Car rental for cheap price? (Palo Alto, Alamo: hotel, schools, camping)

[steve_holt]

Originally Posted by compwiz02

This will be a 3 day vacation paid by me and my wife. Nothing related to school or work.

Sure, but my point is that if you have an employer who has a corporate discount, they often let you use their pricing for personal use. All of my employers have offered this, and its a steep discount in times like this when retail pricing for rental cars is very high.

Originally Posted by compwiz02

I've never been to Silicon Valley so what may seem boring or not cool for some will seem cool to those who have never experienced it.

Sure, do what floats your boat. But I'm guessing you can go to an office park in Las Vegas and get a similar vibe as one here. I work in one of these office parks where we get buses of tourists stopping to take photos and I find it pretty strange. But you do you.

[compwiz02]

Originally Posted by steve_holt

Sure, do what floats your boat. But I'm guessing you can go to an office park in Las Vegas and get a similar vibe as one here. I work in one of these office parks where we get buses of tourists stopping to take photos and I find it pretty strange. But you do you.

I worked at the corporate office at Caesars. Nothing special about the place once you have been there multiple times but when you are there for the very first time and you see the sign, it's a pretty cool feeling. I actually feel proud if I ever see tourists stopping by taking pictures. Makes me proud of the company I work for. It's like "*** yea, I work here". Every office location has a story behind it. Sure, it's just a building or a park. But there's a story. It's a place where people go to everyday to create great things. yea, I'm a bit sentimental

[ippi76]

Silicon Valley is car central- there isn't great public transit.

[davdaven]

I'm sure you've heard, but a nationwide shortage of rental cars has driven prices through the roof. It got so bad in 2021 that people resorted to renting U-Hauls to get around, particularly in Hawaii. Not quite as bad here but still nowhere near the price levels that were in place until March 2020.

Silicon Valley is ugly and boring. Soulless office parks with absolutely no character. However, if you want to take a photo in front of the sign for Google or Meta, you do you.

You don't need a rental car in SF. Even to get to Silicon Valley, you can take Caltrain there and get around on VTA buses and light rail, or in Ubers and Lyfts. Frankly, even the Uber/Lyft option will likely add up to far less than the price of most rental cars.

If you are insistent on having a vehicle, consider non-traditional options like Turo and Getaround. Lyft also has car rentals in the SF market. These options aren't going to be appreciably cheaper than traditional rental car options, but they have the advantage of availability closer to where you are staying, not to mention the ability to rent just for a day or however long you really need the vehicle.

[compwiz02]

Originally Posted by davdaven

I'm sure you've heard, but a nationwide shortage of rental cars has driven prices through the roof. It got so bad in 2021 that people resorted to renting U-Hauls to get around, particularly in Hawaii. Not quite as bad here but still nowhere near the price levels that were in place until March 2020.

Silicon Valley is ugly and boring. Soulless office parks with absolutely no character. However, if you want to take a photo in front of the sign for Google or Meta, you do you.

You don't need a rental car in SF. Even to get to Silicon Valley, you can take Caltrain there and get around on VTA buses and light rail, or in Ubers and Lyfts. Frankly, even the Uber/Lyft option will likely add up to far less than the price of most rental cars.

If you are insistent on having a vehicle, consider non-traditional options like Turo and Getaround. Lyft also has car rentals in the SF market. These options aren't going to be appreciably cheaper than traditional rental car options, but they have the advantage of availability closer to where you are staying, not to mention the ability to rent just for a day or however long you really need the vehicle.

Appreciate the advice! and damn, you're just like my wife.....her friend drove her through Silicon Valley and told me how boring it was and I was like "thanks for bringing down the excitement for me......"

[davdaven]

Originally Posted by compwiz02

Appreciate the advice! and damn, you're just like my wife.....her friend drove her through Silicon Valley and told me how boring it was and I was like "thanks for bringing down the excitement for me......"

Haha, sorry! I lived in San Jose for a couple years. You know, it works for the folks who are there I suppose, so have fun! One thing I will say is you can get great Indian food down there, especially in Sunnyvale and Fremont, so consider that if you are so inclined.

[compwiz02]

Originally Posted by davdaven

Haha, sorry! I lived in San Jose for a couple years. You know, it works for the folks who are there I suppose, so have fun! One thing I will say is you can get great Indian food down there, especially in Sunnyvale and Fremont, so consider that if you are so inclined.

