Things are changing. How to save money on your Hawaii car rentals throughout 2023..
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679 thoughts on “Savings Guide: 2023 Hawaii Car Rentals”
Things are changing. How to save money on your Hawaii car rentals throughout 2023..
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I rented a car for a week in Kauai and Hawaii in January for this August. Will the Car rental company honor the reservation and rate that was agreed on in January.
Aloha, Our Costco rental in May 2021 (reserved in oct 2020) was honored at the price stated $690 for 15 days. We had no problems at all on our awesome vacation
I had a trip planned to BI in two weeks from yesterday, I’ve had to cancel due to multiple reasons…
But when I originally reserved a vehicle via the Turo app, I found prices already higher than normal, yet was able to book a vehicle that would have worked well… Then I had the host cancel on my without any warning, so I booked another and low and behold it happened again and I had to book a third vehicle, which like the first two, was canceled by the host without a word…
I’m over this nonsense that the Hawaii government has created with many aspects of a simple hawaiian vacation!!!
Thanks for the informative post BoH. The rental situation in Hawaii is quite critical and only rivaled by the situation in Alaska of late. Both locations share the fact that it’s tough to move new vehicles there due to their location.
We at AutoSlash share your observation that Kauai is quite a bit worse off than the rest of the Hawaiian Islands. We’re not exactly sure why this is the case, but we’re turning away people every day looking for rentals at LIH. That said, we do see availability pop up occasionally, but it usually sells out quickly. We advise folks to keep checking as inventory does pop up from time to time.
On a similar note, rates are approaching nosebleed territory, but prices do drop from time to time. You can often save by frequently re-pricing your rentals, or, if you don’t want to spend your free time turning into a car rental pricing geek, AutoSlash offers a free service that will track pricing on an existing reservation and let you know when a better deal comes along.
We also wanted to let folks know that we’ve observed that the major rental companies have been imposing minimum lengths on rentals. If at first you don’t find availability for your particular dates, try extending the rental day-b- day until availability starts showing. We’ve even seen this work on Kauai, although less than on the other islands. The great thing about this hack is that you can just return the vehicle on your originally planned date and you’ll usually get a credit for the unused time. It’s the perfect hack for the perfect storm we find ourselves in these days.
Lastly, you guys are right that there’s been massive consolidation in the industry. Note that Payless is also owned by Avis Budget Group (ABG), so each of the major companies has 3 brands under their umbrella. Quite honestly, Payless used to be a terrible company, but ABG has cleaned up their operation significantly over the past few years and they can be a way to save a few bucks in some cases.
Has anyone had issues with Costco rentals not available when they show up in Maui(Since they aren’t pre-paid). I have a trip planned in September and am a little worried about vehicle availability.
Rented in May 2021 (reserved Oct 2020) no problem at all but. They’ve honored the price of $690 for 15 days rental
Aloha,
The last sentence in the section on getting a receipt was cut off, of course I want to know the rest!
“Otherwise, it will…”
Thank you for all the interesting articles!
Lanell
HI Lanell.
It’s reassuring to know that at least someone is watching. 🙂 It is fixed. Thanks.
Aloha.
Hi,
We spent 3 weeks in Waikiki from July 8 – July 29.
We rented an SUV for one day at the AVIS counter at the Sheraton in Waikiki. When we returned the SUV and asked about renting another vehicle in a couple of days. We were shocked when the agent shows us a bunch of keys and told us he had cars but couldn’t rent them because he couldn’t get anyone to come and clean/sanitize them.
Can you believe that – we would have cleaned the damn car.
Has anyone used Turo before? My concern with that option is that there does not seem to be any protection for the consumer against the car owner cancelling your reservation, even hours before arrival.
