Scoring decent rental car in Vegas

[rpd709]

Hey,

Heading out to Vegas at the end of next month and looking for guidence on getting a decent rental car at a decent price? I don't want a POS PT Crusier or similar maybe a nice full size or something.

Also,

For BS playing where is the decent places to go in Vegas? Unfortunately it seems to horribly be changing and not for the good either.

I'll be taking $2,500 to play with, rooms are already booked and comped, free flight to Vegas thanks to SWA so I don't have hardly any expenses.

Help/Guidence is greatly appreciated.

 

[Dyepaintball12]

Hey man - I looked around at individual sites and I found Budget was going to be the cheapest (I didn't actually book)

I was quoted $18/day for the week which was much better than other companies where I saw around $25/day. Coupons are also everywhere out there.

Now you do have to add like $30/day in taxes and fees but it is DEF worth it over using taxis

 

[shadroch]

You can check http://www.carrentals.com right now, but rates almost always get cheaper when you book within a week of use.
Book one now, but keep checking. You can cancel with zero penalty.
Check your own insurance and your credit cards to see what they provide. If you have any premium credit card- a Vias Platinum, for example, they will almost always make buying the extra insurance offered by the companies meaningless. If you have a Vias or MC Gold card, you do not need to take any extra insurance, no matter what the clerk claims or tries to sell you.I rent either a Charger or a Ford Escort. I'm 6'3, 335 pounds and they are fine.

 

[rpd709]

Thanks Shad,

We have an Amex that covers what your talking about.

Will look in about a week out.

What category does it take to get a charger... Would like to get one.

 

[aslan]

I've been using Dollar for the past several years. We always order two economy cars, which because Vegas Dollar has no economy cars, gets automatically upgraded to compact without charge. Then, if they are out of compacts, we get upgraded again. Being a member of Dollar's club gives us great rates, plus use of Dollar gives us SW Airlines frequent flyer miles. Also, their express is great; instead of going to the big counter at the McCarren Rental Car facility, we go straight to the parking garage for express check-in.

 

[shadroch]

Thanks Shad,

We have an Amex that covers what your talking about.

Will look in about a week out.

What category does it take to get a charger... Would like to get one.

Rent the lowest rate, offer the yard guy $10 for an upgrade. Has not failed me yet.

 

[rpd709]

Your the man, Thanks Shad!

Does it matter which company or do you ahve a perferred one.

The cheapest one I'm seeing is FOX rent a car for $19.95 a day for now and as you said I will check a week out.

Thanks Aslan, looking at all options right now.

 

[shadroch]

Fox is not in the main rental terminal. To rent a car in Vegas, you have to take a shuttle to the rental car terminal. With Fox, you need take that shuttle, plus a second one to Fox's garage. They also are very strict in insisting you have a copy of your car insurance policy with you.
Not worth the hassle, imho

 

[rpd709]

Your preference Shad?

Also any guidence on decent places to play for the BS player.

I know the main stay away rules lol

 

[WRX]

Las Vegas is just about the cheapest place in the country to rent a car. It's hard to go wrong or have any serious regrets, unless you have the misfortune to book late on an unusually busy weekend when the rates go up. So plan ahead.

Fox is significantly cheaper than the agencies that share the central facility, but it will take you extra time to get out there. Fox's cars are a bit more worn, as well. Be sure that all damage is carefully noted on the card before you drive off the lot.

They also are very strict in insisting you have a copy of your car insurance policy with you.

I've never run into that, despite renting from Fox several times. It's probably a violation of law for a rental car company not to allow you to refuse the CDW option. (FWIW.) In California, at least, insurers issue wallet-size insurance coverage verification cards that are legal proof of insurance in case you have an accident. I always carry one in my wallet. Insurers in most other states probably have a similar practice. BTW, Fox has never asked me for even as much as the insurance ID card.

If you're renting for several days, another possibility is to get a car from an Enterprise location away from the airport. This can save you some significant money, due largely to Enterprise not being required to tack on the airport surcharges, but I don't think the company is allowed to give you a ride from the airport. What you might be able to do is to check into your hotel first, and then get a ride from your hotel.

 

[tfg]

If you go to Travelocity, just put in your travel dates and they'll compare all the car companies on one, nice, easy to see page and highlight the cheapest one for the size car you want. I use this all the time. If you're going for a week, you can probably expect to be in the neighborhood of $125-$175 for a week, plus all of the crazy taxes and fees which will add up to be about another 50 or 60% of that.

You might want to call and check on the car sizes and the equivalent models. One time I was supposed to get a midsize and all they had was a PT Cruiser like you said, so I had to upgrade for like an extra $10/day. I recommend against the compact and economy cars. They are the pieces of **** small cars like Chevy Aveo's (the worst cars ever IMO). I would spend the little extra and get the midsize.

Another suggestion and this is just me personally, try to book you car pick up for a little earlier than your flight arrives so that you don't have to wait. There's all ready long lines in the car terminal and then sometimes with the places where you just choose any car in the size that you want, they're short staffed and you have to wait again in the garage for them to bring the cars around. I'm looking for my rental for next month and I'm going to probably book 1/2 hour earlier than I expect to be at the car terminal.

