Priceline for car rentals?

[mulderxcoltrane]

Has anyone used the "name your own price" feature for car rentals from the Orlando Airport?

If so: advice? Tips? Horror stories?

 

[NJFireman22]

We used Priceline in Feb. for a 4 day trip to Disney. It worked fine for us,
We were able to get a full size car for the price of a sub compact.
It took 3 rejections of our bid, ( because i went too cheap) but my last bid was taken by National, which was great.
One tip, dont bid to early wait till your maybe 2 weeks away, car rentals change all the time. I did book a car thru Budget, so we knew we had somthing, then went to price line. I think the final bid I made was within
1 week of the trip. Then canceled Budget.
Hope this helps

 

[WINTER]

I bid $11/day for a compact June 27 - July 5 and got it. I then upgraded $2/day for an intermed. With taxes - $177

 

[TinkTink78]

I got Alamo for 3 days for $74.55 for economy. I think it was $15 per day with taxes. Not bad. I was happy with it. Alamo, never used them before, we shall see

 

[Kathymcbain]

I use Priceline all the time for cars and hotels and I've never been disappointed. Sometimes I have to bid more than once because I'm too cheap, and that gets to be a pain, but I've always gotten good deals and been happy with the service from the rental company or hotel.

 

[TinkTink78]

Priceline ROCKS IMO. I got a resort that goes for $208/nt for $88/nt for this weekend! I thought that was GREAT!

 

[DavidandLeahZ]

I bid $11/day for a compact June 27 - July 5 and got it. I then upgraded $2/day for an intermed. With taxes - $177

What rental car company did you get?

 

[robinb]

Priceline is *great* for rental cars. I wouldn't book too far in advance, though. You never know what will happen and your reservation is non-refundable.

The following companies work with Priceline:
Hertz
Avis
National
Alamo
Budget

Quick tutorial on how I bid on PL:

(1) Go to Hotwire and check your dates for a car and write it down for each car class you would be interested in. Be aware that the smaller cars are not always the cheapest! I would personally not ever bid on an Economy sized car for a family. Many people report being upgraded to a Compact for free but I have also seen people "stuck" with the smaller car. I usually create a quick spreadsheet with this information.

(2) Calculate 60% of the Hotwire price. This is your starting point. How does that compare to your current reservation? Remember to take into account taxes and fees, there will be more fees on a Hotwire or Priceline reservation. If your current reservation is less, then you cannot do better with Priceline.

(3) Have a maximum price in mind. I know that I would prefer to rent with National/Alamo in the airport at MCO over Avis/Hertz off the airport and a few dollars savings is not worth the extra hassle.

(4) Start bidding on Priceline using the number calculated in (2). You may rebid if you change the car type. I will bid a few types (typically Compact, Midsize, Standard, Full Size) in one sitting. If a bigger car is available for your bid, but a smaller is not I think that you will be upgraded so bidding the same amount for each car type is a waste of time.

(5) IGNORE any comments that Priceline makes about "good chances" and "great chances" when you enter your bid. They are designed to trick you into paying more than you have to.

(6) If your bids are rejected you may try again in 24-hours. I will increase my bid by $1 on each car type per day. This is where the spreadsheet comes in handy . Sometimes I will re-check the Hotwire rates to make sure they are the same. If they go up then I stick with my $1 a day increase. If they go down, I retry a previous failed bid.

 

[DavidandLeahZ]

Priceline is *great* for rental cars. I wouldn't book too far in advance, though. You never know what will happen and your reservation is non-refundable.

The following companies work with Priceline:
Hertz
Avis
National
Alamo
Budget

Quick tutorial on how I bid on PL:

(1) Go to Hotwire and check your dates for a car and write it down for each car class you would be interested in. Be aware that the smaller cars are not always the cheapest! I would personally not ever bid on an Economy sized car for a family. Many people report being upgraded to a Compact for free but I have also seen people "stuck" with the smaller car. I usually create a quick spreadsheet with this information.

(2) Calculate 60% of the Hotwire price. This is your starting point. How does that compare to your current reservation? Remember to take into account taxes and fees, there will be more fees on a Hotwire or Priceline reservation. If your current reservation is less, then you cannot do better with Priceline.

(3) Have a maximum price in mind. I know that I would prefer to rent with National/Alamo in the airport at MCO over Avis/Hertz off the airport and a few dollars savings is not worth the extra hassle.

(4) Start bidding on Priceline using the number calculated in (2). You may rebid if you change the car type. I will bid a few types (typically Compact, Midsize, Standard, Full Size) in one sitting. If a bigger car is available for your bid, but a smaller is not I think that you will be upgraded so bidding the same amount for each car type is a waste of time.

(5) IGNORE any comments that Priceline makes about "good chances" and "great chances" when you enter your bid. They are designed to trick you into paying more than you have to.

(6) If your bids are rejected you may try again in 24-hours. I will increase my bid by $1 on each car type per day. This is where the spreadsheet comes in handy . Sometimes I will re-check the Hotwire rates to make sure they are the same. If they go up then I stick with my $1 a day increase. If they go down, I retry a previous failed bid.

So, some of the smaller (non-national-brand) rental locations they mention are not offered if we bid?

 

[robinb]

So, some of the smaller (non-national-brand) rental locations they mention are not offered if we bid?

No, only those car rental companies participate.

 

[DavidandLeahZ]

No, only those car rental companies participate.

Thanks a bunch!

We got a Compact car from AVIS for $11/day!

 

[WINTER]

What rental car company did you get?

Hertz

 

[robinb]

Thanks a bunch!

We got a Compact car from AVIS for $11/day!

Whoo hoo! Congratulations!

 

[randbmom]

I decided it wasn't worth it to spend an hour typing in Emerald Aisle numbers and codes, so I tried Priceline for the second time ever. On my first try I got Hertz for $11/day mid-size for the dates of 6/25-7/9. Two weeks for $276! That's less than I've paid for one week! I don't mind the short shuttle to Hertz. Sure, National is easier, but the last time I used Hertz in 2007 it was easy and uneventful.

 

[halld6479]

I have used them 4 times in the last month all ended up being with Alamo, I have had issues with showing up to pick car up with a credit card that says debit/visa logo on it and was told I could not use it, I said I prepaid the car with that card and they said no they had to have a major card not saying debit anywhere, for security since it was already prepaid, I then pulled out my card with my full name on it and they said I could not use it cause it was not the exact name on the reservation after much talking they told the card with full name because common sense it was the same person. second problem I was able to get an earlier flight that day and when I arrived two hours early they said for me to get the price I had on the reservation I had to pick the car up at the time listed not early, they would be glad to give me the car then but it would be $389. for normal time vs the $60.00 I had prepaid. So be careful on pick up time, and make sure you have a major credit card with the exact name as reservation on it. Good luck

 

[fripouns]

How does car insurance play into everything? Usually when I rent a car, I pay the company directly using a credit card so I can decline the insurance. If I prepay through priceline, does the credit card still cover the insurance or do I need to pay for the insurance. I always get confused with insurance when renting a car!

 

[fripouns]

bump

 

[robinb]

I don't know because I always rely on my own car insurance to cover anything and not my credit card company's coverage.

Google is your friend: try "priceline cars insurance credit card" and I am sure you will find an answer.