Airport Transportation between Sky Harbor and Apache Junction? (rental car, rental)

[SweepTheLeg]

Hi all.

I am going to be flying in late (11pm) to Sky Harbor. I'm trying to do a cost/time analysis between renting a car for one day vs. a car service. I don't need anything fancy, just a minivan or SUV to pick us up.


Can anyone recommend any decent car services in the area that serve Apache Junction? I found a couple, but badly designed websites are always a huge red flag for me.

[liz451]

Have you considered Super Shuttle? I always find them the cheapest for long distances and generally have had a good experience. The obvious negative is waiting for the van to somewhat fill but the process of getting on the rental car shuttle and going to the rental car terminal might take awhile anyways.

[observer53]

The cost between Super Shuttle picking you up (you're going to be at the top of the fare scale-- do you have multiple people traveling? You said both "I" and "us" ) and bringing you back, and an inexpensive rental car (you could go small if it's just you), may be about the same, with the airport fees and such. I think you will waste more time with how early SS may have to pick you up on the return (and you may not get right out of the airport heading to AJ either) with SS than with travel to the rental car center.

[SweepTheLeg]

Originally Posted by liz451

Have you considered Super Shuttle? I always find them the cheapest for long distances and generally have had a good experience. The obvious negative is waiting for the van to somewhat fill but the process of getting on the rental car shuttle and going to the rental car terminal might take awhile anyways.

SuperShuttle seems like an interesting option, but again, the mitigating factor is that it will be late at night with a toddler and a car seat to deal with.

Given how late at night this is going to be, I don't want to take the risk of "waiting for the shuttle to fill up", especially with the toddler who could be wound up after a flight.

I have concierge service with rental cars, so waiting at the desk isn't going to be a problem.

There would be at least three of us - 2 adults and a toddler. 2 more adults might be joining us. My budget is around 100 dollars.

Let's not forget with using the rental car, I'm going to burn an hour or so the next day taking it to the rental office to drop it off.

So the Analysis is the following:

Rental Car: Time spent getting to Rental Car Center, Pick up, come back to Airport, pick up family, depart for AJ. Then drop off car the next day.

Car Service: They pick us up, drop us off, no fuss, no muss.

Supershuttle: They apparently have a bunch of different services.

"Shared Ride" - I guess this is everyone who loads up

"Exclusive Non Stop Van Service"

Sedan Will Call - I guess you call when you get there?

Sedan Meet and Greet - They are there waiting?

Van Meet and Greet - Same as the sedan?

And also a SUV service with will call and meet and greet.

Ahh, according to ExecuCar's website:

"Meet and greet" means you have made a reservation ahead of time and a driver will be waiting for you at the airport.

"Will call" means you will call when you arrive at the airport to request a sedan, and one is sent promptly to pick you up.

I'll have to look into this a little more.

But just for comparison sake, are there any other car services to recommend besides Super Shuttle and ExecuCar?

[pbenjamin]

Maybe I am missing something, but what about a taxi? Super Shuttle is a bad idea given that they charge per passenger. It is really only a good deal when there is only one person and you can tolerate the wait for a full van. A taxi should be less than a car service and there are always taxis waiting to pick people up.

[observer53]

You won't have to "wait for the shuttle to fill up" on the way out from the airport. If you make a reservation, you should be out of there in relatively short order. (I'm not saying for sure that the van will be sitting there waiting for you, you may or may not have some wait for one to arrive). The problem is the pickup for the trip back, which may be considerably before you would leave if you were driving yourself, even with returning a rental car.

Taxi is an option, but a pricey one, whether they only charge for one person or not.

[Finger Laker]

Originally Posted by pbenjamin

Maybe I am missing something, but what about a taxi? Super Shuttle is a bad idea given that they charge per passenger. It is really only a good deal when there is only one person and you can tolerate the wait for a full van. A taxi should be less than a car service and there are always taxis waiting to pick people up.

Apache Junction is beyond "Zone F" and would fall into the area where you could negotiate a fare .... it's not going to be cheap though

Basic airport rates are $5 for the 1st mile, $2.10 each additional mile and a $1 airport surcharge

If you use 30 miles to get to Apache Junction that would around $67 ...... i don't think there is much hope of running a taxi for under $70 each way ... with tip and everything else you'll probably land in the broad neighborhood around $160 for the round trip

[pbenjamin]

Originally Posted by observer53

You won't have to "wait for the shuttle to fill up" on the way out from the airport. If you make a reservation, you should be out of there in relatively short order. (I'm not saying for sure that the van will be sitting there waiting for you, you may or may not have some wait for one to arrive). The problem is the pickup for the trip back, which may be considerably before you would leave if you were driving yourself, even with returning a rental car.

I disagree with that. I have had Super Shuttle reservations at airports and all that has seemed to accomplish has been that I have been on the list, ahead of the walkups, and I have paid in advance so I save time on that. They still have a cycle where they gather enough people going in that particular direction and they pick them up from the various terminals. Security rules prevent them from having a van waiting for you. Maybe the wait would be brief that late at night, though.

Per Super Shuttle's website:

Please expect a wait time while we route you and assign your van, and for your van to travel to your terminal. The actual time varies depending on the volume of passengers, the number of terminal stops, airport traffic and weather conditions. Our local representative will be able to give you an accurate estimate when you check in.

It looks like Sky Harbor to Apache Junction is $35 for the first passenger, $7 for each additional, which brings it to around what the budget is.

Another thought is that Apache Junction may be the last of several stops along the way and the trip may be much longer than if you had a dedicated ride.

[SweepTheLeg]

Originally Posted by pbenjamin

Another thought is that Apache Junction may be the last of several stops along the way and the trip may be much longer than if you had a dedicated ride.

This is exactly what I am trying to avoid because of the lateness of arrival and distance from Sky Harbor to AJ, but it looks like SuperShuttle and Execucar does have dedicated rides.

[observer53]

There IS more of a wait, even with a reservation, if you are coming in earlier in the day or evening. At 11PM, it might work a bit better, as they are not going to make people sit and wait while they see if someone else they aren't expecting happens to need a ride that direction. Setting it up as a dedicated ride, or renting a car, seem to be the two best options.