 

[aslan]

If you go to Travelocity, just put in your travel dates and they'll compare all the car companies on one, nice, easy to see page and highlight the cheapest one for the size car you want. I use this all the time. If you're going for a week, you can probably expect to be in the neighborhood of $125-$175 for a week, plus all of the crazy taxes and fees which will add up to be about another 50 or 60% of that.

You might want to call and check on the car sizes and the equivalent models. One time I was supposed to get a midsize and all they had was a PT Cruiser like you said, so I had to upgrade for like an extra $10/day. I recommend against the compact and economy cars. They are the pieces of **** small cars like Chevy Aveo's (the worst cars ever IMO). I would spend the little extra and get the midsize.

Another suggestion and this is just me personally, try to book you car pick up for a little earlier than your flight arrives so that you don't have to wait. There's all ready long lines in the car terminal and then sometimes with the places where you just choose any car in the size that you want, they're short staffed and you have to wait again in the garage for them to bring the cars around. I'm looking for my rental for next month and I'm going to probably book 1/2 hour earlier than I expect to be at the car terminal.

We used travelocity for years, until we found we could get even better deals by belonging to rental company travel clubs, including SWA FF miles, express check in and automatic upgrades. Here's an arrangement I made last October for a compact (book an economy, automatically gets upgraded to a compact):

1 Week at $89.41 per week. Unlimited mileage.

2 Extra Days at $13.99 per day.

Base Rate: $117.39

APT ACCESS REC FEE: $14.44
FACILITY CHARGE: $27.00
Rental Tax: $12.71
STATE TAX: $12.76
VEHICLE LICENSE FEE: $6.35

=================================
Total Estimated Charges: $190.65

 

[tfg]

That's not bad at all. Like 30-40% lower. What I'd like to know is what is the deal with the insurance these places offer? Is it worthwhile to get it?

 

[FLASH1296]

Check with your credit card company beforehand.

Your credit card company will automatically cover some of your liability.

Basically, the policy they are selling you is WAY overpriced.

 

[rpd709]

Hey man - I looked around at individual sites and I found Budget was going to be the cheapest (I didn't actually book)

I was quoted $18/day for the week which was much better than other companies where I saw around $25/day. Coupons are also everywhere out there.

Now you do have to add like $30/day in taxes and fees but it is DEF worth it over using taxis

What did you use to get that price?

 

[rpd709]

We used travelocity for years, until we found we could get even better deals by belonging to rental company travel clubs, including SWA FF miles, express check in and automatic upgrades. Here's an arrangement I made last October for a compact (book an economy, automatically gets upgraded to a compact):

1 Week at $89.41 per week. Unlimited mileage.

2 Extra Days at $13.99 per day.

Base Rate: $117.39

APT ACCESS REC FEE: $14.44
FACILITY CHARGE: $27.00
Rental Tax: $12.71
STATE TAX: $12.76
VEHICLE LICENSE FEE: $6.35

=================================
Total Estimated Charges: $190.65

What company was that and is that rate still available?

 

[aslan]

That's not bad at all. Like 30-40% lower. What I'd like to know is what is the deal with the insurance these places offer? Is it worthwhile to get it?

My regular auto insurance extends to rental cars, so I never get their insurance. Personally, I would not drive without insurance.

 

[aslan]

What company was that and is that rate still available?

It's Dollar. My wife uses Southwest to scout for deals, which she has found from experience gives the best deals. Generally Dollar comes out on top for Vegas, part of it being because we order economy cars which they always upgrade free of charge to compact because Dollar in Vegas has no economy cars. For a recent trip to Iowa, Avis had the best deal, believe it or not. For an upcoming trip to Vegas, this time on government business, Thrifty came out the best even considering we got a compact car vs. an economy car at Dollar. Rental car companies are hurting in this economy and running a lot of specials, so it's worth checking more than just the old standbys.

 

[tfg]

My regular auto insurance extends to rental cars, so I never get their insurance. Personally, I would not drive without insurance.

Yeah, my auto covers as well but the line they keep giving me at the rental places is that it will cover damage, etc but things like the cost the rental place charges for time that the car is in the shop being fixed and can't be rented out isn't covered. I don't know if this is a line of bull but it doesn't sound far fetched. A buddy of mine that works in insurance says to get it because even though it'll cost you a little more, if anything does happen it's easier to not have to deal with your insurance co. and potentially raising premiums and etc.

This is one thing I always get mixed answers on.

 

[shadroch]

Most CCs will cover all the extra insurance,including the much dreaded loss of usage, which is only a factor if you are renting during the very busiest times. The rental company will try to say they lost income while the car was in the shop, but thats only true if every other car they have is out and they turned away business because they were out of cars.
In general, you want to avoid sites like Expedia and Travelocity until the very last minute. With those sites, you pay at the time of reservation and you are locked in to that rate. Barring a major convention or a big fight weekend, rates almost always get cheaper 72-96 hours out. I rent in Vegas six times a year, minimum, and have about forty plus rentals to judge from.