Priceline rental car question

[Liz]

We are flying into Jacksonville (parents live there) but will be driving down to WDW for part of the trip. I've never used Priceline but it seems like trying it for a rental car is the least risky way to go (as opposed to hotel or airfare).

I've got the lowest car rental price I can find for the size we need ($233) and I'm thinking of bidding something lower to save a few bucks. I really don't care what company we end up with as long as its unlimited mileage. Are there any risks associated with bidding on a car through Priceline that I might not be aware of? I know I can't choose the company and I can't cancel or change the dates. Anything else?

Thanks!

 

[XStAnt]

Check out www.biddingfortravel.com. They have tips for priceline bidding and people post their winning bids. It helps tremendously. They are very picky about their posting rules so make sure you read the FAQs thoroughly before posting.

 

[hercamore]

Hi,

I bid thru Priceline for the first time for a car in august at Pensaola airport.

No problems with the checkin, I declined all extra coverages, and we reived a new Taurus with Hertz with 500 miles on it.

Clerk said we were one of many Priceline customers for her that day.

I bid on Priceline cuz I could not get a good rate in Pensacola.

I would give it a try.

Did you check on hotwire's price, too?

herc.

 

[Liz]

Thanks for the replies!

I did try Hotwire and everything there was more expensive than what I could get through Avis. I may get brave and give Priceline a try.

 

[inkkognito]

We use Priceline all the time and love them. We prefer towncars for our longer trips, but we like to run out to Orlando for weekend trips and we always get a car through Priceline when we do that. We usually get Alamo or Avis, and we've gotten Hertz a few times (even though they are offsite, they are VERY fast). On our last trip, we got National for the first time ever. I asked the counter agent if they get a lot of Priceline customers, and he said no. He said that people seem to either love Priceline or hate it, and the "hate" people are usually those who did not realize that they could not make any changes. As long as you know the rules upfront, it's great. Because you are pre-paid, they usually don't push the insurance as hard.
The only strange experience we ever had was a few weeks back, with Avis. The counter agent couldn't get the computer to accept our ressie, as it kept coming back that all the cars at that rate were sold out. She finally got it through, and we ended up getting free collision insurance because that's the only way she could get it into the computer!
We book economy cars, and we've gotten quite a few free upgrades via Priceline, too.
Barb
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