Which rental car firm is FASTEST in MCO?

[mollybeasley]

Which rental car companies are easiest to use and get you out of the airport fastest? It's easy to shop for price, but harder to know which ones are easiest to use.

We will have 1-3 drivers, one of which is under 25. Is it usually necessary for all three to go to the counter? (We'd rather split up and have one get the car, while the rest wait for the bags.)

Any other tips will be greatly appreciated.

 

[dudspizza]

Which rental car companies are easiest to use and get you out of the airport fastest? It's easy to shop for price, but harder to know which ones are easiest to use.

We will have 1-3 drivers, one of which is under 25. Is it usually necessary for all three to go to the counter? (We'd rather split up and have one get the car, while the rest wait for the bags.)

Any other tips will be greatly appreciated.

National is by far the fastest in my opinion. If you are a member of their Emerald Club, you simply walk to the garage, pick your car, and drive to the exit booth. It is there that you had them your info, they print out the contract, and you are gone. I love National for this very reason!

Duds

 

[Tara]

If you are not a member of any rental priority club, like Emerald Club with National or Alamo's program (Quick*Silver - that word is censored on the board but not because of Alamo), these agencies are still the fastest. You can check-in online (if you aren't using a coupon - you can use a discount code, but not a coupon code when you check-in online) and go right to the garage and pick out a car. Or you can use the "save time" option in your confirmation email to pre-register so that you can use a kiosk instead of standing in line in the terminal. This lets you self-service to finish your rental and then go to the garage to pick out a car. The kiosk process just takes a couple of minutes and I've never seen a line for the kiosks.

I especially love that I can pick my own car. I look for certain types of cars, try to find one that doesn't smell (sometimes the cleaning product smell can be overwhelming) and I usually try to find one that has a light colored interior if I'm visiting in hot weather.

 

[Detailor]

...Alamo's program (Quick*Silver - that word is censored on the board but not because of Alamo)...

The new name for Alamo's program is Alamo Insider so we won't have to deal with the banned company name any more.

Dick Taylor

 

[Tara]

The new name for Alamo's program is Alamo Insider so we won't have to deal with the banned company name any more.

Dick Taylor

Thanks for the info. I've been checking rates daily on the Alamo site and hadn't noticed the change!

 

[lost*in*cyberspace]

They are all pretty much the same. Just depends on how long the line is at the counter.

We will have 1-3 drivers, one of which is under 25. Is it usually necessary for all three to go to the counter?

Usually yes. They want to see everyone's license. Be sure and let the rental company beforehand about the under age 25 driver. This can cause problems and a higher rental fee.

 

[Dan Murphy]

National and Alamo. Pick out your car, check out, and drive away.

 

[Tom Cecere]

I have been using alamo for the past 6 years and have had no problem. I am not sure how they will handle the under 25 year old if you use the quick service.

 

[safetymom]

Hertz is fast. If you are a member of their #1 Club you can walk to your car. The first time you rent from them you will need to stop at the counter to verify your license.

 

[ruadisneyfan2]

National and Alamo. Pick out your car, check out, and drive away.

To clarify, you can't just drive away. You still have to go through the exit booth and show your DL, CC, paperwork, etc.
Still, waaaay faster than having to wait in line inside the terminal.

 

[Detailor]

Which rental car companies are easiest to use and get you out of the airport fastest? It's easy to shop for price, but harder to know which ones are easiest to use.

Several of them are easy and quick - but the best advice that I can give you is to reiterate what dudspizza and Tara said: if you belong to a company's frequent renter program you'll get through very fast. And you don't have to actually rent frequently to be accepted or get value from these programs.

We like Dollar - select a car from the row in the garage with cars of the type that you rented and drive to the exit booth to be checked out - using Dollar Express, National - select a car from the row and check out at the booth as you drive out OR select from the Emerald Aisle (or Executive Aisle, depending on your status) for a wider selection of vehicle types (if you rent midsize or greater type) - using Emerald Club, and Budget using Fastbreak as all of these get you past the ridiculous long lines at the reservation desks in the airport. We also select companies that have onsite locations at the airport. So even though great companies like Hertz have excellent programs to get their frequent customer in and out quickly we don't consider them for Orlando because they're located offsite at the other end of a bus ride. [I'll note though that there's a customer status element for Hertz and other offsite companies' customers so it can be viable for those who use those companies a lot. And Hertz' program is excellent.]

So join up and add your member number to your reservation to make renting a car as quick and easy as it can be.

Dick Taylor

 

[ruadisneyfan2]

I think I heard Hertz and Thrifty are now onsite at MCO.
Can anyone confirm?

 

[lost*in*cyberspace]

I think I heard Hertz and Thrifty are now onsite at MCO.
Can anyone confirm?

This information is easily found on the MCO website:

http://www.orlandoairports.net/transport/rental_cars.htm

 

[Tara]

So even though great companies like Hertz have excellent programs to get their frequent customer in and out quickly we don't consider them for Orlando because they're located offsite at the other end of a bus ride.

Hertz is now located onsite.

 

[Dan Murphy]

To clarify, you can't just drive away. You still have to go through the exit booth and show your DL, CC, paperwork, etc.
Still, waaaay faster than having to wait in line inside the terminal.

LOL, well, yes, that is true. If you try it my way, you will have tire spikes bringing to a stop pretty quickly. Thanks for clarifying, rua.

 

[Detailor]

Hertz is now located onsite.

That changes my opinion. Well worth using Hertz onsite!

Dick Taylor

 

[CR Resort Fan 4 Life]

We have rented multiple times from Avis and each time they were very fast, plus we had no issues with them.

We also rented twice before from National and both times we had issues with them. The 1st time their agent had no idea what she was doing and took her almost 20 minutes to ask for help, while we just stood at the counter. The 2nd time we were told our discount was not good, even though we had the coupon from the old Disney Club proving it was valid along with a confirmation which mentioned it. However eventually they finally agreed we could get our specifc reservation with the discount we had. So because of those problems we refuse to ever rent from them again.