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It is very expensive to renting cars for vacation. Renting a car for a vacation can be as expensive as lodgings, making it difficult to budget your money.
KBB predicts that in 2022, renting a car will be more difficult due to recent disruptions in travel and the global supply chain. We have compiled our top tips to help rent a car and save money.
How to Get a Cheap Car Rental
We sold all of our possessions when we became full-time travelers in 2022. We don’t like driving abroad but renting a car service Vermont when visiting our home country in the United States is an option. We are budget-conscious travelers and have learned some car rental tips to help us find the most affordable way to rent a vehicle.
These tips are based on natural methods that we have used to get the best rates for car rentals.
What is the cost of renting a car?
The answer to the question “How much does it cost for a rental car?” is not simple. Many variables affect the actual cost of renting a car.
Are you renting a car in another country? What length of time are you renting cars? What type of car do you rent? Is insurance required for your rental car? Are there any additional fees?
The cost of a rental car will depend on many factors, some of which you cannot control.
We won’t generalize car rental prices to answer the question, “How much does it cost to rent a car?”. Instead, we will share our top tips on car rental and secrets to help you save on your next rental car.
Compare Car Rental Prices
Comparing prices online is the best way to find a rental car that fits your budget. Expedia is our favorite car rental website. They offer the most consistent rates, and we believe they are the best.
Expedia allows you to select specific characteristics, such as the type of car and company. Expedia is known for its top features, including the ability to view the discounted AARP rate (verification at rental facility required) and the map search (which we’ll discuss in a moment).
While Expedia is our favorite car rental search engine, we recommend you check out another source before booking. Priceline is our backup source for cheap Car Service Springfield MA rental online. Priceline is similar to Expedia. You can compare rental car rates; in some cases, you will find the best car rental deals even if the price is just a few dollars.
These sites are worth checking out as you get closer to your car rental date. Last-minute deals are possible, as car rental reservations can almost always be canceled free of charge. You can cancel your car rental reservation at any time. If you find a better deal, cancel your original reservation to avoid confusion.
Expedia Bonus Car Rental Tips: We love Expedia because you can earn rewards points for bookings (cars, hotels, and more). Another advice for car rental: Make sure you check with your university or employer to see if they offer a discount code that will allow you to renting cars at a lower price.
Take a look beyond the price per Day
Never compare the Per Day price when searching for car rental online. Instead, it would help if you searched by the Total Price. It is one of the best ways to save money on car rentals.
The listed Per Day rate is often offered at a low price to lure you in. However, it does not include taxes or fees. The pesky fees are different for every rental car company. They also vary depending on pick-up locations and other factors. In many cases, a low Per Day cost can easily translate to a higher Total Price.
Expedia’s search engine for car rentals lets you search by total price rather than per Day rates.
Bonus Car Rental Tip: Before renting a car, check whether the vehicle has unlimited mileage. Fixed-mileage rental cars can often be offered at a lower price, which can be attractive. Car rental companies may charge you hefty fees if you exceed the Mileage Limit.
Get a Weekly Car Rental at a Lower Rate
A weekly booking is a great way to get a cheap car rental. You must make sure that the weekly booking fits into your travel plans. However, you can still save a lot by renting a weekly car. We recommend you check seven-day rental rates if you’re only going on vacation. This great car rental tip has proven to be very profitable. A full week of car rental is often cheaper than five days.
It might seem impossible to rent a car for a month if you are on a long trip. However, monthly rentals of cars are available at incredibly low rates, just like weekly rentals. It’s one of the best ways to renting cars. In some cases, the monthly rate was the same as what it would have cost for two weeks.
Pro Tip: Be aware of early return fees when booking monthly or weekly rates. Some rental car companies charge an early return fee, negating any savings you might have gotten for a weekly rental.
Avoid Renting Car At Airport
This is the best tip for cheap car rental: Don’t Rent a Car at an Airport. This is because huge fees are included in the rental price of a car when it is picked up at the airport by car rental companies.
Instead, rent a car at an off-site location close to the airport and then take a Lyft or Uber from the airport to pick it up. Although finding a car in a new place can be difficult, this is one of our favorite car rental hacks. It has helped us save hundreds of dollars.
Pro Tips for Renting a Car: Search by the city name, not the airport code, to find the lowest-priced car rental. Expedia and other rental car websites offer the ability to use the Map feature to locate the closest airports.
Rent-a-Car Insurance can be purchased with a credit card
The Collision Damage Waiver, also known as CDW (or a Loss Damage Waiver), is one of the most important things you will find when searching for the best car rental deals. It provides coverage for your car in case of an accident or any other damage, but it can be quite expensive. You don’t have to purchase it in most cases if your CDW is sufficient.
A credit card that includes CDW is one of the best ways to renting cars. Chase Sapphire is the best credit card that provides this coverage. There are many options. Chase Sapphire offers double points for booking a rental car and provides primary CDW, which means that you don’t need personal car insurance.
Pro Travel Tip – Although there is an annual charge for the Chase Sapphire credit cards, we believe it is worth it – not just for the car rental CDW but also for all the other perks. Chase Sapphire Preferred allows us to get double points on travel purchases and no foreign transaction fees. We also get an additional boost when we use our points for travel expenses. Use our referral link to earn bonus points.
Get Bonus Rental Car Advice: Find out Parking Fees at Accommodations
This is not a tip for booking a limo service north shore ma but merely a way to stay within your budget. Parking fees are another fee that can be sneaky when renting a car. Parking fees can quickly increase at hotels, and many charge high overnight rates.
Some accommodations may not provide parking, so you will need to search for a spot to park every time you return to your accommodation. Always check the parking fees before you rent a car.