I’ve had nothing but bad luck with Turo. Leave a straw on the floor and get charged for cleaning. Gas not quite up to full? Pay for gas AND a $10 fee for the owners trouble. Be sure to wash the car before you return it or you’ll pay for the owner to wash. The owner can nickel and dime you fir anything and everything
My one and only time with Turo was a good experience – in Maui this past April. I would just make sure that the owner has some experience and good ratings. There should be an option to pay a little extra to return the car without cleaning it. That was my one mistake- I agreed to clean it and because of the line at the car wash I almost missed my flight. My owner was fantastic throughout the whole process. I did have to pay a little extra to pick it up at the airport, but it sure beats waiting in line at car rental counter.
I didn’t want to jinx myself on my earlier reply, but now that we’re midway through our trip I’ve got a little more to say. Whenever I make reservations through the app I like to use, I make two reservations. Same this time, Allsave/Fox cancelled my first one, but would rent me the exact same car, for the exact same times, for the exact same days, for four times the price, and would NOT honor the reservation I had. However, Thrifty honored the other reservation I made on the same day for a few dollars less than the original reservation, still twice the other companies reservation.
We got a 2018 Dodge Grand Caravan for $723 total! Took less than 5 minutes to complete the reservation and they sent us out to pick from a dozen mini vans.
Because of replies here I also made a Costco reservation but it was considerably more than Thrifty…
Thanks for the article, this was very useful. I just reserved a car from Discount Hawaii which was better than priceline etc but holy cow, it’s crazy. It was also like $200 more than when I looked a week ago. I’ll keep checking.
I did accidentally choose the wrong country of origin for me (Oman) on my search (thought it was state – OR), and the price was dramatically different. I then looked at other countries and the ones I checked, including Mexico. The prices were 1/3 of what I get for the US or Canada. Why does it seem travelers from north America are being gouged? Also makes me wonder when the supply of 45k cars is down by ~25% but the price increase is 250%. I wonder if a class action is in the future.
Thanks again for the info
Hi Ron.
Thanks for your first comment. Good to hear from you and have a great time in Hawaii.
Aloha.
Hmmmmm. Your comment is very thoughtful and interesting and it makes a person wonder……… WHY? Probably GREED :0(
Ron – it is always important to put the correct country where your driver’s license is from on your rental inquiry when you are searching on discounthawaiicarrental.com. We do have all inclusive rates for travelers from outside of North America at present, and unfortunately these rates are not being offered by the car companies to North Americans at present. We do recommend you book the best vehicle on your first search, even if it looks a little higher than expected. The way rates are right now, it is best to hold a vehicle in case of sell outs. You can then come back and check again whenever you wish, and if the rate is lower, you can always rebook and cancel your existing reservation – there is no charge to do so. And we are finding that sometimes cars are all showing sold out one day, then a search a day or so later shows cars, as the car companies release more, so if you are unable to find a car, keep searching the website right up until the day of departure.
Thanks for the information. ‘Very helpful.
We are planning a trip to hawaii in October November, and I wonder if there is a senior surcharge for car rental with Costco.ca. I read the terms, and can’t see any. I will be 73 and my partner 75.
We have rented from Costco (USA) many times and never heard of or seen any type of senior discounts. But, usually, their rates are the lowest and you do get the 2nd driver free – if that helps at all.
We at Discount Hawaii Car Rental are noticing some more availability and lower prices at some locations right now. It is a great time to pull up your current reservations, and double check on our website – you might get a pleasant surprise. We have helped some of our own customers save quite a bit of money for reservations even within the next few days. These rates can come and go, so it is always wise to check regularly. Even if your trip is planned way into the future, it is always best to book the lowest rate now, and then watch rates, re-booking if they come down. Here’s hoping we can get you the best possible rates for your upcoming trip.
Aloha BOH family! Yesterday, July 2, 2021 our group arrived on Kauai. We have 7 families traveling which meant 7 rentals to be had. Needless to say I was a little stressed with what they had available for us. I booked all the Jeeps and SUV with Discount Hawaii Car Rentals back in July 2020 for this trip. Not only did Thrifty/Budget have all the cars ready but they were excited to see ours amazing rates and honored them! Our 4 door Jeep for 7 days was under $500! So moral of the story, BOOK EARLY and Use Discount Hawaii Rentals. Mahalo!!!
Hi Amanda.