Thanks, will definitely check out what's worth eating. So far, we've been recommended to use the train and Uber for transportation since the cost of gas, cost of parking, and rental cars being targeted for robberies far outweighs the efforts of actually renting a car.

I lived in California for about 10 years but I lived down south in Riverside County. The biggest gaming companies were based in San Francisco (this was in 2007) and it was my dream to one day live in San Fran. I guess things have changed over the years. If Silicon Valley turns out to be boring, at least I can say that I've been there and visited the area. I stepped foot on the land where the biggest tech company is located

[capoeira]

Originally Posted by compwiz02

Appreciate the advice! and damn, you're just like my wife.....her friend drove her through Silicon Valley and told me how boring it was and I was like "thanks for bringing down the excitement for me......"

Silicon Valley is a great place to visit for a weekend. You can start at Stanford which has free parking on the weekends. The Cantor musuem on the Stanford campus is also free but one now needs reservations.

Palo Alto, Mountain View and Campbell have great little downtowns to walk around in.

Mountain View downtown has an eclectic mix of international restaurants and shops. I always enjoy going to the East West bookstore there.

Downtown Map - Mountain View Chamber of Commerce, CA

https://www.campbellca.gov/DocumentC...apdirectoryWEB

Sunnyvale, Los Altos, Los Gatos and Saratoga also have small downtown areas.

https://www.losgatosca.gov/DocumentC...18-2012?bidId=

Saratoga Village, CA

As previously mentioned the Indian food is fantastic in Sunnyvale. Santa Clara is also probably the best spot in the Bay area for Korean food.

You might also enjoy visiting Bucks' Cafe in Woodside.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Buck%27s_of_Woodside

Originally Posted by compwiz02

Thanks, will definitely check out what's worth eating. So far, we've been recommended to use the train and Uber for transportation since the cost of gas, cost of parking, and rental cars being targeted for robberies far outweighs the efforts of actually renting a car.

That is an extremely horrible idea unless you plan to confine yourself to the urban areas of San Francisco.

Caltrain is very slow and only comes once an hour on the weekends. On the weekend one must drive.

I have heard that Turo is like an Airbnb for cars. You might be able to get a cheap rental of an older car there. Or rent a Tesla and don't worry about the gas cost.

If you want to see Silicon Valley stay in a hotel there with free parking. SF hotels charge way too much for parking.

[Ruth4Truth]

Originally Posted by capoeira

Silicon Valley is a great place to visit for a weekend. You can start at Stanford which has free parking on the weekends. The Cantor musuem on the Stanford campus is also free but one now needs reservations.

Palo Alto, Mountain View and Campbell have great little downtowns to walk around in.

Mountain View downtown has an eclectic mix of international restaurants and shops. I always enjoy going to the East West bookstore there.

Downtown Map - Mountain View Chamber of Commerce, CA

https://www.campbellca.gov/DocumentC...apdirectoryWEB

Sunnyvale, Los Altos, Los Gatos and Saratoga also have small downtown areas.

https://www.losgatosca.gov/DocumentC...18-2012?bidId=

Saratoga Village, CA

As previously mentioned the Indian food is fantastic in Sunnyvale. Santa Clara is also probably the best spot in the Bay area for Korean food.

You might also enjoy visiting Bucks' Cafe in Woodside.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Buck%27s_of_Woodside



That is an extremely horrible idea unless you plan to confine yourself to the urban areas of San Francisco.

Caltrain is very slow and only comes once an hour on the weekends. On the weekend one must drive.

I have heard that Turo is like an Airbnb for cars. You might be able to get a cheap rental of an older car there. Or rent a Tesla and don't worry about the gas cost.

If you want to see Silicon Valley stay in a hotel there with free parking. SF hotels charge way too much for parking.

Now, this is my kind of post! I love exploring downtowns and also university campuses! Thanks for contributing something that goes beyond the "boring office parks" comments. I'd like to add to the suggestions here stopping in Menlo Park if you check out Palo Alto, OP. It has a remarkably scenic little downtown with a park-like ambience. The QOL in that part of the Bay Area is a step or two above much of the rest of the region.

[04kL4nD]

Originally Posted by compwiz02

I plan on visiting some of the cool tech places in Silicon Valley so that is why I am thinking of renting a car.

A good way of saving $150-$200 a day on vacation is to NOT rent car to try and do this