steph270

I'm winding down the last few details of trip. Because we want to return the car in Puerto Jimenez, has anyone tried Solid Rental Car? i was suggested by Jose @ bosque del cabo. how about Mapache or Adobe....the recent post on tricolor ? freaked me out.....

shillmac

Don't be concerned about Tricolor. We (and many others) have rented from them SO many times and have always had excellent experiences. We rent from the airport office. I think the problem was probably with the management at the Liberia office where that particular vehicle was rented.

steph270

shillmac - that's good to know....i didn't count them out b/c so many people on that post seemed shocked but it did make me a little skeptical...

steph270

after reading mcwinery's post, maybe i should be more concerned about renting a car, rather than who to rent the car from??!! i have to say that post freaked me out a bit....we've driven in costa rica all 3 times we've been there, although last time (2006), we did get very turned around in heredia and i had the "hair up on the back of my neck feeling"....i know sjo is not in san jose, nor are most of the rental agencies. when we arrive, we are going right to villa caletas outside of jaco. does anyone know if any of the rental agencies are easier to get out of and "on your way"?

shillmac

Well, here I am again with Tricolor. Their office is very close to the airport and the interamerican highway. Easy in and out. There are several other rental agencies on that same little strip. Mapache is very near with an easy out as well.

Dollar is not so easy in and out as it is a little toward San Jose with an exit that, for me, is always hard to find.

steph270

great to know...i was actually looking at mapache due to car return in puerto jimenez....i don't think we can with tricolor or i'd use them...probably beween mapache and solid. i remember one of our rentals was an easy in and out, in a strip mall somewhere (budget or payless i think)....didn't care for national...that i remember well. i feel like i should bring home gifts for everyone that has been so helpful! (shillmac, hipvirgochick, tully, volcanogirl, to name a few...)

Suzie2

We used Solid last summer. We were in San Isidro visiting friends and they brought the car down to us there as we were going on to the Pacific Coast and the Osa after. We made our way down to BdC and then turned the car in at the Solid office right by the airport. They were very friendly and professional and we had no problems at all. When the driver dropped the car off he went around and helped us look for scratches and other little things and noted them on the rental sheet. I wouldn't hesitate to use them again.

Earthtraveler

Steph270,
What didn't you like about National?
Which office did you use?

Thanks for your reply

tully

steph bring back a six-pack of Imperial, we can divvy it up! Just kidding, have a great trip, that's good enough!

steph270

earthtraveler, our first trip to cr, we only rented a car from our hotel for a few days. our 2nd trip, we went with another couple and rented a car from national for our entire trip....we didn't get the car we indicated.....i know the terms are vague from MANY other trips we have had, but it wasn't even close.... we barely fit our luggage in the car....and it was minimal...and we had a very difficult time b/c my husband had just rec'd aarp benefits (much to his dismay....he's 18 yrs older than i am)...and even though he was reluctant to use the discount....we did...and they totally ignored the discount when we got there!...the armed guard and location was a bit freaky....there was something else.....like a huge wait time (beyond normal carib. time)....i remember everyone who was there when we were, being unhappy...it was weird...one of those times i swear i will write in to give my 2 cents but never do
ps. one of the tires was bald and we had a flat tire in monteverde...this actually turned out to be a good experience...the people there were wonderful and the garage we went to charged us 7.00 we gave him 10. and he was thrilled!

steph270

tully,
we actually get imperial through our local distributor in new jersey....alhtough our friends just got some and had to take it back....must have been a bad seal....said it looked like seaweed was in it...yikes...we have never had a problem.....as far as i know...lol

steph270

earthtraveler,

my husband reminded me that when we had the flat there was no jack in the vehicle either...

LikesToGoPlaces893

This August was our second trip to Costa Rica. We had used Mapache on our first trip and did not have any problems so decided to book through them again.

BIG MISTAKE!

We had spent 5 days in Santa Teresa with no problems (not really driving the car) and were headed out of town to Arenal for the second leg of our trip. Ten minutes into our drive the car turns off and wont' start again, looks like it has overheated.

Me and my girlfriend have to hitch-hike back to town to try to find help because Mapache tells us it will be about 8 hours before someone can get to us (they ended up not getting to us until the next day). We are advised by some locals not to leave the car on the road as it could get vandalized overnight and the car rental company would hold us liable.

To avoid this we arrange to have the car towed to a nearby gas station where it will be kept safe overnight with security. Of course we incurred expenses for both the tow and the parking, but we figured it was worth it. We ended up having to stay an extra night in Santa Teresa (while still having to pay for the night we missed up in Arenal) waiting on a new car.

The next morning the new car did show up and we went on with our trip. When we returned the car back in San Jose we left without authorizing any charges since the man there couldn't resolve our issues including the lost day and the expenses we incurred keeping THEIR car safe. We were told this would get resolved later since this person couldn't make these kinds of authorizations.

A few days after returning to the states, we were hit with 2 charges, one for $1000 ($300) too much for the rental fee and another for $3,000 since they were claiming that we were responsible for the damage to the car since we had blown up the motor. The second $3,000 charge had a false signature on it that my husband immediately recognized as fraud.

It's taken nearly 2 months but AMEX resolved this for us and we are not responsible for anything other than the original rental fee (which is still too much considering but I can live with it!).

These guys are out to take advantage of people who are just trying to do the right thing!

STAY AWAY!!!!!!!!!

sylvia3

We've used Solid twice (1 SJO, 1 LIR) and Europcar. No problems whatsoever. With any rental company, print out your written estimates (contract if possible) sent via e-mail (make sure your quotes include only the one insurance coverage if your cc coverage is standard), confirm once, and check your car carefully when you pick it up (take pics of any scratches, dings, etc., inside and out). Of course, always pop the trunk and make sure you have a spare and a jack.