Thanks for letting us know how it worked out. Have a great time on Kauai.
Aloha.
So good that you booked way in advance – this is the best way to get lower rates – keep watching the website and grabbing lower rates as they appear. When rates go up, and they at times, you have the best rate held for you. Great job!
I appreciate your response although I’m sorry I neglected to follow the rules before posting.It has been fascinating to read the comments on other articles and the tension between Native Hawaiians and the tourist industry. I’m an Alaska Native who lives in a tourist town and there are many parallels.Although our town has less than 10,000 tourists, next summer we will have multiple cruise ship days where the number of passengers disembarking will equal our population.
Hi Clarice.
Thanks. We appreciate your input.
Aloha.
I booked my car rental months ago for my December trip but I’m very concerned that the agency won’t honor the reservation when I arrive. Do you have any tips for ensuring a car is actually available?
December is a long way off. Rental car companies are shipping cars to the islands as fast as they can. You’ll probably be fine.
Having said that, rental companies give priority to customers who belong to their loyalty programs and / or have status in those programs. If you are a member or have status, I wouldn’t worry.
Thankyou very helpful hints as we will be renting this December.
Hi Helen.
Thanks for your first-time comment. Please let us know how it goes.
Aloha.
Why does people in charge of this let this happen? Again GREED is the only thing I can think of. Rediculious!!
Thank you for this information. I wanted to help with another option. I looked at Expedia, Priceline, even Discount Hawaii for a one week compact or standard size car in November on Kauai. They were all about the same, $1100-1200 for the week. Then I looked at Costco Travel and I was able to book a car with no cancellation, taxes and fees included for $659! If you are a Costco member, give their travel service a try. It saved me about $550!
Good ole Costco! Been booking with them for years and years. Can’t complain at all. Thanks for letting us know that they are still, and always have been, competitive – or better!
Priceline is a rip off. they quote one price, then when you get your total, after you put in your credit card – they raise the price and their fine print says that ‘some destinations’ have additional fees – making the price of the car higher than other companies.
Why are so many things so crazy in hawaii? Its like yes visiting is nice but living there can turn into a nitemare fast. Things start really adding up over time for some!
Aloha Beatofhawaii, your articles on car rentals and about testing 72 hours before the flight are very helpful and I am keeping up with all questions and answers as we fly out of LAX to Kona on July 5th and need to know about the testing and rentals. Thanks for keeping us informed. Hope we find out more about that 72 hour test. Bev F.
Hi Bev.
Thanks. We hope it all works out perfectly for your Big Island trip.
Aloha.
my wife and I have visited Hawaii 4 times over the years.I love visiting the islands and would love to return. Unfortunately, we are not made of money and to pay those ridiculous fees for car rentals is not acceptable. Therefore my wife and I shall not be revisiting the beautiful state of Hawaii again. I know it is our lose but I have more brains than money and can see a price gouge when I recognize ( use any excuse you want ; chips, Co-vid etc)
We, at Discount Hawaii Car Rental do anticipate lower prices returning in the future, making this destination more attainable financially. We do hope to see you back in the future when things settle back down.
when 60% is reached, Will fully vaccinated travelers from California be able to fly to Kona with NO additional vaccinations required?
Scott A. We are flying in on June 29th to Kona.
Mahalo
Hi Scott.
Yes, that is what the governor has indicated.
Aloha.
As the Manager of Discount Hawaii Car Rental, I would love to comment on this. Because of the computer chip shortage as well as Covid, Hawaii is experiencing a shortage of rental vehicles, and prices have gone up to cover costs for the car companies trying to recover. As a third party, we book cars at discounted rates and with extra benefits through the major car companies, and we can see both sides of this situation, as we talk on the phone to hundreds of clients a day looking for car rentals. We know this situation will get better as the car companies are able to replace lost vehicles, and this should also bring pricing back down. We always want to save our customers money wherever possible, and we encourage them to contact us so we can listen to their concerns and try to solve them.
