Hi all,
Does anyone have tips and tricks on booking car rental within Australia? I have previously used rentalcars.com which seems to be pretty well priced usually.
Fire away!
Finding Deals for Domestic Car Rentals: Tips & Tricks
Lorganisedchaos on 22/04/2024 - 14:59
Comments
Its rare I agree with jv but the going local thing is the best advice.
It can sometime be a bit difficult to find all the local companies as the big guys SEO is so much better so what I do is use Google Maps to find places around the airports. They will usually be a bit further away and require a shuttle but are often much cheaper.
so what I do is use Google Maps
I do the same…
Holiday Autos used to be the price leader but I've been finding better deals with Rentalcars.com. Always worth checking the airline sites as they sometimes list the odd seasonal low-demand bargain. Shop around for excess reduction and compare domestic travel insurance for longer rentals.
What are you looking to rent specifically and where? If you're returning to same location and just for a few days here and there I think most of the big players already offer a pretty good deal? No passenger vehicles but I've rented (NSW) vans multiple times last year and also a 3T truck, $75-$100/day, seems fair.
Are you working at big corporate, gov, or uni? They may have an agreement with some rental companies for the employee leisure use that gives a really good rate.
If you are seeking rentals from an airport, a location on the airport property (i.e. a pickup counter inside the terminal) is often more expensive than an off-premises location.
The off-premises locations are less convenient as you will need to call them to arrange a shuttle to pick you up from the terminal - and you need to factor that into the return journey back to the airport. But the trade-off is that often prices are lower.
Use google maps to search "car rental" around the airport to see what options you have as often airport websites only list on-premise rental companies.
Does your bank have an 'offers' section within their online banking? I am sure I have occasionally seen a 10% off discount through the Westpac offers section once before for Avis or Hertz. Can't be sure on that.
Otherwise, black Friday deals are usually the best you will find. Obviously this does only occur one time a year and it does require a lot of thinking ahead to plan out a getaway.
Good luck on your search!If apex car rentals are available wherever your going then get a quote… used them in Coolangatta and sunny coast.. best rates going around.
Entertainment Book used to have the best deals until about 4 years ago… Now they are crap…
Best to find a small local one with good reviews.