My husband and I would like to rent a car in Aruba and/or St. Maarten in Feb. From what I understand, there are some car companies that have their cars by the pier. Does anyone know which ones they are?

We went to Aruba in Feb 02, on the Vision of the Seas. The rental area is very close to the dock. There were some local companies, but they wanted their cars back sooner than we wanted to return. We had a late night return to the ship. We ended up renting from Avis, because we they let you drop your key in their locked booth after hours. It may have cost a little more but I think it was worth it. I also trusted them more. You can also rent either an open jeep or a closed jeep. The closed jeeps have air conditioning and in case of sudden rain storms, you stay dry. (We had two!) We had a wonderful time on our own, but road signs and maps leave a lot to be desired.

Most rental companies in St. Maarten are near the airport, but I understand there are some near the pier, as well. Just inquire with someone when you disembark....I'm sure you'll have no problem getting a car.<BR>

In Aruba when you rented from Avis did you reserve your jeep thru them before you left on your trip? When I tried to do that, they told me that you had to either call Aruba direct or wait until you get to the pier to rent a jeep thru them. They can only reserve small cars or vans on-line. The call to Aruba would probably cost as much as the jeep rental!

There are a car rental agencies by the dock in St. Maarten...dont worry. (Avis is one of them!)

We rented from Avis when we arrived there. We didn't have any problem with it at all.

we also rented a closed top, air conditioned jeep from avis at the pier with no problems.