Car Rental - Malaga (AGP)

[equitax]

Hi all - Travelling to Marriott Marbella Beach Resort in Mya- Was wondering if anyone could reccomend car rental options or warnings on who to avoid.

Thanks,

Robert

 

[Bwolf]

Bob: Three year's ago this week we went to Marriott's Marbella. We used Carjet.com. We had no problems with them and the price was very good. We did book several months in advance. YMMV.

 

[Jimster]

carjet

Yes, i give a second vote for carjet-insurance is included.

 

[Pompey Family]

We picked up a car from Malaga two weeks ago using Sixt. The cars are all new and in very good condition whilst rates are very competitive. There are cheaper options but with the lower prices comes a reduction in quality and hidden costs.

When we arrived at the car rental section there was a huge queue for Goldcar, there must have been approximately 150 people lining up, no exageration. Goldcar are one of the cheapest companies but their cars reflect that. The one's I saw in the parking bays looked like they'd been around a bit.

Budget used to be cheap and reputable however their prices have been increasing recently although they're still a good bet.

Avis and Hertz are not worth bothering with unless you want a particular high spec car or their loyalty program is worth the extra cost. If you're a Marriott Rewards holder then Sixt will give you Marriott points on your booking.

There are other bargain operators but I've been stung in the past so I stick to Sixt and Budget. The old axiom, 'if it's too good to be true...' remains very apt when it comes to car hire.

 

[Pompey Family]

Yes, i give a second vote for carjet-insurance is included.

Insurance is always included whichever company you hire from. It's the additional insurances that all the companies try to upsell such as tyre and glass protection etc.

 

[Carolinian]

Carjet is a consolidator. I have used anonther consolidator in Europe, that has in most instances worked out well, www.economycarrentals.com

However, with a consolidator, you might be stuck with a bad local company like Goldcar, a true bunch of scam artists on many fronts. Do a search on them. I think all of the consolidators use Goldcar, unfortunately. They also use other companies. Try to specify that you do not want Goldcar.

One local Spanish company that gets good reports is Top Car Auto Reisen, which usually has low prices but not the multiple scams of Goldcar. I do not know if they are in Malaga or not, but if I was renting in Spain, based on what I have experienced with Goldcar compared to all the things I have heard about Top Car, I would try to deal directly with Top Car Auto Reisen and not play the consolidator crap shoot. Spain is one of the few European countries in which I would stay away from consolidators, and Goldcar is the reason.

 

[Passepartout]

We had good success with carjet in Portugal. The car DID come from Budget. You might also check Europcar. I see they have a Malaga airport location and have had good reviews.

 

[PStreet1]

We used Sixt, and were really happy with the whole experience: people, vehicle, help offered, price. Sixt was just about half the price of the other companies, and insurance was included. We also got American Express' extra coverage ($25.00 total for the entire rental period) to cover hospitalization, stolen articles, additional coverage of vehicle, etc.

We rented at Malaga and turned the car in when we got to Madrid.

I also recommend getting a Garmin that takes a chip and buying the chip for Spain and Portugal (it was inexpensive, around $40.00), and it took us everyplace, even to tiny little streets that would never be on any map you would buy. It even avoided the areas we couldn't drive in because we were non-residents of the neighborhood.

 

[GetawaysRus]

We used a consolidator that we found mentioned in another (older) TUG thread:
http://www.doyouspain.com/

We ended up with a rental from SixT. No problems with SixT. Rented an automatic in Malaga and returned in Malaga.

We have a TomTom GPS. I purchased Spain maps from TomTom and loaded them prior to our trip. Our timeshare stay was at Playa Andaluza, and the TomTom took us to the wrong place (into the town of Estepona rather than to the resort). Had to call the resort to find our way.

The GPS also failed me in Seville. Our hotel was very close to the center of Seville. I think that this was because the streets in the old section are so narrow, and the space between buildings so tight, that I lost the GPS signal several times.

The TomTom was right on the mark for Cordoba, and got us quite close to our hotel (within a block or two) in Granada.

The GPS then got us back to the Malaga airport without any problems.

