My husband & I will be traveling to the Grand Canyon & the Four Corners region in April. We will be renting a car at the Las Vegas airport. This will be the first time we've rented a car for more than a day or two. I've been trying to figure out which company to rent from, but all the opinions & reviews I've read online make every company seem like a nightmare - no cars despite reservations, mysterious damage charges that show up months later on credit card bills, etc. I have no way to guess which company might be decent! And the price differentials for a week's rental are huge. Does anyone have positive car rental stories to share, or advice on how to choose a company? Thanks in advance for your help.

We haven't had any horrible experiences. We use Priceline, after checking sites like Orbitz, and the rental company sites themselves to get an idea of what to bid.

Thousands of people rent cars every day and post nothing about their experience because it is so boring and routine to not be worth writing. My husband rents a car almost weekly and has had few problems and those that he does have been resolvable.

Neither of us has ever shown up and found no car available - if the level we reserved is not there, they bump you up. Strangely, the only time we had anything approaching a problem was in Las Vegas when we reserved a one-way car rental to California. They had to find a "California car" that met emission standards and we ended up with a bad mini-van. Turned it in the next day - cost us an hour of our time which was annoying, but not really a big deal.

I go to Travelocity or Expedia and get the chart showing different companies, car size, cost. Just pick a name company, making sure desk is at airport, and have a good trip. (We don't like Enterprise because they come get you and then take you to their office in the car - always seems to take longer)

We use Travelocity to get prices (they include all those various and sundry taxes)and then check the individual websites of the companies we think we want to use. We always rent an Intermediate size car so eliminate pricing all the rest. We almost always end up using Budget,Hertz (AAA rate), or National and have never had a problem with any of them. We book as far in advance as possible as the prices tend to go up as time gets closer. We have used Hotwire several times and ended up with Avis but they want their money at booking and we don't care to do that. The difference in price wasn't that much. I would never book anything other than one of the larger companies, but that is my quirk and comfort level. Our credit car elminates the need for additional insurance. We always carry a copy of the confirmation with us and read all the fine print ahead of time. Good luck.

I like www.kayak.com because it compares car rentals (hotels, airfare, etc) and you book directly from the provider. Make sure you check out AAA, Entertainment Club, weekend specials, etc. as you want all the discounts working for you. If you work for a large corporation, ask if you can use the corporate rate. We did that one time at Xmas in Orlando and we saved 60% on car rental. You have to work all the angles!

I rent cars 3-4 times a month and really haven't ever had a big problem. Sometimes, the car I have requested is not available but usually I am given my choice of another vehicle or get an upgrade at no extra charge. I have never had mysterious charges turn up at a later date.

I use Dollar almost exclusively because I find they usually have one of the lowest rates around. But I have also used other agencies. One thing I have found about using Expedia, Orbitz, etc is that they don't always compare prices for all the rental car companies. You said there is a huge price difference between companies. What are the prices and with what agency? I usually go with the cheaper rates if I can get the car I want.

Also regarding the comment about Enterprise from Gail. Enterprise will come pick you up if it is a local office but at the airport, their service is no different than any other car rental company. My experience has been that Enterprise uses a shuttle system just like anyone else. I do use them ocasionally and have had no problems.

I really like carrentals.com because they don't require a credit card to hold the reservation. I think Hertz is probably the best (most shuttle buses, least wait to get into your car), but once you're there they have all been the same in my experience. I always go with the lowest price.

ncounty - I have never had to enter a credit card to hold a car resercvation renting from Travelocity or individual car company.

northcounty-I agree with Gail.Never have to give a credit card ahead of time.

Over the past 15 years I have rented cars from all of the major rental companies at various locations. There is no real difference between them. Whether you have a good rental experience depends on the specific car you get and the person you deal with at the counter - both are pretty much random. When choosing a car rental company I base my decision on which can deliver the best car for the best price.

Love enterprise, Absolutely hate hertz!

I nearly always use National. I got started with them for one reason - you usually get to choose your car rather than have the agent assign you a specific car. As I have moved up from Emerald Club to Emerald Executive, I now have the ability to choose from several cars. I always reserve midsize and usually get at least a full size. Even if you reserve a compact you have several compacts to choose from. If you stick your head in one and someone has smoked in it you just go on to the next one. The system works well.

I think on hotwire and southwest I had to provide a credit card; I just remember being relieved at that time at not having to provide that at the carrentals site.

I am a Hertz #1 Gold Member and a Dollar Express Member and rent mostly from these companies. Dollar normally allows you to choose what car you want from the class you are renting from. The last time we were in Vegas we had a Subaru Lagacy Wagon....which was much nicer than the Doge Caliber would could have taken.

The only thing that has ever happened to me is that I had to fill out a damage report at Dollar because a rock and chipped the windshield while I had it but no charges to me for the chip.

Try Priceline. We never pay more than $14/day for a rental.

We are also going to Grand Canyon in April. We are paying less than $150 for 6 days w/ Budget Rent A Car. Our insurance company (USAA) has great car rental deals. We rent w/ Budget every year and have never been unsatisfied.

I've found that you get what you pay for. With the top tier (Avis, Hertz, National) you get newer cars, shorter lines and usually friendlier and more professional employees. With the next tier (Thrifty, Alamo, Budget) you get cars with more miles and sometimes much longer lines. You can sometimes solve the line problem by signing up for the company's prefered customer service.

But I wouldn't necessarily pay an extra $100 for a top tier company.

I've also never had a major problem with any car rental.