Beat of Hawaii has done a great job in their article above helping customers become aware of areas where travelers can save money – thank you for this, as all customers need to know where to look to save money. Items like car insurance, gas packages etc. are areas to examine closely- know ahead of time if you need to purchase insurance, and what you may already be covered for, and be aware of what you are signing for before you take the keys. Always read the charges on the screen before you sign.
If you must make changes to your contract, you may be penalized, as the rates are subject to change when alterations are made. We encourage our customers to contact us before they make any changes such as adding a day, changing dates/times, a driver’s name, or flight changes, as our staff are trained to make sure we protect your rate, or inform you ahead of time if the change will affect your rate. Our staff have been known to save customers lots of money by protecting their rates, and also finding better rates.
We recommend “book early, and watch the rates” – our reservations are free to cancel so if a better rate is available, book it and cancel your previous booking.
Hi Kathy.
Thanks. We appreciate your first-time comment and your insights on our crazy car rental situation.
Aloha.
We love Beat of Hawaii, and everything you have to offer travelers to Hawaii. We are always appreciative of the mentions you provide about Discount Hawaii Car Rental, as we are a customer service oriented business. Without our customers, there would be no us, and we don’t take that lightly.
Thank you! I have booked with DHCR for many years.
Just sent a request to change my booking in August because of flight itinerary changes.
Awesome! Getting in touch with us is the best method – we can work directly with the car company to make sure you don’t lose your rate if possible.
Aloha Kathy.
We use you ALL the time, & know to reserve & watch for price updates. It’s great to have a company explain the “Why’s” because there are many wrong assumptions. Mahalo!
We always try our best to get enough information out to our clients so they are not charged any more than absolutely necessary. We have been working very hard behind the scenes for our clients, and it was a great opportunity to share this information with others that travel, hoping to help them be more aware of things to watch out for. We are always happy to help out.
Aloha and mahalo Kathy! Since I’ve followed BoH (a long time) I’ve used your service and have never been disappointed – my travel buddies used to laugh when I’d book cars before we even dried the ink on a place to stay – but my experience has been the classic case of “the early bird catches the worm” – I appreciate both BoH and DHCR! Both have saved me hassle and money!
Hi Tea.
Thanks for the nice words and your dozens of comments.
Aloha.
You are doing exactly the right thing. Bookings as soon as you know your dates is perfect. With our system, booking and canceling is always free so you can hold a reservation, and keep searching our website in case the car companies reduce their rates (and they do!) There are often great deals that show up and disappear, and if you are diligent you can often get lower rates. And if rates end up going up, like they did this year, those that booked “early” ended up holding rates much lower than what is now being offered.
Kathy S.
I have a question…we have our car rental booked for mid January for 6 weeks. What happens if we get there and they cannot honor the reservation? Are they required to make good on the reservation as soon as a car is available or are we just out of luck? We have our reservation with Budget and it is a much lower rate than they are currently showing since we booked some time ago.
Thanks in advance for any info you can give us. Just when we think the trip may get easier since we are vaccinated, now we have to worry about actually getting the car we reserved when we get there…UGH
Mid January is 7 months away. The situation will be different by then.
No it wont.
If there is ever an issue, get in touch with us right away – we have had really great success getting our customers vehicles – in most cases there haven’t been any issues getting a vehicle – it just might not be that “wrangler” you wanted – and even then we have had success getting the wrangler switched out when one becomes available. The car companies should be getting more vehicles over the next few months, and hopefully this issue will not be around for much longer (we hope).
I have visited Maui at least 7 times over the years. Love, love love it. My question is did the Rental companies suddenly sell all of their cars and not restock? I keep hearing a shortage of inventory but no answer as to why there is a shortage of inventory. Don’t understand why the chip shortage has to do with a system that was running prior to covid suddenly needs new chips. Really would like to visit again, but under these circumstances will wait. Thank you BOH for your great coverage and ACURATE coverage of this problem in the beautiful Hawaiian Isles.
Hi Jerry.
