get $12 per day for several separate trips: Jacksonville, FL; Orlando, FL; Philadelphia, PA and Newark, NJ.

Cracked me up that every time I bid $12, their website popped up with a warning that there was "little chance of success", showed me all of the bids that had recently been accepted (all much higher than mine) and told me a price to bid that would have "a greater liklihood of being accepted". All four times, I completely ignored it, clicked right through and got my $12 per day!

Lesson learned ... ignore Priceline's "warnings"

 

[cgh]

You can check carseats and baby stuff for free (ie. cribs). We normally bring our carseat on the plane, for our DS to sit in, but you can gate check it too.