Rental Cars

[Buckeye Fan]

For any of those who have rented cars in the past, any advice? I work for a large insurance co in OH and can get an employee discount, OR I know that DVC offers members discounts through Alamo (I believe) as well. I called MS and the DVC rates are not contracted you. I'm really afraid that we'll have a hard time reserving something if I don't do it soon because of the time of year. We'll be flying into MCO, so we can either rent there or take ME to the resort and hook up with a rental company on Dis property.

In advance, thanks for your advice and experiences. Merry Christmas!

 

[DebbieB]

Lately I've found the best rates through National Emerald Club (contract code 5007125). My corporate rate with Avis is way higher. I was there Dec 1 to 7, paid $99 including tax for a Buick Lacrosse, booked as Emerald Aisle, with a $30 coupon from National's home page. I was also there April 21-27 and paid $106. You can get a free Emerald Club membership here:

http://www.mousesavers.com/national.html

 

[stormer]

We have rented from a few different companies at MCO and never had any problems. Just be sure the company you choose is on site. Some companies shuttle you to their facilities. We have found this to be an inconvenience with children. The companies where you just go downstairs and pick up the car are much quicker. We used Alamo in Aug. and found everything to be good.

 

[Olaf]

We've always used Emerald Aisle with National. We pick up our luggage, walk across the street and get our car. No lines. Go to Mousesavers.com and research the latest discount codes. National sometimes lets you combine discounts, and you can really get the rate down if you work at it. The folks at the transportation board are normally up on the best codes.

 

[WITiggerFan]

I have always found the best rates with Alamo, using the DVC discount. And the pick up process is very easy. If you pre-register on-line you just go pick up your car, show them the paperwork as you are leaving the garage and go - it literally takes less than two minutes.

 

[eliza61]

Also I know that if you use the American express card you can waive alot of those pesky insurance fees the car rental companies charge you with. We rented with Hertz in November and LDI/LDW charges were ~15 bucks a day for these charges. Not sure about visa and mastercard but call and check.

 

[ktbugsmom]

I agree with DebbieB. Go to mousesavers.com and check out the codes and the free membership to the Emerald Club with National. I was able to get an 8 day rental for $93 (total!). Emerald Club is awesome. Just walk out, pick a car, drive away. Fast and painless.

But, as an FYI, I had to play with the codes for a couple days to get that price. Initially, I was at $182 - but $93 is much nicer!

 

[Buckeye Fan]

You guys are AWESOME! Thanks so much for the great advice and discount codes. We're traveling with my MIL/FIL and MIL doesn't get around so well. I'm really afraid she'll have a difficult time with the busses, so I think a car will work much better.

Again, thanks so much!

 

[I'mNoPrince]

We have the Past few trips taken DME and then rented at the Dollar location at DTD.

Dollar seems to be one of the only ones that don't charge a Hotel fee and thus is cheaper then MCO most of the time.

We used OCVB and KISS2 codes in the past. i just did an 11 day Fullsize for July for under $400 it was the cheapest I could find for now but it should be going down as the trip gets closer.

We also like to rent this way as we can get a smaller car (no bags to hual),cut a day offby renting at around 4pm and returning the same, and don't have to worry about bags at MCO

 

[DisneyKidds]

I find National's rates to be hit or miss. Sometimes they are great, other times they are sky high. My Avis corporate discount is almost always better.

I also had a very good experience with naming my own price on Priceline for a rental at Orlando International.

 

[BostonDisneyKid]

Another vote for mousesavers.com

 

[tjcj]

Since I am a hertz gold member I use them most of the time. You do have to take the bus to thier location, but it's quick and with gold member service you just walk right to your car. One hint if you are traveling with a bunch of people. Get off the plane and go straight to the rental car bus, have the other folks in your group get the luggage. Then just drive back and pick them up. Quick and easy...

 

[3DisneyKids]

Yet another vote for visiting Maty's site at mousesavers. Yes, it takes a bit of time to go to each of the vendors and try each of the codes, but it is always worth it.

