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-   -   Entertainment Book Savings (https://www.fodors.com/community/united-states/entertainment-book-savings-514879/)

iceeu2 Mar 22nd, 2005 11:44 AM

Entertainment Book Savings
 
Wow, I just received my Hawaii entertainment book which cost me $17.50 (now 1/2 price) and have already netted a savings of $74! That just tickles me to death. The savings was on a rental car. I thought I had a wonderful rate with Budget, but the entertainment rate is even better..and I ended up finding an even better rate with National.

I had no idea this book would be such a great savings, and the car deals are good until June, 2006 and anywhere, not just the state you buy the book for.

Just wanted to share this savings with y'all because I thought I had such a good rate directly thru the car rental agency that I wasn't even going to check the entertainment book rates.

Pat_in_Mich Mar 22nd, 2005 11:53 AM

I too have been shopping for rental cars and found that Entertainment offered the best rate by far. You need to go to their site and then they have links to book with all of the major rental car companies and then you automatically get the discount.

Rocky Mar 22nd, 2005 12:16 PM

Should I buy the book now? I will be in Hawaii in January 2006 and I thought I would have to wait to buy it. Also, you they send you the actual book or do you just download the info from the website? Thanks for you help!

ajcolorado Mar 22nd, 2005 01:12 PM

Rocky,

You will need to wait until this fall to buy your Entertainment Book. The coupons in this year's will expire in Nov. 2005

pollyvw Mar 22nd, 2005 01:19 PM

Click on my name and see the post about my use of Entertainment coupons for airline fares (on the Airline Forum). My daughter gave us one (her school was selling them as a fund raiser) and I was not really excited about it. The only potential I could see was using it for restaurants that I would not normally go to. Well...it just saved me almost $150 on a flight for 4 people.

iceeu2 Mar 22nd, 2005 03:56 PM

Hey polly, how about topping your post or say what the title of the post is.

I ordered it strictly for a couple of restaurant coupons. It's much better than I ever thought it would be.

Budman Mar 22nd, 2005 04:44 PM

My entertainment book arrived this afternoon. Just looked at it briefly, andthere were only 4 places to use it on Kauai -- what a disappointment.

I'll have to check out the rental car deals next week. ((b))

flbronc Mar 22nd, 2005 04:51 PM

Sales ploy ?

jlm_mi Mar 22nd, 2005 05:36 PM

flbronc - Are you accusing iceeu2 of posting this to increase sales of the Entertainment book? Because iceeu2 has been a regular contributor here for quite a long time. Not exactly an advertiser . . .

pollyvw Mar 22nd, 2005 07:39 PM

Airlines Forum: Coupon Book/Discount Airfares is the title of my post.

JohnD Mar 23rd, 2005 03:46 AM

((B))man =D> another reason few go there ((?))

Budman Mar 23rd, 2005 03:57 AM

I did notice a coupon for the Flying Lobster Restaurant on Kauai Coconut Beach Resort (Plantation) in Kapaa.

Anyone familiar with this place? Any good?

John, it's too late!! I guess I'm stuck. 64 more days. ((a))((b))

iceeu2 Mar 23rd, 2005 04:05 AM

Don't dispair, Budman. You can also use the one for The Shack (coupon A81), there's one for the Kalaheo Coffee Co...and best of all...Air Kauai and Holoholo Charters have 25% off. There's a BOGO for Plantation Carriages, but I haven't seen any discussion on this place.

And, sorry flbronc...but, I just wanted to share some savings ideas with others since most everyone here is always giving such good advice. As a matter of fact, I just told my friend yesterday, not to buy one because she is going to Maui in September and all of the coupons for Maui will still be intact.

Budman Mar 23rd, 2005 04:16 AM

iceeu2, I haven't researched it yet, but we are staying 4 days on Oahu. See any good deals for restaurants? ((b))

iceeu2 Mar 23rd, 2005 04:31 AM

Yes, as a matter of fact, I think there are probably some useable ones for Oahu restaurants. I am going to post in a bit and ask the Hawaii gurus about a few (7) and see if they are worth it or not. The couple I saw on Oahu that really float my boat are A113, A8, A26, A33...
I don't know if you plan to do The Polynesian Cultural Center (we are not), but there is a bogo for it...and also a 20%off at Hilo Hatties (everyone has to have a Hilo Hattie fix)!
I was just blown away by the savings on the rental car..honestly, our car rental was $92 less total than what I had already booked...
I'm gonna save so much that drink pool will be really heavy! See y'all on the 27th!!
i2

sk84fungirl Mar 23rd, 2005 08:00 AM

OK,

how do I get to this airline forum? Can't seem to find it )-:


jlm_mi Mar 23rd, 2005 08:02 AM

Click talk at the top of this page and you can choose it from there.

