jswal

Can anyone recommend a car rental agency from personal experience? Guidebooks indicate to stick with the internationally known (better cars)--but they are quite a bit more expensive than some local agencies. I got some quotes from Scotties, Ace and Europcar. What should I be aware of besides checking unlimited kms., insurance costs and taxes and fees?

GBZ

This will help you, Here is a complete list of all Car rental companies in New Zealand and daily hire prices. It took me ages to put together.

http://www.newzealandatoz.com/carrentalcompanies.php

There are also common rules and regulations for hiring a car in New Zealand on other pages.

Thereis nothing wrong with any of the three companies you have mentioned. But there are many other good cheap rental companies. Try www.ascotauto.co.nz

But I would go with a cheaper company

Enjoy
Glenn
www.newzealandatoz.com

GBC

A big issue is the age and condition of the car you are likely to get. Some of the least expensive are renting cars that are quite old and in poor shape. If you are staying nearby, that can work OK but if you are going far it can be risking a break-down. We saw one outfit called 'Rent-a-dent'. You get the picture.
Another factor is where you plan to return the car. We recently rented in Christchurch from Europcar and turned it in at the airport in Dunedin. Doing that limited our options. Europcar provided a very nice, fully equipped car for 16 days for NZ$1002. We rented from them again in Wellington. We were fortunate. We had no problems.

Betsy

Check out Auto Europe. Many folks on the Europe board (myself included) have been very happy with this US-based company. If you live in the US, one advantage is that you'll pay in USD, with no conversion rates to deal with. You can also change your reservation at any time with no penalty. If you find a less expensive rental, AE will match the rate. The website is www.autoeurope.com. I like to get info from the site and then make the reservation through their 800 number. I did check and they do serve NZ.

Nick4

I'd pass on the older model car rentals. I did that two years ago and wish I had spent the extra money on a car that didn't rattle and the security of knowing it wasn't about to break down.