Never rented before what is a decent price?

[Mynamewastaken]

We are renting a car for a week in Feb. Have never rented one before. We are renting out of Tampa. Right now I have two different vehicles reserved through different companies. One full size through Dollar for 194.66 and one through Alamo for a mid size SUV for 222.66. We are a family of 4 so I am thinking standard or larger is best for us. I would love to hear what you consider a decent price or what you paid for your rental for a week. I am not sure if it makes a difference but we will be in Florida during President's Week.
Thanks!

 

[rwdavis2]

Those are not too bad. Unlike plane reservations you can cancel car reservations with no penalty. Book when you get a price you can live with and keep checking. I always look up reservations on sites like Expedia to compare between companies and then book directly with specific rental company. Make sure you sign up for Dollar Express or the equivalent with Alamo. You can skip the lines at the counter that way.

 

[kj2mom]

I went the week of 4th of July and really wanted to get it around $200. The first one I booked was $213. I was stuck there for a quite awhile but I kept checking every day, sometimes multiple times a day and in the end I got down to $165 which I thought was pretty good for that week. What I did was check carrentalsavers.com. Prices change frequently, in fact the price I got was at 11pm and when I checked again the next morning at 8am the price had gone back up. I think in the end I booked, booked then canceled about 5 or 6 times. I changed every time I saw anything lower than what I had (since there is no payment/penalty for doing so). I ended up at Dollar, signed up for the Dollar Express well in advance which meant I could go right to the garage, get the car and go!

 

[Mynamewastaken]

Thanks for you replies. I am an Alamo insider I need to sign up for Dollar. I want to by pass the counter. I'll keep checking, maybe they will go down but if not I am ok with the prices. They have been way higher since i booked.

 

[Mynamewastaken]

With Dollar you need to enter in a cc number. Did you all do that? Seems strange since Alamo was free..

 

[kwdw]

For a week - I'm thrilled with $200-250 in a car from Alamo. Never booked through Dollar.

 

[kj2mom]

Do you mean to register for Dollar Express? Yes, I entered my credit card, I figured that is how they let you skip the counter (they already have valid credit card info).

 

[Mynamewastaken]

Do you mean to register for Dollar Express? Yes, I entered my credit card, I figured that is how they let you skip the counter (they already have valid credit card info).

Yes, that is what I meant. Thanks for your reply

 

[sam_gordon]

I would be surprised that four people couldn't fit in a full size. I'd do it for better gas mileage.

 

[Gina-Gina-Bo-Bina]

We had a full size with Dollar for 8 days this past May for $144.

For our upcoming trip, we have a standard with Alamo for 8 days for $142.

 

[mieuxmew]

Car rentals for Tampa are usually a little higher than Orlando. The rate you have right now so far is a keeper. You may or may not find something better later on, but if you do, book it and cancel! We are a family of 4. When we rent a full size we have to pay attention to how much luggage we bring (stroller, car seats, etc). The ride from Tampa is a bit farther so if we are bringing a lot of stuff I will try to rent a minivan/standard SUV for the extra space. The mid-size SUV is pretty small - might be tight for 4 people plus luggage. Dollar costs extra per day if you need to add an additional driver, even if it is a spouse. Alamo extra driver is free if you book Alamo thru Costco.

 

[Ranger111]

CAUTION -- NEVER cancel your current reservation until you have confirmation of your "new" reservation.

Prices can change quickly. While very uncommon, over the years I have twice found a better rate, but by the time I ended up messing around and actually going for it the final total had gone up.

Again, not likely, but book your new rate first and you will have no issue.

BTW, your current rate is not all that great if it is for the industry's definition of a week, which is five days.

Not horrible, just sort of average-ish -- slightly on the high side. A good rate would be around $100-120, fantastic would be under $100.

If you are talking seven days, it's a decent rate, but not great.

 

[keepswimming76]

We had a full size with Dollar for 8 days this past May for $144.

For our upcoming trip, we have a standard with Alamo for 8 days for $142.

How far in advance did you book these and did you have a particular discount? Thanks!

 

[Gina-Gina-Bo-Bina]

How far in advance did you book these and did you have a particular discount? Thanks!

The Dollar rental was booked with no specific discount, except for the City Special (available to everyone, and comes up automatically when date eligible on their website). That one was secured about 6 weeks out.

Our October rental with Alamo was booked using the automatic discount applied for Insiders members and a $30 off coupon for Visa card holders (which means we must pay using a Visa card). This one was booked around the 25th of June....yes, the best price was almost 4 mouths out! (and trust me, I have been watching rates every single day for 8 months!!!).
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