Renting a car...

[Kerrilyn]

Hi!

We are looking to rent a car for our trip at the beginning of September. Can you all help me out by letting me know what you consider to be the best way to go about doing this with some information? We would like a full size vehicle, is going through Costco the best thing (most economical)? Should we rent directly from a location at MCO or will taking a shuttle to an off airport renter be more economical? From what I have researched this morning, ACE is off airport, but their price is $13/day. How much of a hassle is it to get to the off airport renters? Is it worth it? Costco and anything located directly at MCO are more expensive than that at the moment. Is it worth it to wait a little longer to see if prices from Costco/MCO will drop? I am trying to get the best customer experience I can taking into consideration price, customer service and convenience.

Mille fois merci!

 

[Donald - my hero]

Hi!

We are looking to rent a car for our trip at the beginning of September. Can you all help me out by letting me know what you consider to be the best way to go about doing this with some information? We would like a full size vehicle, is going through Costco the best thing (most economical)? Should we rent directly from a location at MCO or will taking a shuttle to an off airport renter be more economical? From what I have researched this morning, ACE is off airport, but their price is $13/day. How much of a hassle is it to get to the off airport renters? Is it worth it? Costco and anything located directly at MCO are more expensive than that at the moment. Is it worth it to wait a little longer to see if prices from Costco/MCO will drop? I am trying to get the best customer experience I can taking into consideration price, customer service and convenience.

Mille fois merci!

If you're looking for the best service related to convenience --- strictly on-site at the Airport OR thru the Car Care Centre or any of the other rental agencies closer to Disney proper (there is one in the Dolphin) That way you don't need to worry about getting all of your luggage on the shuttle to get the car! If you go with one closer or on-site you can take the Magical Express and have them take your bags. Check on the transportation board for codes, look for a thread related to September rentals specifically. Also if you have an Airmiles card you can book directly thru the site & pay up front in Canadian $$ with a discount often. Which ever route you choose to go with, book it NOW and then stalk the site because unless you pay upfront you can cancel and make new reservations if you see a lower rate.

 

[Kerrilyn]

If you're looking for the best service related to convenience --- strictly on-site at the Airport OR thru the Car Care Centre or any of the other rental agencies closer to Disney proper (there is one in the Dolphin) That way you don't need to worry about getting all of your luggage on the shuttle to get the car! If you go with one closer or on-site you can take the Magical Express and have them take your bags. Check on the transportation board for codes, look for a thread related to September rentals specifically. Also if you have an Airmiles card you can book directly thru the site & pay up front in Canadian $$ with a discount often. Which ever route you choose to go with, book it NOW and then stalk the site because unless you pay upfront you can cancel and make new reservations if you see a lower rate.

This is why I LOVE posting my questions here! I always get FANTASTIC advice from people who know WAAAAAY more than me.
THANK YOU!

 

[FigmentSpark]

Unless you're planning on locking in your rental with a pre-pay, keep checking the prices as you get closer to your trip. We found the prices dropped in half about 1 to 2 weeks before our trip. I checked on Costco and on the Alamo site (where I'd decided to rent for a variety of reasons.)

 

[Kerrilyn]

Unless you're planning on locking in your rental with a pre-pay, keep checking the prices as you get closer to your trip. We found the prices dropped in half about 1 to 2 weeks before our trip. I checked on Costco and on the Alamo site (where I'd decided to rent for a variety of reasons.)

Thanks so much!

 

[FigmentSpark]

I should have mentioned... As long as you aren't paying in advance, you can make a reservation at a price that seems okay, but if you find a better price, make that reservation and cancel the other one. You can have more than one reservation for the same timeperiod, so make the new one first to make sure you get your price.

 

[Sue M]

I go thru Costco and would rent (Alamo) at the Car Care Centre, it's near TTC. Assuming you are staying on site, you can take DME from MCO to your hotel then call the CCC to come pick you up and get your car. Leaving you can drive to CCC and they will drive you back to your resort.
CCC is the only location that provides shuttle service. There is another location at The Dolphin if you are staying at one of the Epcot resorts.

