Check Costco for great car rental rates in Hawaii

[rickandcindy23]

I checked for two weeks at a time, all through June, and some of July: $279 with Budget, all taxes and fees included.

 

[Luanne]

Just to add to this, Costco does have great rates. But you DO need to be a Costco member as they ask for your membership number when you place the reservation.

They must rotate with which car rental companies they have the best deals with. When we went to Maui in March we rented through them and got our car with Alamo. I recently checked Costco on a rental in ABQ and got a great deal, through Budget.

 

[DaveNV]

Costco has contracts with the four car rental companies shown on their website. Those contracts are renegotiated and renewed each year. The "deal" they get changes, so the best rental values are not always with the same companies. That's why things change from time to time.

I've been using Costco's website for years, but lately have also been checking Thrifty and Dollar directly. The numbers change almost daily.

While you're checking Hawaii rates, be sure to check Thrifty's "Hot Deals" link from their website. Some excellent numbers there.

Dave

 

[rickandcindy23]

The deals were for Kauai, specifically. I am watching for something starting 8/3 for 2 weeks on Kauai, so it's been very high lately for my dates. I like to watch trends.

 

[Ken555]

I checked for two weeks at a time, all through June, and some of July: $279 with Budget, all taxes and fees included.

What class car is this? Compact?

 

[slomac]

Just checked and got a $199 for 8 days in Kauai for June. DH car rental was about $50 more.

Thanks

 

[rickandcindy23]

What class car is this? Compact?

Intermediate, but I prefer full-sized cars, which are $301 for two weeks with all fees included.

For some of you, joining Costco might be a wise move for the car rental deals alone.

I have rarely seen these prices for Kauai rentals. My last Kauai rental was about $440 for 2 weeks.

 

[slomac]

Is Honalulu typically a lot higher than Kauai for car rental? My rental for 3 days there is more than 8 days in Kauai.

 

[Luanne]

Intermediate, but I prefer full-sized cars, which are $301 for two weeks with all fees included.

For some of you, joining Costco might be a wise move for the car rental deals alone.

I have rarely seen these prices for Kauai rentals. My last Kauai rental was about $440 for 2 weeks.

Cindy on our Maui rental (which was with Alamo) we were able to upgrade from an intermediate to a full size at no additional cost. That may have been because when we got to the lot there was only one car left in the size we'd reserved. I don't know how Budget works.

 

[Luanne]

Is Honalulu typically a lot higher than Kauai for car rental? My rental for 3 days there is more than 8 days in Kauai.

Sometimes rentals are more if you don't book an entire week.

 

[mjm1]

Sometimes rentals are more if you don't book an entire week.

I agree with Luanne's post. We are renting a car from Alamo via Costco for our current trip to San Diego. We only needed the car for a few days and the quoted rate was high, but when I checked the weekly rate it was very reasonable. We decided to rent it for the entire week.

We had two rental cars in Hawaii- one on Maui and one on Oahu. Both intermediate size. Both cars were less than $200 for a week.

One thing I learned was to keep watching the site as the rates dropped as time went on.

 

[timesharepartners]

Thanks for the tip

Thanks for the Thrifty's "Deals" link tip Dave. I'm seeing some good deals there. I've been to their site recently but didn't notice this section.

 

[MuranoJo]

We also used Costco last Sept. for a 2-week trip to Kauai and BI. All went well, and the rates were the best I could find at the time.

But come to think of it, I don't believe I was ever refunded a $25 credit after the trip. If you get one of those after-trip credits, you need to be prepared to provide the rental agent upon arrival with a special code, which we did.

It's probably been too long, but I'm going to go back through our records to see if we ever got this credit.

 

[DaveNV]

Thanks for the Thrifty's "Deals" link tip Dave. I'm seeing some good deals there. I've been to their site recently but didn't notice this section.

Happy to help. I'm finding checking the rates daily (or even more than once daily) will find some interesting rates, because they keep changing. I saw a rental pickup on Oahu for a week in June for $75. I couldn't use it, and the next time I checked, it was a couple hundred, and then it was Sold Out. So it pays to keep looking.

Dave

 

[baz48]

Is it true that Costco car rentals no longer include a second driver for free? I think I heard that somewhere.

 

[DaveNV]

Is it true that Costco car rentals no longer include a second driver for free? I think I heard that somewhere.

Every time I've looked at the Costco site it includes the second driver and unlimited mileage. It's possible some locations may not include that. Have you checked the Costco website for your dates and location to see what's up?

Edited to add: Hmm. Just checked again, and I'm not seeing the free second driver. So maybe things have changed??

Dave

 

[Gracey]

I just rented thru costco for the big island. It was alamo. I had to go directly to alamo after I recieved the confirmation # from costco. Then register the second driver. I think alamo had a tab that said "save time" and you could put in the drivers and their drivers license number ahead of time so check in could be completed faster when picking up vehicle. I believe it shows a charge but then to the right of that the confirmation will show 00.00 charge for the second driver.

 

[Barbara]

book & cancelling with Costco

Do you pay for the rental at the time of booking with Costco? If you do or don't, do you pay any fees if you book, then find a better deal and cancel just before the trip?

 

[Barbara]

book & cancel with Costco?

Do you pay for the rental at the time of booking with Costco? If you do or don't, do you pay any fees if you book, then find a better deal and cancel just before the trip?


Sorry for the double post error.

 

[Luanne]

Do you pay for the rental at the time of booking with Costco? If you do or don't, do you pay any fees if you book, then find a better deal and cancel just before the trip?

No, you don't pay at booking. There are NO upfront fees. If you find a better deal you can cancel.

 

[Ken555]

Do you pay for the rental at the time of booking with Costco? If you do or don't, do you pay any fees if you book, then find a better deal and cancel just before the trip?

I've canceled such reservations in the past without penalty, but you should always verify the cancellation policy of any travel purchase when you buy.

 

[Luanne]

Yes, you pay Costco. I've canceled such reservations in the past without penalty, but you should always verify the cancellation policy of any travel purchase when you buy.

Really? I've rented through Costco twice now and never paid upfront, in fact didn't pay Costco. Payment has been made to the rental car company at the end of the rental period.

Ken, did you edit your message after I posted? I notice you removed the portion about paying Costco.

 

[Ken555]

Really? I've rented through Costco twice now and never paid upfront, in fact didn't pay Costco. Payment has been made to the rental car company at the end of the rental period.

Ken, did you edit your message after I posted? I notice you removed the portion about paying Costco.

Yes, I edited it right after posting, within a minute.

I recall paying Costco in the past, but not the last time I reserved (after they updated the reservation system).

 

[Luanne]

Yes, I edited it right after posting, within a minute.

I recall paying Costco in the past, but not the last time I reserved (after they updated the reservation system).

I've only started using Costco for car rentals recently (like this year), so I'm not familiar with the old system. But, so far I've liked it. We've saved a significant amount first on Maui, then in Santa Fe, and we will on an upcoming trip to Seattle. The only place Costco didn't beat my corporate rate with Avis is on a trip later in the summer to Tampa. I'll check back closer though to see what happens.

 

[Ken555]

I've only started using Costco for car rentals recently (like this year), so I'm not familiar with the old system. But, so far I've liked it. We've saved a significant amount first on Maui, then in Santa Fe, and we will on an upcoming trip to Seattle. The only place Costco didn't beat my corporate rate with Avis is on a trip later in the summer to Tampa. I'll check back closer though to see what happens.

Yup, the new res system at Costco is great. However, I'd suggest also considering trying Priceline as your trip gets closer, as that often is less expensive (but not as convenient).