We have always done extremely well with Dollar, which is Mary's preference as well. We have used Dollar on our previous five trips in a row (make sure you become a Dollar Express member...free online...you don't have to wait in line!) and we have yet to pay over $100 for a week.

 

[La2kw]

We find the rates much cheaper if you book and return at MCO. Also, we have found the best rates through Costco, but you do need to be a member. www.rentalcodes.com is another good place to check for discounts.

 

[Buckeye Fan]

Lots of great tips...here's where I am.

I currently have a van reserved through Enterprise (on Dis property) for 6 days. With my corporate rate, I'm at $269 out the door. I do have a Costco membership, so how would I check those rates? Do I go through Costco or tell the rental companies I'm a Costco member?

Do you guys feel I can beat this rate with my DVC discount or through mousesavers? I'm not sure whether $269 is good or bad, but I can tell you that when I priced through Alamo, Enterprise, National, Budget and one or two others, no one else came close.

Again, I really appreciate your thoughts. I went ahead and reserved (knowing I can cancel) because of availability. There were already 2 companies that didn't have mini-vans available. I'm assuming because it's spring break!!! Uhhhggg! What have I gotten myself into??? I know, I know...that's a whole new thread!!!

 

[La2kw]

Lots of great tips...here's where I am.

I currently have a van reserved through Enterprise (on Dis property) for 6 days. With my corporate rate, I'm at $269 out the door. I do have a Costco membership, so how would I check those rates? Do I go through Costco or tell the rental companies I'm a Costco member?

Do you guys feel I can beat this rate with my DVC discount or through mousesavers? I'm not sure whether $269 is good or bad, but I can tell you that when I priced through Alamo, Enterprise, National, Budget and one or two others, no one else came close.

Again, I really appreciate your thoughts. I went ahead and reserved (knowing I can cancel) because of availability. There were already 2 companies that didn't have mini-vans available. I'm assuming because it's spring break!!! Uhhhggg! What have I gotten myself into??? I know, I know...that's a whole new thread!!!

Here's a link to the Costco site. You can check rates with Budget, Alamo, Hertz, and Avis. Be sure to check the rates picking up at MCO, and also at WDW. They can vary by quite a bit of money.

http://www.costco.com/Common/Category.aspx?cat=1137&eCat=BC|1133|1137&whse=&topnav=&hierPath=1133*1137*4946*

The other thing I would do is keep checking on rates. They often change from day to day. As you get closer, the rates can rise or drop dramatically, depending on availability. For our most recent trip, the rates at Alamo dropped by about $300 for a 12 day rental about a week before our trip. The rate went from $450 to $150. Keep shopping around and don't hesitate to cancel and rebook when you find better rates.

 

[rsinj]

.

 

[JimMIA]

I rent cars quite often (not at WDW, we drive up from Miami) and I don't think there is one best company. In fact, I've developed a healthy cynicism toward all the company deals, because I've consistently found better deals using the power of the Internet.

I'm sure there are numerous other choices, but I usually go to one of the online travel sites (Orbitz, Travelocity, Expedia, etc). I search the city I'm visiting for rates and see what I get.

One thing I've learned is that none of the sites list by prices as a default -- they list your choices according to which company has paid them how much for that particular listing. So the first thing I do is click on the option to sort by price, from lowest to highest.

Another thing I've learned is to pay absolutely NO attention to car categories. A particular model of car might be a "compact" with one company and a "mid-size" with another company. So I look for the specific car I want, and then look at price. I also often find that one company's "midsize" car is priced lower than someone else's "compact."

All of the companies offer all sorts of discounts -- AAA, AARP, corporate, senior citizen, etc. I've never seen a single one of those that was lower than the online price.

Once I find what I want, I go to that company's website and see if their own website has a cheaper price than Expedia, et al. I've never found any difference, but I always check. I book either at the online travel site or the rental car company site, whichever seems most convenient (some rental car companies do not require pre-payment, so if there are any questions about cancellation, I book there).

Once I'm booked, I go to the rental car company's site and sign up for their loyalty program. I've never found any price advantage to those programs, but they're free, and GREATLY improve your pickup time.