We always use Alamo. I usually fly into Ft Lauderdale first to visit family, then drive up to WDW and after checking into resort I return car to CCC and they will then shuttle me anywhere in WDW. Most of the time MK is where we go our first day so I get dropped off at GF!

We are picking up rental Aug 27, and I now stalk Costco site every day! Had a small price drop today. I just rebook and cancel last res. Offer today included free upgrade. I booked Standard and got upgrade to Full Size. Plus small price drop, $257 for 10 days. I anticipate price will go down to possibly $200 for the 10 day rental. Our rising loonie also helps!

 

[ottjdub]

We always rent from Alamo. Word of advice of renting at MCO. Whoever is going to rent and sign the rental contract have that person race past the luggage pick up and go down one floor to the Rental Counters. Have another person grab the luggage off the carousals and then wait for the first person to come back up. By doing this you can avoid the long line ups at the rental counter depending on how many flights arrive at the same time. This little race has saved us lots of time waiting in line at the rental counters.

 

[csm101]

it boils down to convenience Vs cost. My job life etc. is stressful enough so when I take a vacation I want the least amount of hassle. Life the "national" car rental commercial says, pick a car is the aisle and drive its that easy. Do you math, look for codes etc. CAA has deals with Hertz but for me and my family we want to be on and gone!

 

[archdandy]

I always rent a car for my trips. Usually I go with Alamo because they are usually the cheapest and because I can skip the rental counter and go directly down to the cars when I do online check in. I usually do the online check in the morning before we fly out. I would suggest not pre-paying for a rental and instead just make a reservation and keep checking different places everyday for prices. When you find one that's cheaper, make the new ressie and cancel the old one. It's really up to you to decide if going off site on and taking a shuttle to the car rental place is worth it for you cost wise. Yes it is a bit cheaper than getting one directly from MCO but the convenience of just being able to grab our bags and go instead of having to take another shuttle is worth it. Don't check just one place for rentals, check multiples each day to get the best price. This site is also good to use because it gives you the prices for a lot of companies all at once: http://www.carrentalsavers.com/. As someone previously mentioned check the transportation board here on the DIS for a September car rental thread. They will hopefully be helpful with finding discount codes etc. for your dates. Good luck!

 

[iluveeyore]

I agree with everyone's previous posts, and just want to add my own experience...when I lived in Canada and traveled with all the kids (many, many years ago) we usually rented from the Car Care Center on Disney property because I enjoyed using Magic Express to alleviate the stress of driving around a busy area that I was unfamiliar with from the airport, and also because we didn't need the expense of a larger rental just to transport our luggage - I always liked getting a small or mid-size car, (plus it's cheaper) and all of our luggage would have never fit if we picked it up at the airport (although I'm sure I've heard of people sending their luggage on Magic Express, so that's probably not an issue anymore). The CCC shuttle was always on time and picks you up at your resort; however, that is only for Alamo/National car rentals, so if you find a better deal elsewhere, the airport will be your option for those. One time we had a better rental from Hertz I believe, but it was just two of us that time, so getting a smaller car at the airport and fitting our luggage was not an issue (usually it was five of us). And yes, always wait till the last minute (week or two out) as they offer better deals closer to the time of your rental. Happy planning and enjoy your trip!

 

[starvenger]

We always rent from Alamo. Word of advice of renting at MCO. Whoever is going to rent and sign the rental contract have that person race past the luggage pick up and go down one floor to the Rental Counters. Have another person grab the luggage off the carousals and then wait for the first person to come back up. By doing this you can avoid the long line ups at the rental counter depending on how many flights arrive at the same time. This little race has saved us lots of time waiting in line at the rental counters.

Love this. I've always wanted to do this but the kids were too young. They're old enough that we can do this now.

I typically use Budget if I can get a good deal. Because I have FastBreak I can skip the (main) lines which is advantageous at MCO and FLL.

 

[Kerrilyn]

Thanks for all the advice, everyone! Can't do DME because we are flying WestJet, but I will definitely get the husby to head down for the rental while I kid and luggage wrangle. Seems that Alamo is cheapest at this point. I have a reservation, but I will keep checking things out before I finalize.

