# Costco has bargain deals for Hawaii car rentals, specifically Kauai



## rickandcindy23 (Jun 13, 2013)

I was searching Costcotravel.com, as I do often for our car rentals.  Two days ago, I booked a full-size car for $390 all taxes and fees included.  Today, the same rental is $100 less.  Both cars were Alamo, our first choice. 

Our trip is the last few weeks of August.


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## eal (Jun 13, 2013)

Thanks so much for posting - I got a reservation for 4 weeks on Maui in November for a very good price- the best I have seen so far.


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## ajlm33 (Jun 13, 2013)

In May 2013 we booked with Budget thru Costco a mid-sized car for 8 days for under $200 in Kauai. It ended up being a brand new (only 7 miles on the odometer) Nissan Altima and was a great ride and deal ! I highly recommend booking thru Costco !


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## brigechols (Jun 13, 2013)

Generally, I receive much lower rates booking a mini van throough costco.com but this time Discount Hawaii Car Rentals came through with a lower rate.


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## Luanne (Jun 13, 2013)

I'll check both Costco and discounthawaiian again, but so far my corporate discount with Avis is still giving me the best price for Maui at the end of August.

Wow!  Just checked.  The prices though Costco are now almost $200 lower than what I have reserved through Avis.  Rental is with Alamo, which is usually not my first choice.  I wonder if Avis will price match?  Can't hurt to ask.


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## rickandcindy23 (Jun 13, 2013)

Luanne, Alamo is always our first choice because they let us pick our own car, and sometimes there are new cars on the lot from which to choose.  

Rick has been very pleased with the quality of the vehicles, and we have our American Express insurance, so it's easy to use the do-it-yourself kiosk, avoiding the counter "insurance and full tank" pitches.  We just swipe our card, DL, and enter the confirmation #, then we just go to the lot ourselves and pick our own car.  

There is a kiosk on Maui, but I don't think on Kauai.  

We rented from Budget at LAX last week and had to be very rude to the woman who was trying to sell us car insurance.  She kept saying our Amex didn't cover everything.  Yeah, duh, it sure does, and we also have our car insurance, which also covers anything we would need.


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## Ken555 (Jun 13, 2013)

FYI, Costco prices lowered at the beginning of the month for Kauai, at least that's when I checked and updated my reservation. For the dates of my travel, even when searching today, the least expensive is Budget. It really doesn't matter in Kauai, from my experience, since all the cars are filthy...


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## PearlCity (Jun 13, 2013)

Ugh not lower for big island discount Hawaii is lower for a minivan in October by over $100.


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## Elli (Jun 13, 2013)

I'll check the rates through Costco for the Big Island again, but I've checked a few times during the last month, and the rates haven't gone down at all.  It's for Oct. 2013.


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## cgeidl (Jun 13, 2013)

*Pick any car*

Our last Oahu car rental from Alamo they said to pick any car from subcompact to mid size and we were renting an economy and ended up midsize. We have often rented compacts and they try to upgrade you and when you say no you get the upgraded car anyway as that's all they have.


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## Luanne (Jun 13, 2013)

I've also been checking Costco for Big Island and rates are still high.  But I think part of my problem may be that we're picking up at one airport and dropping off at another.


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## lprstn (Jun 14, 2013)

Thanks I just saved $322 on my rental for Maui


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## Saintsfanfl (Jun 14, 2013)

You usually can't beat costcotravel for car rentals. I booked a Volkswagon Passat for $12 / day for an in-law family reunion in MO. I recently canceled my Mom's mid size week Alamo reservation because I booked an Alamo full size for $125 less on costcotravel.


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## dioxide45 (Jun 16, 2013)

brigechols said:


> Generally, I receive much lower rates booking a mini van throough costco.com but this time Discount Hawaii Car Rentals came through with a lower rate.



Same experience here for a mini van in November for both LIH and KOA. Costco is at least $130-$200 more than Discount Hawaii Car Rentals.


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## rickandcindy23 (Jun 16, 2013)

Rates change drastically for car rentals.  Today, they are significantly higher than when I booked.  As the dates get closer, I may even get a better deal than I have.


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## Steve A (Jun 17, 2013)

I like Costco the best because they do not charge an extra fee for your spouse to drive. With other car rentals you never can tell what they are going to do and it winds up costing more than you expected.


