I am going to Costa Rica on Oct 4th for my honeymoon and i chose Avis for my Car Rental - they have a place at the airport and it seemed convinient - But now i am hearing I will be charged and extra 12% ? Should i make another reservation somewhere else?

I am leaving for Costa Rica tom. and I looked around quite a bit and found a good price through Poas rent a car and they pick you up from the airport so you dont pay the 12% fee. I have also seen good things said about them. You can find them on the web at carentals.com. And you will also find MANY words of advice about not leaving your car anywhere while you have luggage in it. Good luck.

I have to agree with the last person. We like to rent with Poas. We tried Payless once and will never use them again. Poas has always been fair with us.

Should you not go with an american company in case something goes wrong and you have to deal with them when you get back from your trip? Or is Paos very easy to deal with once you are back?

Plus - My american express card covers insurance - Why should i sign up for the insurance through the rental car company?

blakeas,
I can't quote you all the particulars of the insurance thing (it has been posted on this forum, though, so you might try a search)----the deal it, your platinum card will cover only a PORTION of the insurance that is required. Only a portion. Don't ask me the name of the portion!

For example, if your total required insurance is going to cost you $17 per day, that is for 2 parts of insurance (whatever they are called!). Your credit card will pay part of it. I think with us it is $5 per day, maybe $7. I believe all cards pay the same amount. Not a big deal, but over the course of a week, hey, it's a few bucks that doesn't come out of our pockets.

On two occasions when we first started going to CR, (I think it was with Dollar), they called our cc company right on the spot and checked on it for us. Then, you are required to initial that you have DECLINED that necessary portion of the insurance offered by the rental company. Declining is important as it places the responsibility on the renter for having the additional coverage through their credit card--which the rental agency would be happy to check for you if you haven't already checked it ahead of time. Sometimes they call anyway.

The last few times we've rented with Tricolor, they take our word for it, we initial the decline, and that's that. No need to not be dishonest about it. . .if something were to happen and we didn't have the credit card coverage we SAID we had, it would be out of OUR pocket.

Yes, I'd make a reservation elsewhere if the 12% is bothering you. There are SO many nearby agencies and most of the are very reliable. I can vouch for Dollar and Tricolor--never anything but good experiences. C Wooten likes Poas, my daughter thinks Mapache is really good. I wouldn't hesitate to use either an American company or a Costa Rican one.

As for picking up the car offsite, I think that is what most people would rather do. It just seems to help ease the arrival process if someone is there to pick you up and give you a nice short ride to the office where you pick up your car. And welcome you to the country on the way!