 

[Sue M]

I go thru Costco and would rent (Alamo) at the Car Care Centre, it's near TTC. Assuming you are staying on site, you can take DME from MCO to your hotel then call the CCC to come pick you up and get your car. Leaving you can drive to CCC and they will drive you back to your resort.
CCC is the only location that provides shuttle service. There is another location at The Dolphin if you are staying at one of the Epcot resorts.

We always use Alamo. I usually fly into Ft Lauderdale first to visit family, then drive up to WDW and after checking into resort I return car to CCC and they will then shuttle me anywhere in WDW. Most of the time MK is where we go our first day so I get dropped off at GF!

We are picking up rental Aug 27, and I now stalk Costco site every day! Had a small price drop today. I just rebook and cancel last res. Offer today included free upgrade. I booked Standard and got upgrade to Full Size. Plus small price drop, $257 for 10 days. I anticipate price will go down to possibly $200 for the 10 day rental. Our rising loonie also helps!

Big price drop today!

 

[mernin]

Thanks for all the advice, everyone! Can't do DME because we are flying WestJet, but I will definitely get the husby to head down for the rental while I kid and luggage wrangle. Seems that Alamo is cheapest at this point. I have a reservation, but I will keep checking things out before I finalize.

why can't you use DME with WestJet? We did in Feb...

 

[Donald - my hero]

Thanks for all the advice, everyone! Can't do DME because we are flying WestJet, but I will definitely get the husby to head down for the rental while I kid and luggage wrangle. Seems that Alamo is cheapest at this point. I have a reservation, but I will keep checking things out before I finalize.

YES you can use Magical Express .... everyone can, doesn't matter which airline you arrive on. You will receive your luggage tags about a month before your trip. However, on your return trip you can't use Resort Checkin for your luggage, other than that it works the same for everyone.

 

[Sue M]

Thanks for all the advice, everyone! Can't do DME because we are flying WestJet, but I will definitely get the husby to head down for the rental while I kid and luggage wrangle. Seems that Alamo is cheapest at this point. I have a reservation, but I will keep checking things out before I finalize.

Just rebooked again today with Costco, Alamo dropped to $210 for 10 day rental (picking up on 8/27) for an intermediate size with free upgrade to Standard size.
Note: we are getting car in Ft Lauderdale airport so MCO may have different price, it's all supply & demand. But prices do change dramatically. I am within a month if my trip and now into checking several times a day, as prices can nexpectedly drop then rise

As mentioned, you can use DME!! The only difference is you can't check luggage at resort airline desk going home.
I think car prices may be cheaper at CCC, then airport fees.

 

[FigmentSpark]

Just rebooked again today with Costco, Alamo dropped to $210 for 10 day rental (picking up on 8/27) for an intermediate size with free upgrade to Standard size.
Note: we are getting car in Ft Lauderdale airport so MCO may have different price, it's all supply & demand. But prices do change dramatically. I am within a month if my trip and now into checking several times a day, as prices can nexpectedly drop then rise

As mentioned, you can use DME!! The only difference is you can't check luggage at resort airline desk going home.
I think car prices may be cheaper at CCC, then airport fees.

Keep checking... now that your date is nearing, you might see further drops.

 

[Sue M]

Keep checking... now that your date is nearing, you might see further drops.

I've been checking 2x a day now, morning and evening! Last year the lowest price was at a month out. The years before fluctuated between 1-2 weeks out. Sometimes price doesn't drop in the morning, but does by evening!
Last year was the most expensive @ $234 for 10 days, it usually is around $195-$200.
Since I have summers off I have lots of time to play around with this lol! Almost at my target of $200, anything lower is gravy!

Actually I could get lower price with dropping down to economy or compact but I really don't like anything smaller than a standard. With the crazy drivers in Fla I want some car around me
And also don't want something too low to get into. I like my creature comforts.

 

[Kerrilyn]

why can't you use DME with WestJet? We did in Feb...

I think I had it in my head that we couldn't because we flew in to Sandford last time... I am just confused