Would you book this rental car deal?

[proud_canadian]

I found a budget rental car for full size (Ford Taurus) for $212 CDN (just over $200 US dollars) for our week in September out of tampa. The catch is that I have to pre-pay with credit card if I want this rate.

I have had no luck finding anything remotely close to that price. I am hesitant to book it, as I know people have had a lot lower prices. I also would really love to do national emerald aisle. I don't like that I can't cancel without a fee either, even if I find a better deal.

However, I also worry, as I have not found anything else under the mid $300's, and even those were for mid-size. I'm not sure if Tampa is more or I'm doing something wrong or we're just too far away! And if something happens and prices go up, instead of down, I might have missed this opportunity.

Would you book it??

 

[frannn]

But,that is because I have access to the discounts from Costco, BJs, the Entertainment Book, airline programs, etc. Being Canadian, are you able to take advantage of any of these discounts? Rates are higher than they were last year, which were higher than the year before. For comparison purposes, I currrently have a full sized car booked with Alamo for 11 days in Sept totaling 282, using the Entertainment Book discounts/coupons (thanks to a post by a great DIS'er). It has been my experience that it is best to have a car booked with the best non-prepaid I could find, then continue looking up until the day before we leave. Don't know if this year will hold true, but I hope to knock of at least 40 from our current rental car rate.

 

[TrustedTraveler]

I was really surprised by the increase in rental car prices this year, considering demand is down, so I went to Priceline and bid very low and my offer was accepted (total $304 for a minivan in Orlando back in January). At that point it was about 50% off the list prices.
By the time of the trip, prices had dropped to about $350 and I did hear of a coupon special for $199 plus tax and fees, which was within $7 of what I paid.
My suggestion would be to try Priceline bidding with a really low bid, try again 2 days later with a bid $2 more, and if you get to the point where the price you found looks like the better deal, take it.
My feelings with Priceline bidding are that they are close to the bottom, but there may be better last minute deals. I've waited before and got burned. I've never had a problem with Priceline bidding for cars or hotel rooms.

 

[phred52]

I would not book and pay for a car rental 5 months ahead of time.
What I would do is keep on looking several times a week, and keep trying different codes to lower prices. I use a spiral bound notebook, one page per company, and keep detailed enough notes so I can easily go back to something. ((realizing prices do change, I typically reserve the best price I find on my first day of looking...and then that's the price I aim to beat))

good luck

 

[jlewisinsyr]

I was really surprised by the increase in rental car prices this year, considering demand is down...

Demand is down, but so are inventory levels of vehicles. Agencies can easily reduce the highest component of their expenses just by turning in vehicles, selling them, etc. They are able to respond to reduced demand more so then other travel companies. Airlines sign long term leases that are hard to get of, but still require payments even if the airplane is just sitting on an open tarmac, Hotels cannot just cut off floors/wings to reduce inventory, they still have the same. Car rentals can adjust much easier, reducing inventory, thus increasing the rates of the rentals, meeting demand at a more reasonable rate and maintaining profitability.

 

[gilsan]

But,that is because I have access to the discounts from Costco, BJs, the Entertainment Book, airline programs, etc. Being Canadian, are you able to take advantage of any of these discounts?

Canadians can take advantage of the Costco and entertainment book discounts, as well as walmart.

I would keep looking for a better deal, or a deal without prepayment. check mousesavers they have a lot of codes.

Also if you prepay now and the Canadian dollar is up to 1.05/1.10 usd you will save even more. The predictions are that it will be that high this summer, and as of today we are almost at par 0.992

 

[Brian Noble]

For a week, that's a fair price, but September is a very slow time. I would probably not pull the trigger just yet.

 

[justplaingoofy]

Nope... I would not. I usually book in May for sept rental and even then I always end up rebooking because a lower rate comes out. Last Sept. I had a midsize car for 7 days for $120 including tax.

I've always had the BEST luck with Alamo. You can find discount codes on Mousesavers and as your trip gets closer you'll likely find more & more coupons. Whats great is you do NOT have to prepay. Just rebook if the rate comes down & cancel your old reservation