Lottie

We would like to get from Seattle to San Francisco. The drop off charges that most car rental agencies charge for this one way trip are so expensive. Is there a way to avoid these charges? Do you know an agency that is less expensive? Or would train be a reasonable option?

Paul Rabe

If there's a way to avoid the drop-off charge on this route, I've never heard of it. For a one-way trip, your best bet is train or bus. Check www.greyhound.com for schedule and cost of the latter. This being a major route, I'm sure you'll find a conveninent departure time. Of course, some people don't like traveling by bus; but that's personal taste.

lisa

Lottie: Have you called ALL the major rental companies? In my experience, they are all different and some charge no dropoff fee while others do. Some also charge you extra each day for having an additional driver authorized to drive the car, while others don't. It also depends on where you are picking up and dropping off. My best recent experience was July 4 week with National Car Rental -- picked up the car in LA at LAX airport, and dropped it off 10 days later at the Sacramento airport. When I made the reservation about 6 weeks before we left, they quoted me a rate over the phone of $170 for the whole ten days including all taxes and everything (free unlimited miles, no charge for an additional driver, and NO DROPOFF FEE). That was for a compact (which turned out to be a 4-door Chevrolet Cavalier). Once we got there we decided to upgrade to an intermediate (4 door Olds Alero) so that we could have a tape deck and CD player in the car, which was $50 extra for the whole ten days, bringing the grand total to $220. Still, a great deal we thought ($22 per day), especially considering the fact that we put an awful lot of miles on the car driving up the coast to Monterrey and then over to the Sierras. The other thing we liked about National was that they let us pick out our own car -- all the cars within each "category" (compact, intermediate, etc.) are organized by sections in the parking lot, and you can choose any car parked in your category's section, which is nice because you can choose a car in a color you like, with the lowest mileage, and one that doesn't smell like smoke! So my best recommendations are: 1. Reserve your car as far in advance as possible, because the rates go up the closer you get to the rental date; 2. Check with National, but no matter what rate they quote you, also call ALL the other major companies (Avis (I've had good luck with them), Hertz, Thrifty (I've had good luck with them too recently -- just reserved a car for 2 days in St. Louis for $15.95 per day!), Enterprise, Dollar, Alamo (used to be good but seem to have gone downhill lately in my opinion), etc. -- just look in your yellow pages and call all the 800 numbers). Yes, this takes a little time (actually, it won't take you that long, maybe an hour), but it is TOTALLY worth it in the money you'll save. I rent cars about 5 times a year, and I have NEVER paid more than $29.95 a day. 3. When you call, specify that you are looking for the lowest rate. If they ask you what kind of a car you're looking for, say, "Whatever is least expensive." They may tell you that's a subcompact and try to dissuade you from renting it by saying that it could be a hatchback or something, but just say, "That's fine." The reason I say this is because I ALWAYS reserve the smallest and least expensive car available, and I am ROUTINELY given free upgrades to at least a 4-door sedan, and sometimes a midsize. Frankly, I am skeptical that the rental companies even HAVE subcompacts on their lots -- I have never seen anyone drive out of a rental lot in a hatchback, have you? At Avis earlier this year I reserved a subcompact at $19.95 per day and drove out of the lot with a Mazda 626, completely loaded with CD player and everything, at that rate. So reserve the cheapest car you can and odds are you'll be upgraded free. If for some reason you don't like the car once you get there and they won't give you a free upgrade, you can always pay to upgrade and it's usually not that much more. 4. Check the websites for the rental car companies (e.g. www.avis.com) and also the specialized travel websites (like www.travelocity.com) -- sometimes they offer discounts for reserving on-line or better deals than you can get over the phone.
Good luck!

Anne

Lisa had some really good suggestions and I'd like to add one more. After you've gotten the best price either on the web or at the 800 number, have them send via mail or fax a confirmation of that rate. I had a problem earlier this year with National in Orlando when my price (given over the phone) didn't match the counterperson's. After getting home - we eventually got it all straightened out -- but the National rep advised me to ALWAYS have a car reservation person send something in writing. Good advice, I think.

kathrine

I just booked a one-way with Hertz and did not have a drop-off charge, so you can possibly give them a try.

Crash

Call AMTRAK--ride the train and then rent a car in SF.

471

raeona

How lucky you are! Are you aware of the Coast Starlight train that daily makes the trip from LA to Seattle? It goes thru some magnificent scenery, and is a first-class experience all the way (don't let the Amtrak affiliation dissaude you). But if you do decide to train it, do book first-class accommodations. Your meals (and they're good) are included, plus the sleeping accommodations and complimentary wine-tasting in the first-class lounge. It's a fabulous experience - go for it!

raeona

Duh! Implied, but not stated in the above post, is that the train also runs from Seattle to LA. (And stops at Oakland)