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## radmoo (Jul 5, 2013)

I was holding AARP, COSTCO and Hawaii Discount Car rentals.  Just checked back today and both AARP(Thrifty) and COSTCO(Enterprise) are under $200 week Aug 18-25.  Any experience with either outfit at Lihue?

Thanks


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## DaveNV (Jul 5, 2013)

radmoo said:


> I was holding AARP, COSTCO and Hawaii Discount Car rentals.  Just checked back today and both AARP(Thrifty) and COSTCO(Enterprise) are under $200 week Aug 18-25.  Any experience with either outfit at Lihue?
> 
> Thanks



I've rented from both Thrifty and Enterprise in Lihue.  The cars were fine.  In fact, last time I got a convertible through Thrifty that only had about 250 miles on it.  Great car.

Dave


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## DaveNV (Jul 5, 2013)

A tip if you end up renting through Thrifty:  Sign up for their Blue Chip program (free internal frequent renter thing) and make sure your reservation shows that Blue Chip number.  When I arrived at the Thrifty counter, the regular line was out the door.  Blue Chip line had zero people in front of me.  They had my paperwork all ready done, I had my convertible, and I was out the door within about five minutes.  As I was walking out, I heard someone in the other (huge!) line say, "Hey, how come he got through so quick?"  I just smiled and kept walking.  

Dave


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## radmoo (Jul 5, 2013)

Thanks, I do have Thrifty Blue Chip number so think I will stick with them


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## Luanne (Jul 5, 2013)

Steve A said:


> I like Costco the best because they do not charge an extra fee for your spouse to drive. With other car rentals you never can tell what they are going to do and it winds up costing more than you expected.



The only time I experienced this was when we rented using Priceline.  Renting directly through Avis, which is who I use when they have the best price, the second driver is always included.


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## dioxide45 (Jul 5, 2013)

BMWguynw said:


> A tip if you end up renting through Thrifty:  Sign up for their Blue Chip program (free internal frequent renter thing) and make sure your reservation shows that Blue Chip number.  When I arrived at the Thrifty counter, the regular line was out the door.  Blue Chip line had zero people in front of me.  They had my paperwork all ready done, I had my convertible, and I was out the door within about five minutes.  As I was walking out, I heard someone in the other (huge!) line say, "Hey, how come he got through so quick?"  I just smiled and kept walking.
> 
> Dave



Though I think if you book through Discount Hawaii Car Retals, you can't add your loyalty numbers to any of the reservations or you lose the rate and they lose their commission.


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## DaveNV (Jul 5, 2013)

dioxide45 said:


> Though I think if you book through Discount Hawaii Car Retals, you can't add your loyalty numbers to any of the reservations or you lose the rate and they lose their commission.



I called DHCR and asked them if they could add my Blue Chip number to an existing reservation.  They were happy to add it.  I got the initially quoted rate, and the Blue Chip service.  So it worked for me.  

Dave


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## dioxide45 (Jul 5, 2013)

BMWguynw said:


> I called DHCR and asked them if they could add my Blue Chip number to an existing reservation.  They were happy to add it.  I got the initially quoted rate, and the Blue Chip service.  So it worked for me.
> 
> Dave



Good to know. It must depend on the car company. The reservation that we have through Avis indicates the following.



> BEWARE-adding Avis Preferred membership info to this reservation will erase this rate from the Avis system.  You lose the discount and we lose our commission.


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## DaveNV (Jul 5, 2013)

dioxide45 said:


> Good to know. It must depend on the car company. The reservation that we have through Avis indicates the following.





It may be something new, as well.  My experience was last Summer, so maybe things have changed since then.   

Dave


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## radmoo (Jul 7, 2013)

Just rec'd promo email from Thrifty and was able to reduce rental car cost yet again.


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## dioxide45 (Jul 7, 2013)

Rates for us in November still haven't dropped. I did get our LIH minivan cheaper by $10 through Discount Hawaii Car Rentals, but other than that, prices haven't budged.


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## Ken555 (Jul 7, 2013)

Dec prices in Maui went down a few days ago when I checked. This really shouldn't be a surprise as rates change constantly.


