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#960358 by TimCrawley
08 Nov 2022, 01:17
Hi Everyone,

After the unfortunate server crash I haven't found a recent thread on USA car hire / rental using the forum search.

So please can I ask if anyone has some up to date recommendations (last 12 months?) for best and / or cheapest companies to use for a two week rental based on pick-up and drop-off in Las Vegas?

I have used Autoeurope before which 'scans' the majors for deals but I recall others on the forum had found better options even if mainly referring to East Coast rentals.

Thanks in anticipation of the usual sage advice...…

Tim
#960363 by HappyDays
08 Nov 2022, 10:37
Not sure when the last time you visited Vegas was... but things have changed! So much so, that I'm back there in January and weighing up whether a hire car is worth it.

1) The actual cost - I use US Car App (not the website - the app always is a bit cheaper), but even these prices for 5 days out of season are eyewatering still.

2) The cost of parking - unless you have elevated reward status at an MGM / Caesars, then even parking the car yourself now costs. Overnight parking starts at about $18 a night (a lot more if there's an event that night). If you visit a strip/downtown casino you usually get a couple of hours free if you have your ticket validated (sometimes a meal is required). I have Diamond at Caesars and Gold at MGM and I'm still considering the merits of car on my next trip

3) The availability of Uber. If you haven't already, download and set up the Uber app before you go. Vegas (and the casinos) have been built around Uber / Lyft. Uber drivers can drop you off anywhere a regular cab can, i.e. at the front of the hotel/casino etc. They can only pick you up from the a dedicated spot, which are all sign posted within the casinos. The pick up spots tend to be near or within the self-park garages, so not a lot difference in distance if you were parking yourself.

4) Do you need a car for the whole of your stay? Gone are the days when a 'licenced metered cab' would take you on a scenic tour of the valley having picked you up from the airport, as you watch the meter spin... I'll Uber it from the airport for $18 ish. Maybe pick up a car for a couple of days to hit the outlets etc from a downtown or casino location, thus avoiding the airport fees.

Good luck!
#960369 by plane340
08 Nov 2022, 20:46
Prices have become crazy expensive.
Earlier this year we had a trip booked picking up SFO drop off LAX.
I had originally booked with US car hire app (not website) - big difference in price.
A couple of days before traveling out from UK I checked my favorite car hire site/app - QEEQ, the price had gone down from £1600 to £960 for a 7 seater 14 nights.
Keep checking daily.
Also used QEEQ the time before I was in Vegas for a 1 day rental, very good price although that was in 2019.
#960378 by mikethe3rd
09 Nov 2022, 18:00
We needed a car in Orlando… the standard rate for entry level was £650. We found a GLC with Sixt for £750 that we were happy with. Whilst far from ideal, you may find a more premium car closer to the entry level pricing.

Also look on Priceline but make sure you cover yourself for the required insurances if booking on their US site.
#960379 by Hev60
09 Nov 2022, 18:18
Since the pandemic, car rental in the US can bring on eye watering prices.

We went to Orlando in April this year. Spent a week using Uber, far far cheaper than renting a car day and paying for car parking at the hotels is becoming the norm and Vegas charges for everything!

We was looking at a ToyotaRav4 which originally was coming out at over £995 for just one week. However we waited (very hard as I like to get organised well in advance). Like ‘plane340’ said, the prices drop considerably nearer your pickup date.

I booked with BA as I wanted to pick up from our on-site hotel. In the end, the RAV4 cost just £345 inclusive and it was brand new. So if you can hold out booking until a few weeks before.

A few years back we arranged to pick up an Avis SUV from the Bellagio in LV and then drove North.
We also used US Rentalcars.com. I think it’s important to book via a uk site, coz then you know all your insurances, taxes and surcharges are included.
#960382 by TimCrawley
10 Nov 2022, 00:48
Thanks everyone for the very helpful responses on different sites / apps to try....I will certainly compare them all to find the one that works for my trip.

Certainly might consider only hiring for part of the trip but as I do like a couple of runs to the outlets & Cloud9/Walmart for shopping, a few tours around Lake mead and up Mt Charleston for late breakfast etc I might have to try option to compress that into 5-7 days car rental instead of 14 days as just 2-3 days car hire wouldn't cut it for me.

Again, thanks a lot for all the helpful information.....now to start researching which shows and live music to catch :-)
#960383 by mallin
10 Nov 2022, 07:39
Hi Tim,
Like everyone else on the site that uses car hire the prices have gone crazy, we like you like to do the shopping and go round the malls and often take a break from Vegas at the weekends when its crazy busy.

