Experiences with Thrifty rental car company

[CapeCod53]

I'm sure this has been discussed but I cdn't get the search function to work. I wd love to get some opinions on the ease of renting with Thrifty. I know that they are off site but they have a $174 for a week over Thanksgiving for a mini-van, well below what I can find elsewhere. Right now I have a mini-van booked with National for $275. Have also rented from Dollar before but all their codes are blacked out over Thanksgiving. Thanks

 

[Dewy]

We rented with Thrifty two years ago for the same reason; they had a great rate...much better than the on-site companies. The service was good. The shuttle took less than 15 minutes (bus was waiting when I got to the parking area. Thrifty is less than four mile away) and it made an additional stop after my pickup. We rented a Ford Taurus (intermediate or full size...can't remember) and it had less than 10K miles.

A couple of suggestions to speed the process:

Join Thrifty's Blue Chip Program: It's an express check in type of service. All of your information is stored and your paperwork is waiting for you at the counter...and it's an express counter for Blue Chip members. I was in and out in ten minutes, only one person ahead of me. It's free to join.

Depending on the size of your party, have the person who is signed up as the driver make a straight shot for the shuttle and have the other person(s) get the luggage and wait outside for you to return with the car. If all goes right you can make it back with the car in a half hour or less from the time you board the shuttle.

I would definitely go through them aging if their rate is significantly less than the on-site companies.

 

[DanenRox]

We'll be using Thrifty in Sept. because that's where we got the best rate. Truthfully, I don't know if we've used them before, but we have rented off-site before and it's a piece of cake. In fact, I prefer hopping on a shuttle to standing in the Hertz line for 30 minutes. Can't help but notice (so far) we're all from New England. Go Sox!

 

[CapeCod53]

Thanks for the info. Just a side note. We lived various places in upstate NY including Buffalo area as a young kid, then in Princeton, NJ. Family were traditional NY fans, Knicks, Rangers, Yankees. Well my brother who lives on Cape Cod & is married to a very loyal Red Sox fans has remained a committed Yankees fan. A few years ago we flew to visit my parents in upstate NY & he was wearing his Yankees hat & windbreaker ( this was in January, not even baseball season). The state troopers pulled him out of security & gave him a really hard time about being from Mass & being a Yankees fan! I was ROTFL

 

[WillCAD]

My experiences with Thrifty have been about the same as Dewey's. The shuttle bus runs quickly, so the wait times are short, and it only takes about 5-10 minutes to get to or from the terminal once it's loaded up.

Thrifty prices are often the cheapest at MCO, and their service is good. Joining the Blue Chip program is definitely a good idea, though; it lets you skip the regular lines, and also prevents the agents from giving you the hard-sell for additional insurance.

Thrifty's cars have been clean and well-maintained.

It's not difficult to find your way to and from the Thrifty facility.

 

[LeeM]

I used Thrifty for our family's trip to WDW this past week (6/24 - 7/1) and all in all the experience was pretty good.

Their shuttle was somewhat of a mixed bag, though. On 6/24, I waited at the A terminal (MCO) shuttle area for about 20 minutes before a shuttle stopped to pick up my group. It seems that there are 2 areas where off-site shuttles can park, and I was at the second one. The shuttle stopped at the first area, picked up those people, and drove past the second area because the shuttle was full. It seemed like they weren't running enough shuttles to handle the demand. When I dropped off the car (7/1), the return shuttle happened to be at their facility, so that worked out OK for us.

I would reiterate the importance of signing up for the Blue Chip program. When I arrived at their facility, there was no line at the Blue Chip desk and I was off to my car within 5 minutes. The 'regular' line was probably a 30 minute wait at that point.

As for the car itself, it was fine - it didn't seem to have any notable problems. As with any rental, make sure you inspect the car before you drive off the lot and note on their form where any pre-existing damage has occurred. Mine had some bumper scratches, both on the front and back.

 

[Randman]

We've regualrly used Thrifty and we're using them again in September. Every time has been great. Shuttle can be a little bit of a wait on in the inbound leg, but it's worth it since you don't have to fight the on-site lines (namely Alamo). I used Alamo my last trip due to having 2 young kids in tow and wanting on-site rental. I won't use them again due to Thrifty's great track record with me.

Blue Chip is a must as the other posters mentioned. Zips you right through. It might even get you a free upgrade; it did for me last time. (Dodge Stratus to a Chrysler 300)

On another related subject, did anyone else notice that Thrifty's rates for Sept/Oct have jumped dramatically? I locked into a Dodge Neon at $79 + tax for 7 days (9/26 to 10/3), but over the last couple days, the price went to $142 + tax. I'm glad I locked this in.

In past years using Thrifty when just DW and I have gone to Disney, we've ended up with an Mid-Sized for just a few dollars more than the Compact by just checking regularly in the weeks leading up to our trip. This is the first time I've seen such a big increase in price from Thrifty. Are the other rental companies increasing their prices for this time too?

 

[mickeysaver]

My honey travels a lot on business and prefers to use Thrifty. At the airports, they are always super nice and have her all checked in and ready to go in a matter of just a few minutes. She belongs to the Blue Chip program and usually gets a free upgrade.

The only experience with them that has been lacking was when she rented from the one here in town. It's family owned and the couple that runs the Thrifty also runs the moving van rental company next door. They have no customer service skills, smoke inside the office, and their kids are whiny and ill mannered. We try not to use the local office. Maggie

 

[CapeCod53]

Thanks for the responses everyone. I will pass the info onto my sister who has booked with Thrifty. I can't our flight gets in at 10:15 am & any rental with Thrifty before noon costs $200 more. I am not going to sit around MCO for that long. We can be at wdw & in the pool or at a park by noon!!!

 

[faindrops27]

I was so happy with the rate I got from them. I was happy with thier shuttle service. A wait of 20 minutes, then we were whisked away. I feel 20 minutes is a very nominal wait. Ok, we get to the offsite rental place. We are blue chip members, so it was a very easy process. Just sign the papers. But, the guy who had the papers for us to sign. Was a bit snooty. Like he didnt wish to be bothered, rolling of his eyes. Sharp come backs, to questions. Anyhow, I brushed it off as a bad day. We head out to get the van. About to leave from thrifty. The security guys says we have wrong van. Had to go back in to resolve the issue. Ok, finally 2 hours later. We are about to leave. I say lets take pics of the van. Thank God we did. Great vacation. Then we return the van. The check in guy says there are scratches on the front bumper. I tell them it was there before. THey say come in and sign a paper saying the damage was there, and it will be dropped. A week later. We get mail stating, we damaged the van. Pay 280, to start the process of repair. Actual assesment of damge can range in prices, and we will get another bill. I was outraged. But, after many threatening phone calls that we better pay or they will take legal action. I decided let me process my film. Lo and behold. Those scratches were on the bumper of the van to begin with. Next time the lady called insisting. I pay for the damages. I told her. I have proof. I took pictures of the van, date of pick up. So, she better leave me alone.Recieved one more letter, never heard anything else, after that. I would stay far away from them. But, if u must rent make sure you take a digital camera, and extensive pics of the car the day of pick up