Early morning Boston flight rental return?

[snowchickens]

I have a 7:30 am flight out of Boston Logan coming up. I will be returning a rental car to Hertz. I intend to drop my family off at the terminal (A/Delta) and head down & return the car. I am a Gold Member.. So it's supposed to be quick and easy.. I was thinking I need to arrive between 5-5:30am? Any advice or thoughts I would be grateful!

 

[goofy4tink]

I always try to be at Logan, for any airline, 2 hrs prior to flight. The walk from security to the gates at Delta is extraordinary! Pack a snack!

 

[debster812]

I always try to be at Logan, for any airline, 2 hrs prior to flight. The walk from security to the gates at Delta is extraordinary! Pack a snack!

It really is. LONG hallways, HUGE escalators, it's like a marathon training march. Definitely calls for a snack and a beverage!

To say nothing of the fact that all car rentals at Logan are 'off site' requiring some sort of a shuttle ride. I've breezed through security at that time for a 7:25am flight to Aruba (out of Term E), and I've been in an hour long security line at that time with Delta, so I agree with goofy4tink, I'd leave yourself the full 2 hours. Especially if it's a Monday morning.

 

[goofy4tink]

It really is. LONG hallways, HUGE escalators, it's like a marathon training march. Definitely calls for a snack and a beverage!

To say nothing of the fact that all car rentals at Logan are 'off site' requiring some sort of a shuttle ride. I've breezed through security at that time for a 7:25am flight to Aruba (out of Term E), and I've been in an hour long security line at that time with Delta, so I agree with goofy4tink, I'd leave yourself the full 2 hours. Especially if it's a Monday morning.

God, I hate flying Delta. Between the hike to the gates, and the frequency of changes, and baggage charges.....well, it's just not for me anymore. And thanks for the reminder about the rental spots.....forgot they are pretty much off site!

 

[snowchickens]

In 2012 we flew an early Monday morning from BOS to MCO on AirTran and it was a breeze. But we were dropped off at departures ..I am more curious as to how long it's going to take me to get back up to Terminal A from the Car Rental Center...

 

[cel_disney]

I fly Delta out of Boston frequently. It will be a long trip to the gate, but its alot of moving walkways.

It really comes down to your anxiety level with travel and being on the later side. If you are risk adverse, you would want to drop your family off 2.5 hours before your flight and give yourself an hour for the rental return.

You could save some time by all doing the return (offsite) but it may not make sense to be too much later because Boston traffic in the mornings can be ugly if its a weekday.

I routinely park in central parking about 65 minutes before my delta flights and usually still have time to grab a Starbucks at the gate.....

Note - Starbucks or dunkin donuts lines are at 6:30 am are unpredictable....they both move quickly though! If you can be flexible and go for the shorter line it helps!

 

[cel_disney]

One more thing - when my family is traveling (vs just me for work), we often stays at one of the airport hotels the night before....you could drop off the car the night before an stay at the Hilton or Hyatt and get a shuttle in the morning....

 

[mm1971]

I have a 7:30 am flight out of Boston Logan coming up. I will be returning a rental car to Hertz. I intend to drop my family off at the terminal (A/Delta) and head down & return the car. I am a Gold Member.. So it's supposed to be quick and easy.. I was thinking I need to arrive between 5-5:30am? Any advice or thoughts I would be grateful!

Based on the Rental site being off site and needing to take the shuttle over and the looonnngggg walk to the Delta terminals, I would say 2.5 hours. Security is also unpredictable at Logan. We have been early in the morning and zipped right through, but at other times it has taken 30-45 minutes. If you like to take chances, you can go a little later. I prefer being at the terminal prior to boarding and not hearing my name over the loudspeaker. Yes, I have been there (no way around it, circumstances voided all of the good planning) and the looks I got when boarding could kill a guy.

One more thing - when my family is traveling (vs just me for work), we often stays at one of the airport hotels the night before....you could drop off the car the night before an stay at the Hilton or Hyatt and get a shuttle in the morning....

Now that is a great idea! We have a 6:15PM flight out of Manchester, NH in August and we plan to do the same to get in an extra hour of sleep and not have to drive at 4AM.