National Car Rental, LAX
 

Planning our trip some months ago we booked for a 2 days hire of a car plus a GPS to drive from LA to San Francisco. We confirmed over the phone and via email about this booking and to ensure that we would have a GPS as we couldnt drive without one as we didnt feel comfortable coming from Australia where we drive on the other side of the road and car!

We arrived at the car rental location and everything was running smoothly until we were told they didnt have enough GPS in stock and we wouldnt be getting one. We asked the attendant if they would have any coming later in the day and he said our only thing was we could drive to Burbank which was on the other side of town to see if they had one. There was no way we were going to brave the traffic without a GPS! He was very unhelpful and was more concerned about getting other bookings through and getting more money!

We ended up cancelling our booking with them and decided to catch the free shuttle to the airport and brought a ticket with Virgin America straight to San Francisco. A pain at the time as we missed our on the drive along the Pacific Coast Highway but ended up working in our advantage as we got an extra day in San Francisco and got to do more things that we wanted!

Im not saying this is going to happen to everyone but just becareful when you book these things, although you confirm several times, it doesnt always mean you have it!

I dont see how a GPS would help with driving on the side of the road you're not used to.

Did National offer you a map? What do you think people did before they invented GPS?

GPS -- just like a specific car -- can't be guaranteed. Canceling and flying and missing the coastal drive?? I think you guys over-reacted just a <i>tad</i> . . .

(I've driven on the 'wrong side of the road' and having a GPS doesn't make it easier or harder. Hwy 1 / 101 up the coast really isn't a road where GPS would make a difference one way or the other)

Everyone has different opinions. Coming from Australia where we have no where near as much traffic as the US and trying to attempt driving on the other side of the road, slightly different road rules, a left hand car drive and no idea where we are going..didnt exactly feel comfortable driving all that way. Maybe you wouldnt need a GPS but we felt we did. Personal opinions. Thanks for your comments though.

that's why most of us wouldn't dream of flying to Australia or England or NZ and hopping onto a car and driving....