One more thing to mention: we were warned by someone before our trip that we would not see any cops on the road in Spain. This person told us that there are cameras (or did he mean radar?) clocking you, and if you speed you will have a surprise citation in the mail when you arrive home. We never did see any cameras and we never did see any police. I don't know if this is true or not, but we took the warning seriously and didn't overdo it. By the way, Spain's expressways were in much nicer condition than our freeways at home in California.

 

[classiclincoln]

We used doyouspain.com and ended up with Goldcar. Problem was that there was a HUGELY LONG LINE at the airport picking up the car. They charge you for a full tank of gas up front and you bring it back empty. That's good if you plan on doing a lot of driving. Drop off was strange, they were busy and didn't check the car. I made them because I didn't want to get hit with any surprises. Would not use them again.

 

[GetawaysRus]

Since doyouspain.com is a consolidator, searching for a rental can take you different places at different times. On my initial search (well in advance of our trip), it landed us with SixT and I held a car. I went back later and searched again thinking that I might find a lower rate, and this subsequent search ended up with Goldcar. The price for the rental through Goldcar was marginally lower, but I had read some negative comments about Goldcar on the Internet and decided to pass.

It doesn't hurt to search on a number of occasions over several months. Rates fluctuate quite a lot. Keep what you like the best.

In the end, it is definitely not "what you see is what you get." My suspicion is that most European rental companies stock primarily manual cars. If you are trying to rent an automatic (as we were), there's a fair chance you may get "upgraded" to another vehicle upon arrival. That did happen to us with SixT.

 

[Suebe]

We go every year to Spain and have used Doyouspain in past years, but not recently. The car hire companies located in the airport terminal often have long queues (we waited over an hour one time!!) and often charge for a full tank of fuel on top of the rental fee. You have to bring the tank back empty. Total waste of money unless you are intending to do a lot of mileage.

There are a number of car hire companies that have offices off-airport and who provide transfers to their premises usually in mini-buses and only a few minutes away. Some of these do not charge for full tanks of petrol/diesel - instead you bring back your vehicle with the same amount of fuel as when you first take it.

Some companies will include fully comprehensive insurance in their fees (but does not cover windows, and tyres) - others will try to get you take out additional insurance.

Sue

 

[Carolinian]

We used doyouspain.com and ended up with Goldcar. Problem was that there was a HUGELY LONG LINE at the airport picking up the car. They charge you for a full tank of gas up front and you bring it back empty. That's good if you plan on doing a lot of driving. Drop off was strange, they were busy and didn't check the car. I made them because I didn't want to get hit with any surprises. Would not use them again.

Goldcar also uses Dynamic Currency Conversion (DCC) which is a real ripoff. They refused to budge on this in the Canaries. On the full tank of gas they charge you for, the problem is not just unused gas, but they charge a lot more for the gas than the going local prices. They are also notorious for false claims of damage to the car, which they hit you with after you leave (fortunately, I did not have this last problem with them but lots of people do)

 

[Carolinian]

Major car rental companies do not require the full tank of gas scam, and neither do the reputable local ones like Top Car Auto Reisen.

We go every year to Spain and have used Doyouspain in past years, but not recently. The car hire companies located in the airport terminal often have long queues (we waited over an hour one time!!) and often charge for a full tank of fuel on top of the rental fee. You have to bring the tank back empty. Total waste of money unless you are intending to do a lot of mileage.

There are a number of car hire companies that have offices off-airport and who provide transfers to their premises usually in mini-buses and only a few minutes away. Some of these do not charge for full tanks of petrol/diesel - instead you bring back your vehicle with the same amount of fuel as when you first take it.

Some companies will include fully comprehensive insurance in their fees (but does not cover windows, and tyres) - others will try to get you take out additional insurance.

Sue

 

[amycurl]

Hi all - Travelling to Marriott Marbella Beach Resort in Mya- Was wondering if anyone could reccomend car rental options or warnings on who to avoid.

