ShellD

We've rented from Tricolor our last two trips, but they tell me that they only have vehicles that fit up to 5 people and we need one that will fit 6 of us, so they're out. Initially we planned to rent a vehicle for the whole trip except Osa, but now I'm thinking of using a driver to get to Arenal and from Arenal to Peace Lodge and Peace Lodge to the airport to get to Osa. But, then to rent a car in Arenal for the few days we're there. We've always had our own vehicle there, and I just really love that flexibility. It just seems that for the 6 of us, plus luggage, renting a vehicle for the whole trip will be too costly. And, when my mom heard that my husband would be driving her through CR and the mountainsides, she sort of freaked out - she thinks he's not cautious enough! So, I don't need her as a backseat driver the whole trip -

So, I see Mapache rents in Arenal - does anyone have experience with them? They replied very quickly with a price quote. I may still do some price shopping, but I was looking for some feedback to start.

Thanks!

marysmommy

Yes, my DH and I rented from Mapache exactly this week last year and we really had a great experience. We rented the car on arrival at San Jose (they pick you up and drive you to their nearby facility); very friendly folks. We’d originally ordered a Suzuki Jimny, which is a 4x4, but only has 1300 ccs of power. Once DH drove it a few minutes, however, we went back and they upgraded us right away to a Suzuki Grand Vitara which is a bit larger and has more power, very similar to our Honda CR-V. I think it was $12 more a day maybe. The staff at Mapache were lovely to deal with and it's a carbon neutral facility (which we think must mean they buy carbon offsets). I’ve been a loyal Hertz customer for many years, but really liked supporting a CR-based company and highly recommend them.

Suru11

We used Mapache last summer (June) and had no problems at all. I can't remember the type of vehicle but it was a small 4 door SUV which was in very good condition. I think it was called a "Beo" or something like that. There were only two of us and we had plenty room. Just make sure you check the spare tire. We had a flat and my husband didn't feel comfortable with the spare because it was quite bald, so we found a place in Atenas to fix the original tire. However, the spare held up the rest of the trip. Anyway, I highly recommend Mapache, they will pick you up at the airport and are very friendly and very upfront about any x-tras you may want to purchase, such as a GPS, but not at all pushy. I would definately use them again.

qwovadis

www.mapache.com is the biggest local experience has been good

they allowed me to put the CDW on my Credit Card

which saves a lot.

Most reviews good have seen one negative complaint

on a rental of an older car out of Liberia on

www.tripadvisor.com CR board.

Seemsan isolated experience.

Have fun,

ShellD

When you rented with Mapache, the reservation form is requesting us to fax a copy of the front and back of our credit card along with a copy of the driver's passport. This seems a bit much to me to fax. Not that giving the credit card numbers isn't enough - but to actually have to fax a copy of the card, and the back with our signatures and the security number, and then the passport - with all of the identity theft around, it seems risky. I believe Mapache is reputable, but any employee could take the information.

Of course, I do know that once we're there we give that information anyway, but once we're there, we also have the vehicle. This is just to secure the reservation.

Any opions on this?

Thanks!

tully

I would email them back and tell them you don't feel comfy giving out all that info and surely just the CC # should suffice. When I rented (from Solid) they just took my name, hotel info, phone etc and then I called and gave them my cc # over the phone.

marthabu

AVOID MAPACHE. THEY WERE HORRIBLE! After paying for their full insurance, when the car had problems, they tried to make us pay for the transportation of their mechanic!

Below is a direct e-mail quote from Mapache, who refused to allow us to make use of American Express credit card car insurance, buy demanding the impossible: "ALL CREDIT CARDS must have a bank that owns the credit card, it is not possible you have a credit card itself, this must be supported by any bank; so we need you to go to your credit card’s bank so they can make this ORIGINAL LETTER SIGNED AND SEALED by the bank, and you bring it to us. On the contrary, we will not accept your declination."

JAVIER ANDRADE
On-line Reservations PHN/TELF (506) 2586-6366 FAX (506) 2586-6358 TOLL FREE from USA & CANADA 1-877-MAPACHE

petite43

I had the same problem...to find a vehicle for 6 pax isn't easy and like you, I've always used Tricolor in the past when all my kids weren't with us. We're going next month & trying Adobe because they have a Hyundai Starex van that should hold all of us + luggage. They were one of the few companies willing to accept the cc insurance so we'll only have to take the SLI with them. I'm not sure if they required it but I will also have a letter from the cc company confirming the insurance. We're paying $550 for 8 days picking up in SJO & dropping off in LIR. I priced out taking a transfer to/from Arenal & only renting the car there for a few days but the combined total was more than renting the car for the entire trip.

When are you traveling? I'll post a report when I return so you'll know how we made out.

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!!!!!!!!!

DavidVT

They SCAMMED my group. Charged $79 for a car jack when we were checking out. Its not even listed on their inventory sheet. SCAM went like this... initial walk through is "No problema, Don't worry, we don't charge for small scratches, everything is here, enjoy your trip". Check out walk through goes "look at this scratch, where are all these things, you guys are crooks, we're charging you." Very demeaning situation. 100% SCAM.