June 2022 car rental

[redboat45]

Flipped back to Budget today through a direct rental instead of UT so now I can use Fastbreak. Budget was $220 cheaper than Alamo for the exact same rental. I couldn't pass it up.

Anybody know if Budget will let you switch cars if you're not happy with the one they assign?

any time I've rented from Budget they they just tell me to pick from a certain row.

 

[Bullseye]

any time I've rented from Budget they they just tell me to pick from a certain row.

Oh no kidding? I though they had your reservation on a little board in front of Fastbreak booth and it indicated which car you are assigned.

At 1:52 mark

 

[redboat45]

Oh no kidding? I though they had your reservation on a little board in front of Fastbreak booth and it indicated which car you are assigned.

At 1:52 mark

The times I've rented from them I had to stop at the little window/desk by the cars. Then they just tell me which row and/or which side of the row. I've never had a spot assigned to me.

 

[staceyj2]

I am finding some decent rates today through Thrifty and Dollar for 5/30-6/8 using the AAA CDP. The lowest I have at the moment is $388 economy through Dollar. That's closer to my $308 Budget via UT than anything else I have found. With Dollar, I was able to put in my rewards number and can go directly to garage.

 

[staceyj2]

Sorry, duplicate post.

 

[zumfelde]

My price dropper $124 for a weekly rental from Alamo for 3rd week of June yesterday. It is still almost double from what I paid pre covid but will take it.

 

[PalmettoPath]

Wow. I better check again. Best rate we have so far in August is $1100 for a Pathfinder for a week from MCO. That's with the Costco discount too. Time to take another look...

 

[alc571]

We decided not to partake in the Budget chaos and just pay the extra for Alamo. I've been checking daily for a few weeks now and have re-booked several times. Currently booked for $565.26 for 10 days (including fuel option) in a Standard (free upgrade to Fullsize with no Standard aisle). Way better than the $800ish I started at, but still about $200 more than usual.

 

[loveswdw]

My Alamo reservation (6/5-6/11) through Costco FINALLY dropped some this afternoon. I had switched from a standard to a full size for the same price the other day. Today, the full size dropped from $474 to $385. Still would love for it to go lower but I'll take what I can get!

 

[BellaBaby]

My UCT Budget rental came down $80 for same car. So can they just replace it and refund me the $80 or do I have to cancel and rebook with another ticket?

 

[Callie]

We are going in September but I'm also curious how it works if the price drops with UT. We bought a popcorn ticket for $6.

Also I keep reading about Budget being awful. How bad is it usually in the morning around 9am?

 

[Leigh L]

We are going in September but I'm also curious how it works if the price drops with UT. We bought a popcorn ticket for $6.

Also I keep reading about Budget being awful. How bad is it usually in the morning around 9am?

Budget has been really hit or miss with us in terms of waits. I've waited minutes and also over an hour in 2020 and 2021. I think the earlier you get to the counter, probably the better.

The one thing to watch in our maybe not so common experience - if taking the toll road, even though the toll device switch was in off position (we planned to pay cash for tolls) and it triggered payment anyway. The attendant said it was too late to reverse it to take cash.

Budget then as per policy began charging whatever the high fee it is to use per day. That bill turned out to be over $100 when all was said and done. That was a huge pain to fix and I'd spent over an hour on hold en route to our resort. DH checked when he went to return the car (he left a few days earlier) and it never was fixed. They did fix it there though and we only paid for the one toll we used.

Whenever we rent Budget now, we configure GPS to avoid tolls, lol. A pain, but less of a pain than the alternative was...

 

[BellaBaby]

My UCT Budget rental came down $80 for same car. So can they just replace it and refund me the $80 or do I have to cancel and rebook with another ticket?

So I emailed UCT and already received a reply. They cannot modify, so I would need to cancel and rebook. Which is ok I guess, (I don't like putting another big amount on my CC and waiting for a refund really) but also now I'm on the fence hearing about PP's toll charge experience and possible longer waits at Budget. We've always used Alamo and prices seem to be coming down. I could get a mid size SUV for less than the Budget mini van, but we really like having the van. IDK! I doubt vans will come down with Alamo, but if we book the SUV, we can go right to the garage and no toll problems. Ugh

 

[alc571]

My Alamo reservation (6/5-6/11) through Costco FINALLY dropped some this afternoon. I had switched from a standard to a full size for the same price the other day. Today, the full size dropped from $474 to $385. Still would love for it to go lower but I'll take what I can get!

Do you know that Alamo doesn't have a Standard aisle, so you automatically get a Fullsize car when you book a Standard? If it's the same price, no biggie, but if the Standard is cheaper then you are paying more for nothing. The last three "Standard" cars we have booked have been minivans or SUVs that were in the Fullsize aisle.

 

[loveswdw]

Do you know that Alamo doesn't have a Standard aisle, so you automatically get a Fullsize car when you book a Standard? If it's the same price, no biggie, but if the Standard is cheaper then you are paying more for nothing. The last three "Standard" cars we have booked have been minivans or SUVs that were in the Fullsize aisle.

I do but thank you. I had booked the standard because it was cheaper initially then the full size dropped to the same price. Now my husband wants an SUV so I’ve booked that instead. I would love to keep the full size reservation because it’s cheaper than the SUV but there’s no way to know if an SUV will be on the full size aisle when we arrive.

 

[BellaBaby]

Now I've emailed UCT to cancel my reservation with Budget because I can get a standard SUV with Alamo for less than the mini van I had with Budget. And even though I prefer a van, I'd rather save money! We are 4 days out, so I will keep checking...
But prices have dropped even from yesterday, so always keep checking!

 

[staceyj2]

If you have AAA, check their rates. I always book through Costco if not using the UT rate, and I never really thought to check AAA. The past several days the rates have been fluctuating and changing multiple times a day. By continually checking, I now have a standard car for 5/30-6/8 from Dollar for $365. It started at $418 a few days ago and it keeps coming down. I have express rewards so I will be able to go directly to the garage.

 

[magickingdomprincess]

I was able to book an intermediate SUV at Alamo through Costco for $1 less than my Budget UCT intermediate SUV. $461 for 9 days 6/10 - 6/19. I already have the barcode to go directly to the car aisle. Definitely keep checking rates!

 

[houseofduck]

I was able to book an intermediate SUV at Alamo through Costco for $1 less than my Budget UCT intermediate SUV. $461 for 9 days 6/10 - 6/19. I already have the barcode to go directly to the car aisle. Definitely keep checking rates!

Did you use any coupons with that or just the Costco contract id? I'm still seeing high rates for this time period. The weekly rate isn't bad, but the extra day charges are bringing the rates for my dates up to the $600s.

 

[loveswdw]

Check your Alamo rates. We have a Sunday morning rental pickup 6/5-6/11 for a standard SUV. Just dropped to $379 with Costco Travel. Rebooked from $409.