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## radmoo (Jul 7, 2013)

radmoo said:


> Just rec'd promo email from Thrifty and was able to reduce rental car cost yet again.



We will be there Aug 18-25.  So far, we've gone from $225 for economy to $155 for Mid-Size.  Methinks we are done !


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## DaveNV (Jul 7, 2013)

Keep checking those rental car rates - daily, if necessary.  I had a rental car reserved for October in Albuquerque (through Costco) that I thought was a great rate, and I was fine with it.  Then the price dropped a week ago by almost a hundred dollars.  So I quickly switched to the lower rate.  Now, the same timeframe is showing rates nearly DOUBLE what the first rate was, which is almost TRIPLE  what I'll be paying.  No rhyme or reason to it.  But I'm glad for the lower rate!

Dave


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## Dori (Jul 7, 2013)

I was checking car rental prices for Kaui today and on Costco they were $253 for an economy car. At Discount Hawaii, the rate, which I booked, was $163!  I am a very happy camper!

Does anyone know if I will be able to add my Southwest Rapid Rewards number to the reservation at some point?

Dori


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## DaveNV (Jul 7, 2013)

Dori said:


> I was checking car rental prices for Kaui today and on Costco they were $253 for an economy car. At Discount Hawaii, the rate, which I booked, was $163!  I am a very happy camper!
> 
> Does anyone know if I will be able to add my Southwest Rapid Rewards number to the reservation at some point?
> 
> Dori




Congrats, Dori! Glad your trip is coming together.  Call the Lihue office of DHCR and ask about adding your Southwest code.  i did it last year (for Thrifty) but a Tugger recently posted they aren't doing that kind of thing anymore. Can't hurt to ask, right? 

Dave


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## Ken555 (Jul 7, 2013)

Dori said:


> I was checking car rental prices for Kaui today and on Costco they were $253 for an economy car. At Discount Hawaii, the rate, which I booked, was $163!  I am a very happy camper!
> 
> Does anyone know if I will be able to add my Southwest Rapid Rewards number to the reservation at some point?
> 
> Dori



I just checked their site and they are almost double the rate from Costco during my Dec trip.


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## Dori (Jul 7, 2013)

These prices are for September 14-21.

Dori


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## sfwilshire (Jul 8, 2013)

I rebooked my Costco Maui reservations for late June/early Aug twice over the weekend. A $70 reduction Saturday and another $46 reduction on Sunday. I'll keep watching them, but right now I'm at $411 and change for 16 days in a full size. I like the extra driver feature as we have been hit a couple of times in the past with higher fees than expected for adding the spouse.

Sheila


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## radmoo (Jul 8, 2013)

radmoo said:


> We will be there Aug 18-25.  So far, we've gone from $225 for economy to $155 for Mid-Size.  Methinks we are done !




Lower by yet another $8 today!


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## Luanne (Jul 8, 2013)

Just checked my reservation for August.  It's about the same price, but the rental company has changed.  Now instead of Alamo, who our reservation on Maui is with being the cheapest, it's Enterprise.


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## Boonie (Jul 10, 2013)

With Costco you can always book now and keep checking the rate, if it goes done you can call to have it adjusted.  I just used them last month for car rental with Alamo in Oahu, it went down to almost half by time my trip came!


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## Luanne (Jul 10, 2013)

Boonie said:


> With Costco you can always book now and keep checking the rate, if it goes done you can call to have it adjusted.  I just used them last month for car rental with Alamo in Oahu, it went down to almost half by time my trip came!



You don't need to call.  You can make the change yourself online.  Or make a new reservation and cancel the old one.


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## Ken555 (Jul 10, 2013)

Luanne said:


> Just checked my reservation for August.  It's about the same price, but the rental company has changed.  Now instead of Alamo, who our reservation on Maui is with being the cheapest, it's Enterprise.



My reservation for Kauai was reduced about $10 but also switched to Enterprise. Now it's just ~$250 for an intermediate car on Kauai for a week, which I consider reasonable.


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## Luanne (Jul 10, 2013)

Ken555 said:


> My reservation for Kauai was reduced about $10 but also switched to Enterprise. Now it's just ~$250 for an intermediate car on Kauai for a week, which I consider reasonable.