Shopped all the usual routes imaginable even Virgin holidays car rental, on a suggestion from here downloaded the US car app and it is considerable cheaper we have used them twice now and like an intermediate SUV prices for a 10 day trip in April and October this year have come out at just under £500. You have to pay in dollars about 8 weeks before but we considered this not too bad as we are both in our70"s now.

WE got dollar on both and their choice of cars was very good. Hope this helps Linda
#960422 by TimCrawley
14 Nov 2022, 08:56
Thanks again to all that replied.

So I went through loads of the options suggested and built a nice list of options / prices for the 15 day hire from 20/12.

Even though it's not that hot by their standards in December / January I always consider a convertible (as I've had 18-20c daytime temps quite often that time of year) but really not much on offer....the usual Mustang or Camaro convertibles not on offer from most. I also look around if anything 'interesting' comes up that I might pay a little extra to try for fun (like one of the big pick-up trucks the Americans love....wouldn't really want one permanently but it's a holiday so try anything once!).

Anyway, wasn't finding anything too exciting under £1000 with the full protection insurance cover - mostly smallest of the Japanese cars and very baseline American ones - and it was over £1200 for anything remotely entertaining and over £1300 for a Ford F150 or GM equivalent. Suddenly, up pops an Aston Martin V8 Vantage Cabrio or similar with Hertz for £1334 with full protection premium insurance package.....obviously will turn out to be some mistake but I have booked it and will see what happens when I get there (unlikely to be an early Xmas present, probably finish up with an F150 and an apology and free GPS but who knows!).
#960838 by mikethe3rd
10 Feb 2023, 17:35
Just booked a BMW X5 for a week from Coral Gables from Sixt. Came in at £240 for one driver including the mandatory insurance(s). We prefer to enjoy the flight and pick up a car locally the next day... we're used to paying a mild premium for this, but surprisingly, this time we're saving £100+.

Looks like car hire prices are/have returned to normality.
#960844 by sjcraythorne
10 Feb 2023, 21:47
Check out Discount Florida Car Hire (UK based). Can't recommend highly enough. You can email [email protected] for an offline (usually better) quote. You can reserve, then log onto their website and can check for better price.

*I have no financial/personal tie with this company. Used them last year and booked again for this year. Isn't just Florida. A friend used them for Washington.
#960845 by HappyDays
10 Feb 2023, 23:24
mikethe3rd wrote:Just booked a BMW X5 for a week from Coral Gables from Sixt. Came in at £240 for one driver including the mandatory insurance(s). We prefer to enjoy the flight and pick up a car locally the next day... we're used to paying a mild premium for this, but surprisingly, this time we're saving £100+.

Looks like car hire prices are/have returned to normality.


I hired a couple of weeks ago from Sixt (LAS pickup though) - not unique to Sixt I know, but check and double check the $ value you are signing for. I couldn't have been more clearer 'no additional insurance' (!) They still managed to sneak an extra $100 worth of insurance onto the bill, that I thought was part of the 'refundable deposit' until I saw the breakdown on my return. I was mad at myself at having caught a sucker punch and kicked off when I returned home. To be fair to Sixt, they did refund me the $98 after a couple of stroppy emails. Forget about taking a wrong turn and ending up in the wrong part of town - those car rental pickup desks are the most dangerous places you'll go on your entire trip.
#960846 by mitchja
10 Feb 2023, 23:33
Take care with Alamo / V Hols as well. After picking up a car yesterday at TPA that was supposed to include a navigation device (booked via V Hols), turns out Alamo no longer include any navigation devices. Luckily I had my iPhone on an EE plan which includes roaming in the US so I can use cellular data at no extra charge allowing me to use Apple Maps navigation.

I'll be feeding this back to V Hols when I get home.
#960856 by Treelo
11 Feb 2023, 15:44
mitchja wrote:Take care with Alamo / V Hols as well. After picking up a car yesterday at TPA that was supposed to include a navigation device (booked via V Hols), turns out Alamo no longer include any navigation devices. Luckily I had my iPhone on an EE plan which includes roaming in the US so I can use cellular data at no extra charge allowing me to use Apple Maps navigation.

I'll be feeding this back to V Hols when I get home.


Hopefully Alamo are still issuing satnavs (assuming none in the rental car) for my upcoming trip. Won't have an iphone on a roaming package so will need a satnav for our road trip. VHols still advertising satnavs (with Gold insurance package).
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