KayF

Hi, my husband and I are planning an 8 day trip to Miami and the Keys for late Jan/early Feb.

Can anyone recommend a well-priced and reliable car hire firm. We fly into Miami international airport and would like to get the car there so that might restrict us to the usual Hertz/Avis etc. Prices seemed reasonable on the web until you add all the many taxes! Please don't suggest Alamo - would never book with them again.

Current planning is to fly in to Miami (from London), drive down that day to say, Key Largo, for a night then continue to Key West and spend the last few days in Miami or Fort Lauderdale before flying home.

Thanks for any help.
Kay

doug_stallings

I'd suggest you simply use Expedia or Travelocity to price rental cars in Miami and pick the cheapest company. I've used Alamo on several occasions with no problems; Dollar, Budget, and Enterprise are also usually cheap national companies, though I can't say if they are particularly cheap in Miami. Every car rental is going to have many taxes added, but you'll certainly get a better rate if you price by the week with one extras, and companies with off-airport locations are also usually cheaper but much less convenient. Hopefully, some posters have experience with more local companies and can help you, so I'm just adding this to top.

milemarker0

You could try Hotwire....rates are around $21/day plus taxes for a full size around that time...the only draw back is it's a pre-paid reservation, so you can't cancel. Might be a little bit risky this far out, but something to keep an eye on.

Statia

I've used Dollar at MIA for years and have been pleased. A couple of days ago I paid a $160 base rate for an intermediate sized car for a week. With taxes and insurance it came up to $220.

I have always found Dollar to have the best prices out of all the reputable companies. I've booked on both Expedia and their direct website.

nytraveler

The other thing you need to account for is the extra insurance costs since you don't have US insurance and are not using a US credit card. Be sure you have those costs added in so you're compaing apples to apples when making a decision.