Is there a day of the week that is best to book a rental car?

[Nermel9]

Hi everyone,

I'll be in WDW in 13 days and I'm having a tough time finding a rental car for a decent price, everything seems to be over $100, and I'm only going for 4 days. I went for 10 days in October and paid $125 at Alamo, so I don't really want to pay $112 for 4 days.

I know car rental prices go up and down all the time, so I'm wondering if there is a certain day of the week that they are lower? I really hope I can find something cheaper this week, I'm running out of time! I would try Priceline or something like that, but it makes me nervous, I'm so used to Alamo!

Thanks!

 

[Disneyfanatic108]

Sundays and early Mondays are BAD DAYS. Other than that you just have to check every day. I ended up checking every day for 2 months. Finally got a fullsize for $126 and when we got there it was all minivans on the fullsize isle. This was with alamo for 10 days at the beginning of November. I got the price at the beginning of Oct.

 

[Shelly F - Ohio]

I need a little more info to help you out.
First what dates do you need to rent a car?
What are your pick up and drop off times.

 

[Nermel9]

I need a little more info to help you out.
First what dates do you need to rent a car?
What are your pick up and drop off times.

I checked again today, still $112!!

I'm going from 12/10-12/14. Pick up time would be 9:30am and drop
Off time would be 12:30 pm. I hope the price goes down a little, I've been checking Alamo insiders and costco rates!

 

[Skye23]

I think your pick up and drop off times may be part of the issue. Rental Car days are in 24 hour increments and not calendar days per se. So when you drop it off at a time that is AFTER you picked it up you sometimes get charged for an additional "day". Try doing a quote where the drop off and pick up times are the same and see if that changes the numbers. (Usually anything within 30m - 1 hour is considered the same "Day").

 

[Shelly F - Ohio]

I checked again today, still $112!!

I'm going from 12/10-12/14. Pick up time would be 9:30am and drop
Off time would be 12:30 pm. I hope the price goes down a little, I've been checking Alamo insiders and costco rates!

I am getting the same price but I see Alamo last minute special expire today and the new ones should be released tomorrow. Maybe we will have better luck tomorrow.

 

[gmeh1]

I checked again today, still $112!!

I'm going from 12/10-12/14. Pick up time would be 9:30am and drop
Off time would be 12:30 pm. I hope the price goes down a little, I've been checking Alamo insiders and costco rates!

You are going at a very very busy time. When you last went, it was considered a slow time. I would grab that 112.00 rate and keep on checking for it to go down.

 

[Nermel9]

So I just went to book the $112 rate, just in case...and it went up from this morning, it's now over $150!!! That's crazy for just 4 days. I'm going to book that, but I REALLY hope some last minute specials come out tomorrow. Or the prices drop closer to my date. Ughhhh!!! So frustrating!

*Editing to add-just checked with Alamo Insiders again, and I was able to book a compact car for...$145! $9 cheaper than Costco! Ahhh, I really, really hope prices come down a little...

 

[gmeh1]

So I just went to book the $112 rate, just in case...and it went up from this morning, it's now over $150!!! That's crazy for just 4 days. I'm going to book that, but I REALLY hope some last minute specials come out tomorrow. Or the prices drop closer to my date. Ughhhh!!! So frustrating!

*Editing to add-just checked with Alamo Insiders again, and I was able to book a compact car for...$145! $9 cheaper than Costco! Ahhh, I really, really hope prices come down a little...

Your dates and times put you into the weekly rate category. I got a quote for your dates for a compact for 156.95 out the door. I used coupon AD2723SAM (insider coupon).

 

[dioxide45]

So I just went to book the $112 rate, just in case...and it went up from this morning, it's now over $150!!! That's crazy for just 4 days. I'm going to book that, but I REALLY hope some last minute specials come out tomorrow. Or the prices drop closer to my date. Ughhhh!!! So frustrating!

*Editing to add-just checked with Alamo Insiders again, and I was able to book a compact car for...$145! $9 cheaper than Costco! Ahhh, I really, really hope prices come down a little...

This is why the general recommendation is to book the best rate that you can when you see it, even if it is something that you don't think you would want to pay. Would you rather pay $112 or $150? As we can see, you preferred the $112. You can cancel most car rental reservations, so book the best rate you can find when you first start looking, then keep checking and reserve lower rates when you find them. Cancel those older higher rates when you rebook. Rental cars are not like booking airline tickets.

You are really not booking for 4 days, you are booking for 4+ days, probably long enough past 4 days that the rental is being based on 5 days. When a company rents any car, they have fixed costs. So while you paid $125 for a 10 day rental in October, you got the advantage of a weekly rental in there. Those fixed costs (the garage, desk agent, reservation system, accounting) are the same for every rental, be it 2 days or 25. Daily rate rentals will almost always be higher for shorter rentals than longer ones.

As noted earlier, mid October is much lower time of year than Mid December. Rental rates are based on supply and demand. Travel at busier times, you pay more than you would during low times.

So to answer the questions "Is there a day of the week that is best to book a rental car?", the answer is yes there is, TODAY.

 

[gmeh1]

This is why the general recommendation is to book the best rate that you can when you see it, even if it is something that you don't think you would want to pay. Would you rather pay $112 or $150? As we can see, you preferred the $112. You can cancel most car rental reservations, so book the best rate you can find when you first start looking, then keep checking and reserve lower rates when you find them. Cancel those older higher rates when you rebook. Rental cars are not like booking airline tickets.

You are really not booking for 4 days, you are booking for 4+ days, probably long enough past 4 days that the rental is being based on 5 days. When a company rents any car, they have fixed costs. So while you paid $125 for a 10 day rental in October, you got the advantage of a weekly rental in there. Those fixed costs (the garage, desk agent, reservation system, accounting) are the same for every rental, be it 2 days or 25. Daily rate rentals will almost always be higher for shorter rentals than longer ones.

As noted earlier, mid October is much lower time of year than Mid December. Rental rates are based on supply and demand. Travel at busier times, you pay more than you would during low times.

So to answer the questions "Is there a day of the week that is best to book a rental car?", the answer is yes there it, TODAY.

5 days is considered a weekly rental. Which according to the times and dates he posted is 5 days.

 

[duffy]

I book a car as soon as I know my dates.

Then I go on Priceline the day before, and bid low. I usually get a much, much better deal. Then I cancel the first reservation.