Thank you! Yes, those are the factors we keep hearing about the car rental companies. And we do recall they were selling cars here in Hawaii with a big discount just a year ago. Also, manufacturers are selling what inventory they have into the retail market rather than to car rental companies. Plus, as you mentioned, there are chip shortages. That’s why people are calling it the perfect storm.
Aloha.
Having been following this thread closely since I booked two weeks in Maui at the start of August. Managed to get a car for about $800/week a while back. Not great but seeing it’s almost 60% higher now for the same vehicle.
Now our airline changed the flight plan and we get in 6 hours early. Ov vey. We might be walking to our accommodation!
You can try to pick up early, some car companies try to accommodate early arrivals, but otherwise, you may have to wait to get the vehicle. If you booked through Discount Hawaii Car Rental, you can contact us and we can advise the location of your earlier arrival time and see if they can adjust your rental without affecting the overall rate.
This means they are renting our “reserved” vehicles to someone else at a higher price which is despicable greed. Thats how you make up for a list year in just a short time!!
If we have a “reservation” then our vehicke should not be in the Rental pool for someone else to rent. A promise (reservation) is a promise.
Having this happen on Oahu is one thing. There are alternatives. But we stay in upcountry on the Big Island. We would be STUCK!
And we thought all we had to think about was covid. DRATS!
Some visitors are extending their rentals because of flight changes etc., and the car companies are not getting cars back at the expected times at times, making it harder to get that vehicle ready for the next customer. On top of the shortage, this can be very frustrating. We have not had very many customers let us know they had a situation similar to this, but whenever it has happened, we were able to get a car arranged for them quickly. You will need to keep in touch with the car company directly if you are sent away without a car so you can get a car as soon as possible.
Funny cars are available at 100 plus a day…no shortage there…
Another recommendation for Autoslash here. I made my car reservation 90 days out, when the news of undersupply started hitting mainland newspapers, and after I rented at a very high rate, I gave them the reservation to watch – they found me a rate about 65% lower. I’ve never had a problem following through on their recommendations.
Thanks for another great article. Over the years, I became a creature of habit and got settled into my car rental routine, always rented a car for the duration of my stay just to have wheels. The car rental shortage motivated me to get out of my comfort zone and try something I never bothered with before. Arrived HNL Sunday afternoon. Had prebooked airport pickup with a local private shuttle service. The driver was waiting for us when we arrived at the pickup point. Literally within minutes I was at my condo. Price was less than half of what Uber/Lyft were quoting when I checked their apps as I was exiting the terminal. And no long wait for a pickup. No long wait at a car rental counter (yes even with Hertz Gold,I’ve waited as much as 20 minutes to get keys when Hertz counter was staffed by one solitary agent.), nor getting on and off the bus to the car rental counters in the HNL garage. Using local ride service to get around town on this trip. Rates much lower than Uber/Lyft. Life is good!
Hi Jon.
Thanks for sharing your creativity in Hawaii travel! Just to add that while alternatives work well in Honolulu, they become more of a challenge on the neighbor islands.
Aloha.
“3. Exorbitant taxes and fees. In addition to high base rates, there are the following additional mandatory fees and taxes. General excise tax (varies by island) up to 4.71%. State motor vehicle $5/day. Vehicle registration up to $1.45/day. Customer facility charge $4.50/day. Airport concession fee 11.1%.”
Hawaii has a price gouging law however, The State of Hawaii is not going to do anything about price gouging when they themselves are price gouging. Time to explore the Caribbean islands
Tried to change my rental car drop off time by one hour with Enterprise. Said I had to cancel and rebook!!! Really!!! The price went from $695 for eight days $2130.00. Going to keep the original reservation and try to change the drop off time when I pick up the van.
We really hate it when rental companies behave like this. The correct answer, and the one we would give one of our customers, is that there is absolutely no need to change your drop-off time when it’s only an hour or two. In fact, we wouldn’t even mention it at pickup. Just return an hour late. Enterprise will automatically adjust your rate accordingly, and it will be according to the *original rate plan* you booked and not some inflated rate based on the price of booking a new reservation today.
