WITH airfares and hotel rates rising last year, it's some consolation that prices for rental cars actually decreased on average, and are expected to remain about the same in 2013.
The average price of a car booked on Hotwire late last year was about $27 per day, down 3 percent compared with 2011. And while prices for rentals during the recent holiday season were higher — roughly $40 a day — that's still 6 percent lower than a year earlier.
Despite more consolidation in the car rental industry — Hertz purchased Dollar and Thrifty last fall and the Avis Budget Group is buying Zipcar — consumers may not get hit with the higher prices that often accompany these deals. The trade publication Auto Rental News recently predicted "a ground war on rates" in 2013 as the major car rental companies compete with independent brands like Sixt and Advantage, especially for airport rentals.
One factor that benefits travelers in this equation: the industry's lack of change fees or cancellation penalties, which means customers are free to look for a better deal right up until they get behind the wheel. Some airports have made it even easier to be fickle, by locating all their car rental companies at one facility that's linked to the airport by the same shuttle bus or train, a growing trend that Miami and Seattle have recently embraced.
But it still takes some effort to find the best price, partly because Web tools to compare car rental rates aren't nearly as sophisticated as their counterparts for flights and hotels. Here's some advice on tracking down a good deal.
RECHECK YOUR RATE
"Book early — and often" is a good mantra to follow, particularly if you need a car during a peak travel time. I booked a car on Nov. 9 for an eight-day rental in Detroit around Christmas, and even after repeating my search and trying every coupon that landed in my in-box in the ensuing weeks, I couldn't beat the original price, $218.
Jonathan Weinberg, co-founder and C.E.O. of the car rental site AutoSlash.com, said holidays can be an exception to the usual pattern of price volatility, which often includes a decline. "Rental car companies will typically set the price high and those prices will almost always drop," he said. "The best way to game the system is to book as early as possible and recheck the rate."
AutoSlash set out to automate that process for consumers, even going so far as to automatically rebook a reservation after finding a lower rate. But after car rental companies protested, Mr. Weinberg had to revise his business model; he promises a new version of the service this year. Until then, AutoSlash can still track a reservation you booked elsewhere and will let you know if it finds a better rate; you just have to do the rebooking yourself.
USE ONLINE COMPARISON TOOLS
As I was planning my December trip, I was surprised at how little most travel sites are investing in their car rental comparison tools. Mr. Weinberg said that's because the commissions agencies get for car rental bookings are so low: about 2.5 to 5 percent of the rate you book, versus 10 to 40 percent for a hotel.
Still, there are a few innovations worth checking out, especially if you're looking for an off-airport rental. Kayak recently added a "map view" option to its car rental results, which makes it easy to see the location of various neighborhood dealers, and to decide whether it's worth traveling farther from your home or hotel to pick up a cheaper car.
"Using the map view, you can zoom in and look for certain neighborhoods," said Jessica Casano-Antonellis, a Kayak spokeswoman, adding that you can also limit your results to points of interest, for instance, car rental locations within a half-mile of Faneuil Hall in Boston.
For visitors to New York — or for New Yorkers looking for a local rental — that's a helpful tool, since searching for a ZIP code or address in Manhattan can turn up locations in New Jersey and Staten Island as well. But if you're willing to travel across the river, Jersey City can be a bargain: I found a three-day weekend rental at a Budget location in Jersey City for $111, compared with $471 at the Avis location closest to me in Brooklyn, or $252 at an Enterprise, also nearby.
Anda sedang membaca artikel tentang
The Getaway: 3 Tips for Finding Rental Car Deals
Dengan url
http://travelwisatawan.blogspot.com/2013/01/the-getaway-3-tips-for-finding-rental.html
Anda boleh menyebar luaskannya atau mengcopy paste-nya
The Getaway: 3 Tips for Finding Rental Car Deals
namun jangan lupa untuk meletakkan link
The Getaway: 3 Tips for Finding Rental Car Deals
sebagai sumbernya
0 komentar:
Posting Komentar