As we get older, we find it easier and harder to travel. Car rentals can make our travels easier in some places and more challenging in other places. Here’s the things we think about when we rent a car.
When a place has excellent public transit, we will always use it because:
- it is less expensive
- eliminates added parking costs
- we don’t need to learn a new country’s driving rules e.g., experience driving on the left
- it means navigation is simpler, especially if there is a lot of traffic
When we travelled through Vietnam, Japan, Spain, and Portugal it was easy to get to destinations by public transit, trains and/or taxis.
In places like San Miguel, the Azores, Canberra, Australia and Los Angeles, California, ŵe chose to experience these places by car.
Here’s why:
We wanted to see rural areas and we had a lot of distance to cover in a short period. If you have 3+ travellers in your party a car rental may make more sense.
Choosing A Car Rental
There are so many choices!
Here are a few sights that will curate your search. They have good filters to narrow your search selection. We use unlimited mileage, free cancellation, mid-size and manual/automatic most often to find our car hire.
Once we find a possible booking we go to Trip Advisor to search for reviews. If the local franchise has positive reviews then we make our booking. The cheapest is not always the best.
Car Hire Search Engines
These are the sites we use most often to research potential car rental companies:
These are a great place to start.
Insurance
Your car insurance from home can often be applied to your car rental. Several travel-themed credit cards also include care rental insurance. Make sure you take a copy of the insurance document and confirm that the car rental company you are using allows you to port your insurance. For example, we learned that the agency we used in Los Angeles did not recognize out-of-country insurance so we had an additional cost when renting. However, when we visited the Azores (Portugal), the agency (SIXT) did not require additional insurance. It is worth doing your research!
Drop Off and Pick Up
If a city has a great transit option from the airport and you are travelling light, you might save money booking your car rental closer to your hotel rather than the airport. Picking up at an airport always increases the rental price. Sometimes, it’s worth paying for the convenience. If you don’t wish to drive near a busy airport you might consider picking up the car in a less congested area.
Rentals are always cheaper if you pick up and drop off at the same location. Consider this when you plan your itinerary.
If we have an early flight departure we will often stay overnight at a hotel near the airport with a free shuttle. This means we can return the car a day early to avoid additional parking fees.
Membership Options
- If you are a member of the following you might be able to find a great car rental deal:
- Costco provides car rental services to its members
- CAA members can get a small discount
- if you are an Ontario educator there’s an EDvantage portal with discounted prices with reliable, well-known companies
- Book as early as car rentals in popular destinations can sell out.
We have rented many cars and have had reliable cars in all but one situation. The level of customer service is always a surprise! We have used EdVantage and Expedia to book in the past. We often find the right price and company by using our loyalty points in Expedia. We had good luck with SIXT too. Enjoy your search!
Our most recent car hire experience was in California. Read more about it here: https://lifeafter50travel.net/2024/08/27/spend-a-week-in-sunny-southern-california/
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