sk84fungirl Mar 23rd, 2005 08:56 AM

During my research and price comparisons for rental cars in Maui, I have discovered that AVIS does not honor the entertainment coupons in Hawaii. Tried to book online and was advised to call. Upon doing so, made the discovery. You can obtain other discounts through AAA or Sams Club.

Yours in sharing.

iceeu2 Mar 23rd, 2005 08:58 AM

And, I discovered that Hertz is off the charts any place I check their rates.

Hanalei Mar 23rd, 2005 09:23 AM

sk84fungirl, I found out the same thing about Avis the other day too.
I've used Entertainment coupon and have found that Alamo has very good rate. They don't charge the airport tax before they are offsite. You have to take shuttle about 2 miles out of airport. I am getting a full size for 5 days in Oahu for $139 including all taxes and fees.

sk84fungirl Mar 23rd, 2005 09:23 AM

iceeu2,

you are sooo right.

Hertz is the most expensive I have found so far. Even though it is only 20-30 dollars more, it is still just that. The only advantage is that I would get Delta Skymiles for booking with Hertz. For those of you looking to rent cars in Maui, this is what I have found so far for a weekly rental of a midsize car:

-Alamo...111.33 incl tax via Entertainment coupon
-AVIS...117.91 + taxes via Sam's club
-Budget...129.51 incl tax via Entertainment
-Hertz...138.11 incl tax with Entertainment or Skymiles discount
-National...105.88 incl tax with Entertainment

Because I am traveling alone and taking some tours, I'm not interested in a convertible or jeep. So I did not check on those prices. This at least gives you a place to start if you are interested in a different type of vehicle.

Well, I actually did ask about a convertible with Budget and it was something like 375. Needless to say, I rather spend that $200 on something else.

Because you have helped me over the years, I am more than happy to share my research with you (-:

sk84fungirl Mar 27th, 2005 06:55 AM

I have my state's Entertainment book, and just orded the Hawaii one for my trip to Maui in three weeks. Can't wait to see what I can use. Figure I would get my 17.50 easily. I'll make sure I do. And then, I'll just give the remaining away.

But for those looking to rent a car, you don't have to purchase the Hawaii book to do that. If you're not interested in purchasing a book, just check with someone you know for one of the rental car coupons.

Fodorite018 Mar 27th, 2005 07:04 AM

We have used our book only a few times. Mostly because I forget to check what is in there. I did try to use it for our trip this past week. I read all "rules" for the hotel and called to make a reservation. The manager basically backpedaled and would not honor the discount. I called the EB and lodged a complaint though so at least they know one hotel that is not cooperating with their agreement. Due to that we changed our itinerary, which turned out for the better anyway, lol!

tracys2cents Mar 27th, 2005 09:22 AM

Hertz rates may come down when you REMOVE the coupon from the reservation. Their explanation is that "Coupons are sometimes not valid on our lowest rates". If you have AAA or know the Delta discount number for Hertz, you may get a lower rate than with entertainment coupon and be able to get your Delta miles.

sk84fungirl Mar 27th, 2005 11:23 AM

Tracy,

even with the Skymiles code, Hertz was the highest. But by only about $35-40. But I have a reservation for my stay and am happy with it.

sceneisle Mar 27th, 2005 11:50 AM

Can anyone give me an idea on how many restaurants there are in the EB for Maui and the Big Island? Thanks.

pspercy Mar 27th, 2005 05:02 PM

Go to http://www.entertainment.com/ and plug in a Maui zipcode e.g. 96761

Check the distance listed for each place as they'll list places on other islands too. I'm trying to decide if it'll be worth buying for Maui by itself. Last year the book came down to $10 + postage about May & was well worth it for Oahu & for Kauai it had 2-for-1 for Holoholo trip.

VitaAnn Mar 28th, 2005 05:45 AM

ANyone know it is worth is for me to buy if we are just visiting Maui and Kauai this August?

Thanks!