Thanks,

Robert

We just got back from Spain on the 15th. In the middle of our week, decided to rent a car for just a few days. Found a great deal with EuropCar online, and paid in dollars via credit card (no conversion needed) and got Hilton points! Picked it up in downtown Marbella and dropped off at Malaga train station (we were taking the high speed train from Malaga to Barcelona.) Drop off would have been easiest ever, if we had managed to remember to ask *specific instructions* on where to drop the car off. Finally found the space (in the underground garage of a random hotel across the street) and were able to just drop the keys in a box, but almost missed our train (having circled the station numerous times looking for the drop site for about 40 minutes, and getting wrong instructions twice from folks--non-Europcar--who should have known...) For your purposes, the Malaga airport is a breeze to navigate and the Europcar desk is right there.

We *loved* the new Renault we got; too bad you can't really find Renault in the states anymore. Integrated in-dash navigation system for no additional cost, and included the ability for English-language instructions and voice.

No hidden fees, no lines, no hassles. Since we didn't see (or speak to) a person when we dropped off, we checked the Europcar desk at the Barcelona train station when we arrived (since we literally had to walk past it to leave the station) and found that everything had been taken care of. And we just received a written receipt in the mail. Really, one of the better car rental experiences I've had (the drop off situation was really just a matter of us not asking the right question at the right time...)

 

[Carolinian]

We careful of this ''paying in dollars'' business. It is almost certainly what is called Dynamic Currency Conversion, and it is a ripoff on two fronts.

Firist, it does NOT avoid extra fees from your bank. Some years ago banks went from a foreign currency conversion fee to a foreign usage fee. You get charged the same fee by your bank for using the card overseas whether it is in dollars or local currency. The way to avoid this fee is to get a card with one of the handful of financial institutions like CapOne that do not charge them in the first place. It is not whether you pay in dollars that avoids fees, it is whether your card is with the right financial institution.

Second, Dynamic Currency Conversion gives absolutely horrible exchange rates. In comparision, if you pay in local currency, credit and debit cards process that at the mid-market interbank rate, one of the rest rates out there for consumers.

Unless you like getting ripped off, always avoid paying in dollars in a foreign country. More and more hotels, restaurants, and car rental companies try to do this claiming it is a ''convenience'' but I am sure they are getting a cut of that exagerated exchange fee. If you object, they have to bill it in local currency, which you should always do if presented a bill in your home currency.

Dynamic Currency Conversion is one of the ripoffs of Goldcar (and they are the only ones I have seen violate the law by refusing to change it), and their conversion rate, if memory serves was something like 7% worse than the mid-market interbank rate. Because walkup rates at competitors at that point were brutal, I accepted the rental anyway and then challenged the exchange rate successfully with my bank later.

We just got back from Spain on the 15th. In the middle of our week, decided to rent a car for just a few days. Found a great deal with EuropCar online, and paid in dollars via credit card (no conversion needed) and got Hilton points! Picked it up in downtown Marbella and dropped off at Malaga train station (we were taking the high speed train from Malaga to Barcelona.) Drop off would have been easiest ever, if we had managed to remember to ask *specific instructions* on where to drop the car off. Finally found the space (in the underground garage of a random hotel across the street) and were able to just drop the keys in a box, but almost missed our train (having circled the station numerous times looking for the drop site for about 40 minutes, and getting wrong instructions twice from folks--non-Europcar--who should have known...) For your purposes, the Malaga airport is a breeze to navigate and the Europcar desk is right there.

We *loved* the new Renault we got; too bad you can't really find Renault in the states anymore. Integrated in-dash navigation system for no additional cost, and included the ability for English-language instructions and voice.

No hidden fees, no lines, no hassles. Since we didn't see (or speak to) a person when we dropped off, we checked the Europcar desk at the Barcelona train station when we arrived (since we literally had to walk past it to leave the station) and found that everything had been taken care of. And we just received a written receipt in the mail. Really, one of the better car rental experiences I've had (the drop off situation was really just a matter of us not asking the right question at the right time...)

 

[classiclincoln]

"The way to avoid this fee is to get a card with one of the handful of financial institutions like CapOne that do not charge them in the first place. "

Not true. No credit card is going to covert foreign currency to US dollars for nothing. You're either gonna pay a flat fee (typically 3%) or they'll hit you on the conversion rate.

