Shortest car rental lines at MCO?

[BostonRob]

I thought i had a good rate from Alamo, but from what I've read o this board, it isn't worth the headache involved with their line at the airport. I had originally booked with National, but since they were costing me $15-$20 more per day, I decided that was too much.

Is there a happy medium between Alamo and National - decent price with small lines? Or am I just blowing this out of proportion? Will there be any lines on a Tuesday morning at 9:30? I don't travel much and I've never rented a car, so I'm clueless.

Before you all go suggesting National's Emerald service, know that I've already signed up with them, but since I'm only renting for 4 days, the only coupons available to me with them are upgrade coupons, which require counter service. So even if I do decide to pay more for National, I'll still be going to their counter.

 

[inkkognito]

It really depends on the time of day (I've even seen Alamo deserted at times). The most consistently short for me has been L & M. National, Avis, and Budget have usually been short, but every once in a while they have been crowded. Alamo has been the most crowded about 60 to 70 percent of the time.
Barb

 

[CarolA]

Really just depends on the luck of the daaw as to who will have short lines. I have been there when none of them had lines and when ALL of them had lines. I don't think anyone can predict it that well.

 

[cthetulips]

I have to laugh at the line question. Take a look at the people on your flight and see if you see them again. We had a funny experience. We kinda got friendly with another family after we had been in the same waiting section at the departing airport, then sat just a few rows away on the plane, then were in the exact same baggage claim area, and got to the car rental place (the same line) at the same time! All coincidence! We started laughing at each other by then...if we had seen them at Disney too, that really would have taken the cake! (but we didn't)
Anyway, the point of the story was... I have found the lines of both Alamo and National about equal and it seems to go in spurts/planes landing etc.
What I found different between the two is the general competence of the National workers vs. Alamo. Have never had a problem with National. It has always been smooth and efficient. Used Alamo once and didn't have as good an experience (slower moving line, competence of personnel, time it took to check in/out, had to keep reminding them of our discounted rate, which they forgot, tried to get us to add on all sorts of extras). We are sticking with National!

 

[ncbyrne]

We always rent with either National or Dollar. If you join Dollar's Fastlane, they have a separate line for members and you are taken ahead of others.

 

[Lewisc]

Have one of you go to the rental counter while the other gets the checked baggage.

 

[BostonRob]

Have one of you go to the rental counter while the other gets the checked baggage.

This seems like the best plan. I guess I'll have to cancel my reservation and make a new one in my wife's name. Then she can line up for that while I get the luggage. Sounds good.

 

[BonnieA]

I've rent from L&M a lot. There is never anyone ahead of me in line, always just walk up. Last time I rented from Alamo and it was a 30 minutes wait (Jan 05)

 

[crzy4dsny]

National Emerald aisle. No lines just walk to your car and get in.

 

[sadiebug]

Budget has the FastBreak program. You register for this "perk" in advance of the time you need the car (a few weeks ahead if I remember correctly - they send you a confirmation and a card). Then when you rent your car, you go straight out to the parking garage and pick up your keys. There is no standing in line at the counter inside the airport. We used this last May and it worked great!! We even got to upgrade our car to a Mustang convertible!!

 

[LoraJ]

This seems like the best plan. I guess I'll have to cancel my reservation and make a new one in my wife's name. Then she can line up for that while I get the luggage. Sounds good.

How is Amber?

Anyway, I am not sure exactly how it works, since I am the one who does all the driving, but they may also need to see some sort of ID for you if you plan on driving the car.

I would suggest going to mousesavers.com and go to the transportation section, click national and sign up for emerald aisle. And then they also have a coupon you can use. Not only did I save on the rental car, but I don't have to wait in any line


On our last trip we used Dollar. The line was pretty short compared to the others. My only complaint with them was that when we returned the car (In Ft. Lauderdale) we were unable to fill up the gas tank because hurricane Jeanne was coming and either the gas stations were closed, or the lines were extra long, we would have missed our flight. We got charged $65 for a tank that was 2/3rds full.

 

[BostonRob]

How is Amber?

Anyway, I am not sure exactly how it works, since I am the one who does all the driving, but they may also need to see some sort of ID for you if you plan on driving the car.

I would suggest going to mousesavers.com and go to the transportation section, click national and sign up for emerald aisle. And then they also have a coupon you can use. Not only did I save on the rental car, but I don't have to wait in any line


On our last trip we used Dollar. The line was pretty short compared to the others. My only complaint with them was that when we returned the car (In Ft. Lauderdale) we were unable to fill up the gas tank because hurricane Jeanne was coming and either the gas stations were closed, or the lines were extra long, we would have missed our flight. We got charged $65 for a tank that was 2/3rds full.

Amber is hot. So is my wife! Anyway, as you may have read earlier in the thread, I'm only renting for 4 days, and National's daily rates are ridiculously higher than some of the other companies (the weekly rates and coupons are great, but you can't use those on a 4 day rental). So Emerald is out. I may go with Budget and the fast break.

 

[GoofyHusker]

I've rent from L&M a lot. There is never anyone ahead of me in line, always just walk up. Last time I rented from Alamo and it was a 30 minutes wait (Jan 05)

We used L&M last year and loved them! We were there the week before Easter, so it was a busy time. Not only were they the best price, but they had no line and the service was fast & friendly. We will be using them again for our trip the first week of April.

 

[LoraJ]

Amber is hot. So is my wife! Anyway, as you may have read earlier in the thread, I'm only renting for 4 days, and National's daily rates are ridiculously higher than some of the other companies (the weekly rates and coupons are great, but you can't use those on a 4 day rental). So Emerald is out. I may go with Budget and the fast break.

Doh!
I missed that part.

That sounds like a good plan.

 

[the kabuki]

We used dollar, had signed up for their fastlane program. No waits, went to the front of the line.

 

[DrTomorrow]

Time of day is so important! We usually do National Emerald Aisle, but we tried Dollar last trip, due to its affiliation with SWA. We had a later flight on a Sunday (arrived at 3:30 PM) and hit the Dollar counter at about 3:45 - there was no one in line. We'd even done the FastPass / Fast Lane / Fast Break thingie, but we didn't need it. I asked the counter girl, and she said that there had been looooong line for hours, and it had just then slowed down.

 

[blitzkrieg048]

This Is A Great Program We Use It All The Time Never Had More Than 1 Person In Front Of Us.