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I am travelling to Portland, OR, specifically, Gresham, and I need a rental car for a week.
Renting at the airport starts at $469 with all the fees, but I find the same companies (looked at Enterprise and Hertz) have locations all within 10-15 min walk or bus ride from my hotel, and it costs ~$250 for the same time frame.
The only downside I see is that airport locations are open 24/7, but in town locations are closed on Sundays and only open until 6 pm on weekdays. I'm arriving at 7 pm on Monday, and leaving Sunday morning. What I thought I could do is take the taxi to the hotel Monday evening and then pick up the car first thing Tuesday morning - I don't need it until 10 am or so on Tuesday anyway.
Then Sunday you can leave the keys in the lockbox. That part is a bit scary, because the car is technically my responsibility until they open their shop Monday morning. Who knows what will happen with it after I leave it there Sunday morning.
So, pricewise, it's ~$229 (car rental in town) + ~$120 for the taxi from and to the airport = ~$349
vs ~$469 at the airport.
It doesn't look like that much of a difference, except $469 at the airport is from Thrifty, who I never had experience before, and $349 are from Enterprise or Hertz, and I always had a good experience with both. Enterprise at the airport will cost me $694.
Are there any other downsides to my plan of renting from the in town location? Have anyone done this before and what was your experience?
You might be able to rent "intown" and drop @ airport, Most rental car fees are done on pickup location, not drop off.
Great idea! It does raise the total, but not by much, less than $100. If I subtract $60 for a taxi I won't need to the airport, and $40 for a peace of mind - it's a no-brainer!
What I thought I could do is take the taxi to the hotel Monday evening and then pick up the car first thing Tuesday morning - I don't need it until 10 am or so on Tuesday anyway.
Doesn't the Hotel have a courtesy shuttle to/from the airport? There's another $120 you'll save in taxi fare. (tip will be the same) Call them and ask, because sometimes if they're not big enough to offer their own shuttle they share a service with other hotels.
Doesn't the Hotel have a courtesy shuttle to/from the airport? There's another $120 you'll save in taxi fare. (tip will be the same) Call them and ask, because sometimes if they're not big enough to offer their own shuttle they share a service with other hotels.
Will do, thank you!
I just booked my car with Hertz - picking up in town, dropping off at the airport. Somehow, they didn't even have a surcharge for dropping off at a different location. And they will pick me up at the hotel Tuesday morning, so I don't have to worry about getting to their location.
I love this forum! Hopefully, it will all be smooth next week.
Some car rental agencies have pick up and drop off services that you might want to look into. Also hotel may have a courtesy van to transport you. I’d check on those two items; however I’d never leave the car parked with keys in a drop box. That sounds like asking for trouble, however if you do that be sure to take pictures of the car before and after you drop it off. Most places are honest but the last thing you need is to have problems with damage that you didn’t cause.
in MOST cases, you can rent "off airport" and return to the airport at no additional charge IF you make the reservation that way. For example, I picked up the current car rental that I am using in Scottsdale, AZ at a non-airport location and returning it to the Phoenix airport. However, you MUST do this at the time of the rental. Otherwise, you may get a nasty surprise at SOME agencies.
Enterprise is generally NOT an agency that allows you to do that. YMMV.
Location: We_tside PNW (Columbia Gorge) / CO / SA TX / Thailand
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IN Portland, you can take MAX (Light rail) to the airport from numerous locations. You need to get out of the metro counties to get CHEAPER cars.
I rent on Hotwire or Priceline (often for under $15/day airport locations). I got one in DEN for $4.95/day (including all taxes). I put 3800 miles on that one,
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