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Ask the Armchair Traveler: how to score a cheap rental car

February 10, 2008

The Armchair Traveler reveals his secrets for scoring a cheap set of wheels.

There’s also a high-definition version. Comments are always appreciated.

Christopher Elliott is the author of Scammed: How to Save Your Money and Find Better Service in a World of Schemes, Swindles, and Shady Deals. Critics have called it “eye-opening” and “inspiring” — it’ll “grab your attention and won’t let go.” Order your copy now on Amazon, Barnes & Noble or iTunes.

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4 comments

  • http://beatofhawaii.com jeff@beatofhawaii.com

    hi chris,

    rental cars are really expensive nowadays, and should be considered early in trip planning, at the same time as air tickets are planned. that’s because varying dates can significantly change cost. further, finding car rental deals is an art that takes a long time to perfect (and it keeps changing so it makes it more interesting). hint: don’t forget using costo, walmart/samsclub and other sites for their discount codes. thanks for the good post. i’ll do one on hawaii car rental deals for those who are planning summer trips over here. mahalo and aloha.

    jeff

  • George Smart

    The cheapest deal of all is Priceline, that’s for sure.

  • gregg

    I like to start with carrentals.com. It searches all the major car rental firms. You can place a reservation without being locked into a prepay. Then you can search day after day for a cheaper rate to your hearts content. When you find a better deal, reserve the new rate, and cancel the previous reservation. IF you are excessively frugal, you can jump to the website of the low price rental, reserve directly, and save yourself about a buck or so.

  • Lucas

    I used the bundling strategy and rented a car through Payless at the same time I purchased my ticket from San Diego to Orlando via SouthWest – the rental cost was $ 7.00 per day, including mileage! – 3-day rental was $26.00 including taxes – I was VERY happy with the deal! Thx for the tip

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