I probably should have been more clear.  Our reservation for Maui is still with Alamo.  If I'd switched to Enterprise it would have been a little bit more.  If I'd made a new reservation with Alamo through Costco it would be much more expensive than the one I have. 

We're paying $355.17 for two weeks in a full size.


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## Elli (Jul 11, 2013)

Luanne said:


> You don't need to call.  You can make the change yourself online.  Or make a new reservation and cancel the old one.


You can cancel the old one on line as well.  After making a new reservation, go to your account and cancel the old one, much faster than trying to call.


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## sfwilshire (Jul 16, 2013)

Luanne said:


> I probably should have been more clear.  Our reservation for Maui is still with Alamo.  If I'd switched to Enterprise it would have been a little bit more.  If I'd made a new reservation with Alamo through Costco it would be much more expensive than the one I have.
> 
> We're paying $355.17 for two weeks in a full size.



You played the game better than I did. We got down to $411 for a full size for two weeks. Tried again this past weekend and they had gone up to over $600. 

Sheila


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## rickandcindy23 (Jul 16, 2013)

Costco's rate for a full-size, 13 days on Kauai, 8/17-8/30, $290 at Alamo, all taxes and fees included.  I am very happy with that deal and will keep it.


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## Luanne (Jul 17, 2013)

sfwilshire said:


> You played the game better than I did. We got down to $411 for a full size for two weeks. Tried again this past weekend and they had gone up to over $600.
> 
> Sheila



I checked prices again yesterday.  They have gone back up.  So glad I grabbed that reservation through Costco when they had gone down.  I'll keep checking however.


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## radmoo (Jul 17, 2013)

Luanne said:


> I checked prices again yesterday.  They have gone back up.  So glad I grabbed that reservation through Costco when they had gone down.  I'll keep checking however.



Yes, when I checked back with Thrifty, my mid-size for week Aug 18-25 had more than doubled!!!!  We are still in at $140!!!!


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## sjsharkie (Jul 17, 2013)

This 8th day of the rental is killing me.

Renting from OGG 9/14 to 9/22.  I have a rezzie for full-size from Enterprise for $189 if I book 9/14 to 9/21.  However, when I try to book for 9/14 to 9/22 (the dates of my stay), price goes up to $300+ for all car companies -- it has been this way for the last 3 months.

I may have to priceline or hotwire this.  Hotwire is showing $230 for the same period.  I like being able to cancel just in case, but since I'm pretty sure, it may be worth it just to book the non-refundable rental.  Since I need to check out and check in on 9/21 for the extra night, I was debating whether just to switch cars at the airport for the extra night or just book the nonrefundable via Hotwire/Priceline.

-ryan


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## Ken555 (Jul 17, 2013)

sjsharkie said:


> This 8th day of the rental is killing me.
> 
> Renting from OGG 9/14 to 9/22.  I have a rezzie for full-size from Enterprise for $189 if I book 9/14 to 9/21.  However, when I try to book for 9/14 to 9/22 (the dates of my stay), price goes up to $300+ for all car companies -- it has been this way for the last 3 months.
> 
> ...



If you're staying in the Lahaina area try reserving a one-way OGG to Lahaina and then back for the last day on another reservation. I've done this before and it's worked well. Alamo and a few others are within walking distance of WKORV, for reference.


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## sun starved Gayle (Jul 17, 2013)

5 day car rental in San Diego thru Costco $71.47 TOTAL . Mid size Toyota,

last May, love Costco!


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## sfwilshire (Jul 20, 2013)

I thought I was totally wasting my time, checking Costco for a better rental deal the day before my trip. Amazingly, by switching to an Intermediate, I cut another $150 off my rental car. $268 and change for 15 days. :whoopie:

I could have stayed with the full-size for about $30 more, but I was having second thoughts about that anyway. There are only three of us, so the only time it might be tight is to and from the airport with the luggage. We just have one checked bag, so I think we'll be fine.

Sheila


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## Ken555 (Jul 21, 2013)

Kauai week rental now down to $110+tax=$184 for intermediate.


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## Luanne (Jul 21, 2013)

Ken555 said:


> Kauai week rental now down to $110+tax=$184 for intermediate.



Maui rental for a fullsize still up there.  Wouldn't help to select a smaller car.


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