 

[Carolinian]

"The way to avoid this fee is to get a card with one of the handful of financial institutions like CapOne that do not charge them in the first place. "

Not true. No credit card is going to covert foreign currency to US dollars for nothing. You're either gonna pay a flat fee (typically 3%) or they'll hit you on the conversion rate.

VERY TRUE. My Cap One does not charge at all, and that is true of all versions of CapOne cards, and they convert at mid-market interbank rates.

The Cirrus and Plus networks charge a flat 1% for doing all the conversion work, and that is passed on by most but not all banks, CapOne being one of the exceptions. Many banks, especially the big ones tack on an additional 2% junk fee for doing absolutely nothing (since Plus or CIrrus has done all the actual conversion work). So if you are not smart, you do get stuck with a total of 3% for currency conversion.

CapOne and a handful of others do not even pass on the Cirrus or Plus 1%. Many others, especially credit unions pass on the 1% but do not add the junk fee. My two credit union cards thus charge 1% which is why I always use my 0% Cap One cards when I am outside the US.

 

[amycurl]

No, there wasn't Dynamic Currency Conversion. We checked. Extensively. Before paying online. It was no different that purchasing any other product online with a credit card in US dollars. Price quoted was only quoted in dollars. Price we were charged on our credit card statement was the same price we were quoted. No other fees on the card statement attached to this transaction. Good deal all the way around.

 

[Carolinian]

No, there wasn't Dynamic Currency Conversion. We checked. Extensively. Before paying online. It was no different that purchasing any other product online with a credit card in US dollars. Price quoted was only quoted in dollars. Price we were charged on our credit card statement was the same price we were quoted. No other fees on the card statement attached to this transaction. Good deal all the way around.

Try priciing it in local curency and then looking up the conversion rates at midmarket interbank rates on a site like xe.com DCC never shows up as a seperate charge on your credit card statement because it is an internal conversion before it ever hits the card system. Some US based companies may have a decent dollar price for US customers that never goes through a conversion process, but many play the DCC game if who you are really dealing with is their foreign affiliate.

Being charged the same amount in dollars as you were quoted in dollars means nothing, as the first price quote likely already incorporated DCC.

Airline websites in Europe often ask what currency you want to use, and if you click on dollars, they will indeed bill your card at the amount they specify. However, if you check the rate in local currency and price the mid-market interbank rate, the exchange rate built into the airline system (which is DCC) is a dreadful rate.

You now even have to watch this on ATM's. I ran into this extensively in Poland, where they offered to bill your account in dollars, but if you priced it out even at the rates of local exchange houses, they were giving an awful exchange rate. You only got the good rate by hitting the button to have it transmitted in local currency (zloty) and having the Cirrus or Plus system do the conversion.

 

[Jake50]

Very good service

I´m going back to Malaga again on Tuesday next week. I have been going a number of times a year for the last 12 years. Always I have used rentacarspain.com There prices are good, there is service is quick and easy and I have not once had a problem.

 

[optimist]

We will be in Malaga in January and I am looking for an automatic transmission car and finding that either the choice is not offered or the prices are crazy high.

Does everyone who posted their experience drive a stick shift? If not, any recommendations for an automatic rental at Malaga airport?

 

[PStreet1]

We got an automatic from Sixt. We sometimes take a stick shift, but the automatic was very little, if anything, more than the price they quoted for the manual transmission. We had an almost new Renault--loved it.

 

[bobpark56]

Renting at the airport may not be best

I suggest considering off-airport rentals, especially if you will be renting for more than a week. We have found it useful to pick up our cars at the train station...or to take the airport train to Fuengirola and pick up our car there. Intermediate points would likely work as well.

 

[Doogie]

I´m going back to Malaga again on Tuesday next week. I have been going a number of times a year for the last 12 years. Always I have used rentacarspain.com There prices are good, there is service is quick and easy and I have not once had a problem.

I just checked pricing for Rentacarspain.com for a week in February 2014 and they wanted Euro 36 for an economy car. Price seems too good to be true. Are you aware of their cancellation policy? I emailed them and they have not responded.