Good or bad experiences with Dollar Rental Car?

[Goofygirl17]

I've found cheaper rates at Dollar than Alamo but I've never rented from them. Any experiences good or bad? I can't tell from the site if they are on airport or if we have to take a shuttle. Also, do they have a kiosk like Alamo?

Thanks!

 

[sj24]

I've found cheaper rates at Dollar than Alamo but I've never rented from them. Any experiences good or bad? I can't tell from the site if they are on airport or if we have to take a shuttle. Also, do they have a kiosk like Alamo?

Thanks!

Assuming you are asking about the Dollar branch in Orlando....yes they are on-site at the airport, no shuttle required. I have rented from them here 3x and 1x in San Diego, always had good cars/service/rates. I wish there was a branch closer to home, a couple of years ago I rented a car to drive to Myrtle Beach, rented from Enterprise, wasn't a bad experience, I just know I would have gotten a better rate at Dollar

 

[DemoBri1]

You should be satisfied with Dollar. I've never had any real problems with them. Have rented on six different trips in Orlando with them. The only issue I had was a flat tire on one of the vehicles that they gave me, and luckily I noticed it before we pulled out of the terminal garage. They replaced it immediately with another vehicle.

One thing I'd suggest is to sign up for the Fastlane program.

 

[Dewy]

Rented only once before but experience was good. Also recommend to sign up for the Dollar Express for quicker pickup.

 

[walkdmc]

How fast is the express check-in for Dollar? I signed up for and printed out a page with a barcode. Is that the "fast pass" for Dollar? TIA!

 

[Mickeylover65]

I've found cheaper rates at Dollar than Alamo but I've never rented from them. Any experiences good or bad? I can't tell from the site if they are on airport or if we have to take a shuttle. Also, do they have a kiosk like Alamo?

Thanks!

I've rented Dollar from the Orlando airport 4 times and have never had any problem with the service or vehicles. Mousesavers has some codes you can try also.

 

[livie1205]

I love dollar..I got a 9 day lock low and go (mid size or higher) in dec for 158.00 !! we rent from them every year but not the one in orlando...we get one where we live and drive to wdw BUT we did get a bad car ONE time and when we got there went to the dollar near downtown disney and they switched it out (took in a small car and left with a mini van ) with no problem.

 

[doclegler]

We have used Dollar a few times in that past and had no issues. They are right at the airport, so no waiting either.
Alamo on the other hand.....don't get me started!!

 

[bbwhos]

Does Dollar let you choose your own car or do they assign it? We have a full sz for next Wed and have never used Dollar.

 

[pipervali]

I love dollar..I got a 9 day lock low and go (mid size or higher) in dec for 158.00 !! we rent from them every year but not the one in orlando...we get one where we live and drive to wdw BUT we did get a bad car ONE time and when we got there went to the dollar near downtown disney and they switched it out (took in a small car and left with a mini van ) with no problem.

How did you like the lock low and go deal? I've got a really cheap ressie using that for November, but I've heard some bad stories about it, so I'm keeping my much higher Alamo reservation just in case :lol:

 

[DemoBri1]

Dollar doesn't really let you choose your car. You have to walk out of the airport across to the parking garage. Within the garage is a kiosk where you p/u your keys from. If there is something wrong with your original vehicle you might be able to lobby for a particular vehicle if it is in your size class. I did this once and ended up with a minivan that had a bit more "goodies" on it than the one originally assigned to me.

 

[bbwhos]

Dollar doesn't really let you choose your car. You have to walk out of the airport across to the parking garage. Within the garage is a kiosk where you p/u your keys from. If there is something wrong with your original vehicle you might be able to lobby for a particular vehicle if it is in your size class. I did this once and ended up with a minivan that had a bit more "goodies" on it than the one originally assigned to me.

Thanks! That's what I liked about Alamo/National, picking out our own car. But can't touch their rates this trip.

 

[DVC-Don]

I've rented from Dollar off and on since 1998 without any problems.

 

[TinkerbellLuvr7]

We've used Dollar twice in the last year--Dec 2009 we used it in Orlando and June 2010 in Denver, CO.
We've never had problems with them either time. Both times we got to the airport at night so there were not long waits. I would recommend using Dollar Express since it has all your info online and makes the process faster.

Be advised..you may not get the car you paid for..

In Orlando we reserved a MIDSIZE and were given a Van which wasn't an issue because we had a van for several years so my dad was used to driving it but the couple next to us were throwing a huge fit as they had reserved a compact and were getting a Van too. Not sure what their result was..

In Denver, we also reserved a MIDSIZE and were given an SUV. We weren't charged for the upgrades either time and welcomed the upgrades as we had tons of stuff and had no idea how we would have fit into a midsize!

The size of the vehicles were not a problem as my dad has driven larger ones but if you are in an unfamiliar city and are not used to driving larger vehicles that could pose a problem. Also, check the car over super well before you leave. Our Van in Orlando had several scratches on it and were noted to the workers before we left. We also took pictures of them as well.

 

[bbwhos]

Wow Tinkerbell! With Alamo & National we've always got the car reserved and most of the time with 1k or less miles. Have you ever used Budget? That Budget travelocity code x474200 brings up decent rates also.

 

[TinkerbellLuvr7]

Wow Tinkerbell! With Alamo & National we've always got the car reserved and most of the time with 1k or less miles. Have you ever used Budget? That Budget travelocity code x474200 brings up decent rates also.

My dad has used National for years but with the prices in gas the last few years, we've found in the last year at least, that Dollar has been the cheapest and we haven't had an issue with the 2 vehicles we rented from them.

When we used to use National, we got the car we reserved because you are free to pick the type of car that you reserved. While that's a nice feature, the free upgrades were nice for our family too!

 

[bbwhos]

Thanks Tinkerbell! So excited, can't wait ... 2 days and counting!

 

[DVC-Don]

.............. That Budget travelocity code x474200 brings up decent rates also.

Thanks, I just took $53 off my 7 day compact rental w/Budget the last week of October.

 

[Junebugwv]

We used Dollar last month and a year ago and it was fine. We like to use ME because of the ease of having our bags taken care of. So we reserved a car at Lake Buena Vista- Regal Sun Resort (at Downtown Disney area) for the day after our arrival. We were picked up by a Dollar shuttle at our resort and taken to Regal Sun.
I chose the airport as our drop-off. On the day of our departure we took our bags to the airport check-in area at our resort and checked-in our bags and were given boarding passes. We drove ourselves to the airport and had an easy car rental check-in. Headed straight to security and then had a leisure breakfast.