Keep in mind that rentals are based on a 24-hour day. Without getting too much in the weeds, that basically means that if you pick up at 12:00 PM on your pickup day, you have until 12:00 PM on your return day to return it at the same price, even if you originally booked for say a 9:00 AM return. If you return past the 24-hour mark (say at 1:00 PM) they’ll just charge you the prorated cost for 1 hour (usually one-third of the daily rate).
Hope this helps!
Helpful Info. Thanks!
I agree with Jonathan here – if you are just keeping the car an extra hour or two, first check your pick up time on the rental – does it match your drop off time? If so, you will be charged overtime at the car company’s rates per hour or day. If your drop off time is earlier than your pick up time, you can keep the car until your pick up time without any extra charges. If your drop off time is later than your pick up time, such as pick up at 1pm, drop off at 3pm, you actually have until 1pm the next day to return the vehicle at the same rate, as you are paying for 24 hour segments. I hope this helps.
Try using Turo, they are more flexible for pick up/drop off times. Look at an owner’s reviews from past renters. Owners don’t cancel people’s reservations because Turo automatically displays a message saying “This owner cancelled someone’s reservation” on the renter’s site.
I have read about reservations for car rentals not being honored when a visitor arrives. So I contacted a major car company in Hawaii, and two major companies that handle travel packages. I was advised by all 3 that if shortages occur, a company may have no available vehicles and that therefore, in that case, that it was true that your reservation may not be honored.So when you arrive, after all that traveling and planning for the trip there will be no car . Then what?? shuttles ? cabs? That’s not worth the gamble for me.
I will keep monitoring that situation as best I could, but , at this time, I’ve canceled plans for my fall trip.
This means they are renting our “reserved” vehicles to someone else at a higher price which is despicable greed. Thats how you make up for a list year in just a short time!!
If we have a “reservation” then our vehicke should not be in the Rental pool for someone else to rent. A promise (reservation) is a promise.
Having this happen on Oahu is one thing. There are alternatives. But we stay in upcountry on the Big Island. We would be STUCK!
And we thought all we had to think about was covid. DRATS!
I rented my car months in advance at a very reasonable price, however Fox/Allsave cancelled my reservation abruptly via text due to “overbooking” but would rent me another at four times the original rate! It doesn’t seem like that should be legal but I have no where to turn regarding their practices.
Spread the word! Great reason NOT to EVER use Fox. Thanks for letting everyone know. Sorry about your ordeal. Shameful conduct on their part. Hope something works out for you.
I learned 6 year’s ago that cheaper is not always better. I ysed Fox, for probably $20 than regular. When we got there they told me I would be getting a van instead of the small/midsize I’d reserved. There’s just two of us & I refused. Finally, after talking to gm they had me wait for a car to come in. It looked alright but was a ratty car. Worse car I’d driven, & customer service lacking. Good luck finding cars during this rough period. Except for this time I always use Discount Hawaii, & never had a problem.
If you book with Discount Hawaii Car Rental, we will always have your back – we will help you get a vehicle if there are none available at pick up time. Some customers were so adamant they were going to get a vehicle, that they insisted on waiting for the next available one to show up. If you are given a vehicle that is not safe, or is filthy, you can take it back to the counter and insist on a switch to a better vehicle, or contact us, we will help you get this sorted out.
I was under this impression that the high car rental prices are due to the car rental companies selling off their inventory. Are they increasing their inventory now? Hawaii needs to stop this high price gouging. We travel to Maui twice a year and never pay more than $700 with insurance. We have reservations for September and it’s the highest I’ve ever reserved a car. I hope and pray they lower the prices before the pandemic.
Hello. I’m not sure they can get enough cars to the islands. All manufacturers pretty much stopped in 2020, & I thought I read last year tjat when covid hit the cars meant to be delivered were sent back to the mainland because the island’s would be closed. Now I think it’s about not being able to get ordered autos again, thus making prices enormously high. It’s a shame that ALL think the rental companies are price gouging; & I don’t think that’s their real intention. Covid has been hard on everything produced & prices will be higher. Luckily in early Jan. 2021 I found a midsize for $234 one week for mid February 2021. Good luck all.
