Next visist, Jan and Feb 2015 - car rentals (Honolulu, Hilo: rental car, sales)

[JoDan]

I'm returning to the BI for a two month visit beginning 1 Jan 2015. On our last visit we rented a car for two months from a man in Hilo who had an independent business. I've tried to contact him several times with no success. His website is still up, but doesn't respond to my emails so I must assume he's out of business.

Many of you were so helpful on my previous visit with great responses to my questions I thought I'd start asking again!

Couple of questions for now:

1) How close to my actual travel date should I try to rent a car through the major companies at the airport?

2) Can I trust the individual ads for car rentals I sometimes see on craigslist?

We've rented a place near Naalehu again. I like that location because it's pretty centrally located to be able to explore the island. We'll need something dependable to get to those great places, but I hope to not have to pay airport car rental rates.

Any suggestions are appreciated.

[mdand3boys]

Originally Posted by JoDan

I'm returning to the BI for a two month visit beginning 1 Jan 2015. On our last visit we rented a car for two months from a man in Hilo who had an independent business. I've tried to contact him several times with no success. His website is still up, but doesn't respond to my emails so I must assume he's out of business.

Many of you were so helpful on my previous visit with great responses to my questions I thought I'd start asking again!

Couple of questions for now:

1) How close to my actual travel date should I try to rent a car through the major companies at the airport?

2) Can I trust the individual ads for car rentals I sometimes see on craigslist?

We've rented a place near Naalehu again. I like that location because it's pretty centrally located to be able to explore the island. We'll need something dependable to get to those great places, but I hope to not have to pay airport car rental rates.

Any suggestions are appreciated.

You were very lucky to have had a successful rental from one of those people. The current scam I have heard is that, yes, they do rent you a vehicle, then they later claim you did "some damage" and charge you several hundred $ extra to take care of it.

They also are operating illegally and paying no taxes either on the rental itself or income taxes on their profits.

To drop the cost - don't rent via the airport location. For example, if you rent from Enterprise, Hilo Airport, you have something like an extra $15+ per day in airport fees and taxes. If you rent from the Enterprise location about a mile outside of the airport (over near Wal-Mart) they don't charge those airport fees and taxes. Enterprise will also "negotiate" on price if you call a local office directly.

[JoDan]

Thanks mdand3boys! I had not even thought about the airport tax! Good to know that I should try to "negotiate" with the big boys at other locations. And thanks for the info on "local" rentals!

[OpenD]

A couple of years ago I had a very good experience renting a car in Hilo from a local car dealer named Aiona (ad slogan - "I own a car from Aiona." ). They're on Hwy 11 about a half mile south of Airport Rd. In addition to car sales and car service they also rent used cars off their lot.

At the time their weekly rates were better than the majors, they were extremely nice and accommodating, and the rental was absolutely frictionless. A free bonus, as far as I was concerned, was that I got to drive off the lot in a car that nobody would think was a rental, so I didn't have to worry about thieves who target tourists.

Aiona Cars

[ChezAloha]

Originally Posted by ThreeWordsEightLettersOne

FYI you can go onto national car rental sites a up to a year in advance, book without any charges to secure a rental then check rates daily at different times for better deals. Car rental places switch their rates daily. We started out once with Thrifty for $310 a week. Kept checking, got it at $170.

Also, try Kayak.


Hope you joy your vacation.

If you have a Costco membership, their travel section offers great rates on rentals through all national companies, much better than we found anywhere else. You can reserve up to a year in advance, and as advised above, check back later to see if you find a better rate. We changed our reservation twice before our trip to Kaua'i and got a terrific rate on a small SUV. We just cancelled the old reservations - no problems.

We ended up renting from Alamo through Costco, and purchased roadside assistance for the car when we got to Lihue. Every three days though the tire signal light would come on to let us know the right front tire needed air. We would get it filled, and all would be good until three days had passed. We couldn't figure out what the problem was though until our last day when my husband noticed a rather large nail in the tire. He called the roadside assistance number and they gave him directions to their preferred tire place . . . on Oahu! He nicely asked them if they could give him directions for driving over the water from Kaua'i - turned out the person he was talking with was on the mainland and knew nothing about Hawai'i. He ended up going to a local tire shop and getting the tire replaced, and then took the receipt to Alamo who not only took the cost of the tire service off our bill but what we had paid for roadside assistance as well since they were not very helpful.

We were supposed to go out to Waimea Canyon that day, but never made it. I guess we'll just have to go back one of these days .

[Fredesch]

Try Discount Hawaii Car Rental Maui Car Rentals Honolulu Kona Kauai Hilo Waikiki they don't rent vehicles themselves rather they will get a better rate for you. All you have to do is put in the dates you are interested and they show you a list of the quotes and companies. I ended up with a car from Avis in April, but I could have chosen another company/quote if I wanted.

[miss_dee]

I agree with Fredesch; try Discount Hawaii Car Rentals. I have always rented directly from the rental car companies, but after reading their reviews, gave them a try. They got me a much better deal on a car than I could get myself. I would definitely use them again. And do use the off-airport pick-up. You'll save a bunch.

[JoDan]

Originally Posted by miss_dee

I agree with Fredesch; try Discount Hawaii Car Rentals. I have always rented directly from the rental car companies, but after reading their reviews, gave them a try. They got me a much better deal on a car than I could get myself. I would definitely use them again. And do use the off-airport pick-up. You'll save a bunch.

I did use them and all set for pick up on 31 Dec.

[1freespirit]

Yes "Discount Hawaii Car Rentals" are good also one company that has done better in rates if you are a costco member "Coscto travel" has so far beaten any rates on car rentals atleast in our experience even those of "Discount Hawaii car rentals".

[laurarice]

This guy was advertising in craig's list today but i dont know anything about him....
Wanted: People Wanting to Save Money on a Car Rental on the Big Island