Headed for a small vacation towards the end of next month and wanted to rent a mini-van or large SUV to haul 6 of us plus luggage. Curious since Covid if there are any other special deals out there that I may not know of. I checked Priceline and seems Hertz by far has the lowest rates, but didn't know if dealerships had anything going on or other ideas??
In Jan '20 I was renting a van for a 5 person travel of about a 10 hr drive each way to Atlanta. I had a reservation for Enterprise. I would have been picking up the van that night and when I went past the local branch in the morning they had just one low spec Grand Caravan on the lot. I figured that was gonna be it. While out on that drive, I also happened to pass the local Toyota Dealership's body shop. They had out a sign and a spread of cars highlighting rental.
I ended up with a high spec Toyota Sienna at a lower price. It was a great van for the trip.
I now own a high spec Grand Caravan and it was a great value but I'll share this... The 2nd and 3rd row seats in the Grand Caravans stow and go which is neat but my feeling is that functionality then leaves the seats as a compromise. The Honda's, Toyota's and Kia's seats don't fold the same. Less functionality but more passenger comfort. So, if hauling cargo, choose the Grand Caravan. If hauling adults in the 2nd and 3rd row, choose the others.
Edit: the folding Chrysler Pacifica seats in rows 2 and 3 are a little better than the Grand Caravan but still not as good as the other brands.
If you either pick up or drop off a rental car at an airport you are often subjected to tourist taxes and fees. This can be as much as another $20 per day. If you rent from the places in town, like near the car dealerships you will avoid the tourist taxes. The savings can be substantial.
It's Easter Break season, a busy time for family trips and big vehicle rentals. Further more, rental companies had reduced their fleet size. This means you can expect to see supply and demand at work which will likely result in some of the highest prices of the year. Get a reservation early. It will cost you nothing to cancel but it could cost you a fortune to wait.
I was wondering about dealerships renting. I've never seen them advertise that so didn't know if it was a speak easy kinda thing. I was going to try and lock something down this week or next to beat the crowds fighting over what was left.
I live in a small town. There is one Enterprise office. Most dealerships use enterprise rentals for loaner cars. But...my Toyota, Chrysler/Jeep, Buick/GMC shops are all owned by one guy. Out of the Toyota place he maintains a fleet to bypass Enterprise. They have no web reservation presence but you have to either call or stop in at the dealerships.
My local toyota dealer rents cars
last 7 years I have had land cruiser, sienna, tundra, and sequoia from them
however now that I bought 5 mirai a - each come with 21 day free rental so I gotta spend the 100+ days dealing woth hertz and national . Oh well 1st world problems
Land cruiser would be a nice rental. I had a 100 years ago and it was spacious
I have been renting a 200 for a while when my wife is out of town with her 570 or if it's in our flathead lake house .
I have even taken rental 200 to toyota Moab summit. Fun beating other people's cars
I owned a 100. Never rented one. When 100 was new, our toyota dealer didn't offer rental services
But no way a 200 will fit 6+ luggage, unless you have a 21 cubic Thule box on roof like we do on our lx
I actually have a roof box and a hitch haul carrier that I use to hold the excess stuff. I called around to the 2 local Toyota dealers and neither currently do rentals.....bummer
That's a bummer
I am looking to rent a nv3500
none here available. I like to rent before purchase. I am looking to do 3500+ 4wd conversion
You may want to look into Turo. I used it in the Denver area a couple years ago. It was moderately cheaper than going with a rental company. Lots of options around big travel hubs but may be limited in less populous areas.
I rented from Enterprise earlier this week, and reserved a "standard" SUV. When I went to pick it up, they gave me an Infiniti QX80, which is a "premium large" SUV in rental car speak. The rental agent said they had a bunch of the things, and looking around the lot she was right.
So if a QX80 would work for you it might we worth checking with Enterprise - but definitely call the location (not the national reservation center) first to confirm what they have on the lot.
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