IngridB Mar 28th, 2005 07:43 AM

Where can you get the entertainment book for 17.50? I went to entertainment.com and it was 10.00 off -still 25.00. I guess it would still be worth it though.Thanks

Budman Mar 28th, 2005 07:53 AM

Here's the site. Scroll down to one of the half price tabs. Mine cost $17.50 plus $5 shipping.

http://www.andhawaii.com/entertainment_book_2004.html ((b))

sk84fungirl Mar 28th, 2005 05:25 PM

The book is available at the entertainment website. There is a Hawaii sale banner at the top of the home page.


Budman Mar 30th, 2005 10:10 AM

iceeu2, what kind of price did you get for your rental car? I just looked over my paperwork, and Avis is charging me for a Compact $156 for 7 days. Did the Book help you out any? ((b))

iceeu2 Mar 30th, 2005 11:06 AM

Yes, Budman, the book helped me out a great deal. Went thru the entertainment link and used the $20 off a weekly rental coupon with National. Anyway, ended up with an intermediate(grand am or similar)for 10 days...total with discounts and all taxes is $177.13. Their rate for an intermediate for a week is only $108.99, and that's before discounts or taxes...so you are probably looking at only in the neighborhood of $125 (maybe even less)going thru the entertainment site.

The previous rate I had with Budget including everything was $268.71 for 10 days, so you can see I am happy that I checked the entertainment site for rental car discounts.

Well, I guess this is far more than anyone wants to know, so I will just sign off by saying......((r))((r))((r))s in 45 more days!!!

Let me know how you do.

iceeu2 Mar 30th, 2005 12:07 PM

((b))man...just plugged in what I think your dates might be...National intermediate with coupon and entertainment discount and all taxes...$117.74.


sk84fungirl Apr 2nd, 2005 07:28 AM

VitaAnn,

I received my HI entertainment book (AND very quickly I must add). I paid $22 including shipping. I am still in the process of perusing. Have not made it past the first section and felt compelled to come here to let you know that it is a great investment. So much so that I wish my stay was longer to use more of the coupons.

What I have decided to do is to give it to a friend that is coming on her honeymoon in June. I will put together a Hawaaiian themed gift package for her to include the something borrowed...through something blue. Will give her my Entertainment book with everything that I have not used since I will only be in Maui six days, my Maui revealed, a $100 gift certificate to a nice restuarant in Maui, and then whatever else I need to finish off the theme.

OK, got off track for a second (-:

Said all that to say, the book is defintely worth the investment.

Budman Apr 2nd, 2005 09:47 AM

iceeu2, I plugged in my dates and I also got the $117.74 with National using the book. Avis does not honor the coupons in Hawaii, but I got another quote from them for $127.00. Since I am a Wizard member, I'm going to go with Avis. I like the idea of being dropped off at the car, loading my luggage, and taking off without bothering with the counter since we are getting in right at dark (6:07pm).

Now in Oahu for 4 days, the National discount beats out Avis by $35.00. I can stand in line to save $35.00 considering we are getting in at Noon and can't check in until 2pm. ((b))

iceeu2 Apr 3rd, 2005 06:02 AM

funnygirl, what a great idea for the wedding gift. I do agree that the 2fers in the book are great..and I am also looking forward to using the Orange Julius ones. I can never find an Orange Julius and I remember just loving them!

I'm passing my book on 2 times before November. In June, a friend and her dh are going to Oahu...so there will be plenty left to use there. We are not going to the PCC and they are so that's a great savings there.

Then, she is sending it on to another friend of ours who is going to Maui in September. This one is getting good use.

Good deal on the rate negotiation with Avis, Budman! Listen, you may want to find some previous threads about the "Kauai Shuffle"...One person gets the car and the other gets the luggage instead of hauling it on the shuttle bus to the car.

iceeu2 Apr 3rd, 2005 06:04 AM

And, VitaAnn...yes, it is worth it for Maui but not for Kauai....

holly Apr 3rd, 2005 09:57 PM

Just a note that I found the rate using the Costco discount to be pretty good, too. I found an intermediate through Alamo for 7 days on Oahu for $135+change. I'll probably buy the book anyway to take advantage of the other offers while I'm there.

Budman Apr 4th, 2005 02:00 AM

You might want to check out National thru the entertainment book. An intermediate on Kauai for 7 days was $117+change. ((b))


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