Turo is a safe & reputable company. They have very strict requirements for private owners wanting to rent out their cars. You can check someone’s reviews and see what others have experienced. No long lines when you arrive, car is brought to you, & you can get suggestions on where to go, eat, swim, etc.
Please consider Turo and directly support a local family’s small business.
I’ve been watching TURO prices for three months now and they have become no differant in price than the rental companies. Cars that were renting for $45 are now going for $145 for the same time period and there are many cases of TURO owners canceling (TURO’S fee to the owner is only $50 if they cancel) and relisting for a higher rate. Some TURO owners have even been canceling at arrival leaving the renters stranded.
Turo automatically displays a message saying “This owner cancelled someone’s reservation” on the renter’s site. If what you say is true, there would be many of these messages. You can see it for yourself. Also, $145/day still sounds like good deal.
Thanks for suggesting this ! I got super lucky this April when I went to Oahu . We are not so lucky with cars for Maui this Oct. my fiancé also mentioned Hui. Has anyone heard of it? It sounds like the same concept as Turo.
I’ve been renting from Turo for the last three years and they’re the best! They met us at baggage claim which was more convenient than waiting for the shuttle or dragging your bags to the rental car counter. The car was clean and ran smoothly! I used to rent from Costco, but Turo’s rate is much less too. It’s a no brainer for me!
I picked up my rental on Kauai last week. Flight was changed and I was afraid to make any changes to my car reservation. I got to Alamo 1hr later than my rental was for. They were so busy they didn’t care. My Jeep was waiting and the employees were actually extremely pleasant even though they were obviously overwhelmed. They honored the rate I had reserved ($505 for a Jeep for a week thru Discount Hawaii Car Rentals). The lady behind me mentioned she booked her car for $750 a day! Not sure what it was but ouch!
We were on the Big Island for 4 days first and had no problems there either. Head to Honolulu Wednesday for a week and hope to have the same experience.
Great deal you got – it always pays to book early and then watch the rates.
Aloha BOH Bro’s
I am no friend of big Corp, but if I were in the drivers seat of Hertz, Alamo, Avis or Budget I’d be in no hurry to expand my rental fleets. Think about it if you can triple the normal rate with a smaller fleet reduced staff and lower overhead that sounds like a winner to me and my stockholders.
I’m 40 plus years in the car business I don’t recall ever seeing new car dealer inventors this low. Fleet sales to rental car companies are non-existent all focus is on retail production, so I do not see this issue changing anytime soon.
Hi mile rental fleets are a disaster waiting to happen and rental car companies are notorious for lack of maintenance, so before driving off the lot in your vacation rental vehicle make sure to check the tires for wear. Also check the brakes when you hit the street.
Hi Richard.
Thanks for the sage feedback from four decades of car biz experience! We also appreciate your well over 100 other comments.
Aloha.
My 40 plus years is comparable to your guys 13 years of sage Hawaiian travel advice.
By the way I believe I’ve reached well over 100 comments here closer to 253, but who’s counting.
From Richard the guy has 253 make that 254 comments on BOH.
Hi Richard.
LOL. Lots of experience all the way around. Our technology says that makes 135 comments to date, but it isn’t perfect.
Aloha.
I am in the car business we are known to inflate numbers and make embellished statements, but we’ll go with 135 now 136.
Funny stuff.
Hi Richard.
It’s good to have a friend in the car business! LOL.
Aloha.
Thanks for the update, though we were hoping forgetter news. The prices are totally out of control and now puts our Family trip out of range. We will still vacation, but for better or worse, it can’t be in Hawaii.
Great article. I rent cars often (in Hawaii and other locations) and this sums up everything very well, whether you’re renting on the Islands or at a mainland destination. AutoSlash is a great car rental portal…but just so you know, the bookings made on it are via Priceline. I’ve never had a problem with them after 50+ rentals.
Turo is great! We found an inexpensive van through Turo and it was brought straight to the airport when we arrived – super convenient after long hours of travel!