www.CostaRicaTicas.com

Last trip I booked everything through my travel agent. This time I'm doing everything myself and just going direct to the hotels and car rental co's. Does anybody have any comments in terms of which car rental agency they would recommend (seems like Adobe/Alamo/Budget are the main ones). Are they all pretty much the same as far as reliability etc. Thx.

Thrifty Rental Cars looks pretty good...about $35/Day for mid-size SUV. I think there is a special @ $199/Week. Check out www.thrifty.com.

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Blue Devil

Pura Vida...enjoying life to the fullest...

Rental cars in CR are very expense, require a very large hold on your credit card ($1500-$2000), are extremely picky about so called "damage" when you return the car and rarely honer the rate you found on their web site.

I have only rented a car once here and found the best deal at Hola Rent a Car. That was two years ago and things may be very different today.

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Pura Vida
Only Irish coffee provides in a single glass all four
essential food groups:
alcohol, caffeine, sugar and fat.
Alex Levine

They get you coming & going no matter what! I have used many & can't say one was better than the other. You might grab a local paper when you land & see who has any deals going. I usually get the full insurance which is a screw job but the cars have so may dings & scratches that they always seem to find something wrong & then the big argument takes place. Unless you use the car a lot I think it is cheaper with the taxis & less stress with the driving & parking.

Zippy

Piroca,

I've rented a car in CR on several occasions. I'm well aware of the urban legends concerning damge penalties and precisely because of that was always extra careful to review every single ding and scratch with the agent before accepting the car (insisting they mark it down on their sheet). Perhaps because of that or perhaps because I avoid the smaller local rental companies, I've never had a single problem with damage claims when I returned my car. I'm sure it happens to others, perhaps with greater frequency than it might at home, but I suspect the prevalence of it is still somewhat exagerrated. If I were you I'd stick with the local affiliates of the US companies even if it costs a little more. They're independent and will do many things differently than their associates in the US, but if you do have a problem you'll have at least a little more leverage as the parent company has a brand reputation to maintain.

Last time I rented I used Thrifty (can't recall who I used on earlier trips). The only problem I had was that they were late bringing me the car since they ran out of the rental class I had reserved. Not only did they honor the rate I was quoted and my reservation but they gave me a free upgrade to the next class up. Perhaps in Ding's case his problems were due to his going for the "best deal" with a local agency rather than working with a more established agency.

As for "rarely honoring rates", the only variation from the BASE rate quoted, if you can call it that, that I experienced were the various miscellaneous fees that they tack on to the base rate. Car rental companies do the exact same thing in the states and I knew about those fees before I even came down, so I don't really consider that changing the rate. One surcharge that you can easily avoid is the premium they charge for picking your car up at the airpost counter. Also, they do put a large hold on your card. This is not a problem for me and many others since US credit card companies are so generous at increasing our credit limits that I'm never maxed out on my card and I rarely carry a balance or if I do don't use that card for putting down my deposit so I don't get hit with any interest either.

So in answer to your question, go with one of the majors, they should all be fairly similar in terms of reliability (and not that far apart in terms of cost either) and avoid going for the "best deal" with one of the smaller outfits or you may find yourself paying much more in the end.

Zippy and Ding,
Yeah yeah yeah, we've all heard the usual complaints and arguments against renting a car in CR. Thats fine if that's your preference or opinion. Obviously, some others feel the benefits are worth the cost and risk. Piroca is clearly one of those people since he has rented before and feels it is worth doing again. So rather than repeat the tired old lectures, why not just answer his question like BlueDevil did.

Excellent feedback. Thx. I too am inclined to pay a little extra and stay with a brand name if it results in better reliability.

I've rented cars twice in Costa Rica. I find the urban legends of the perils of car rental in Costa Rica to be vastly over-stated. Once with Dollar, for a week, out of San Jose, and once with Advantage for 2 days out of Jaco. Neither time have I had any problems, just using the basic coverage. The car I rented with Dollar (a Nissan Sentra) got a flat tire and a bent rim courtesy of one of the myriad of potholes on the road back from Arenal. Fortunately, the spare worked fine, and Dollar gave me a replacement spare wheel and tire when I got back to San Jose, at no additional charge for use during the rest of my trip. Cost for a week was $241 for the car including the basic coverage and all taxes.

Renting out of Jaco with Advantage (a Toyota Yaris), they waived the 3 day minimum and allowed me to rent for 2 days and I again used just the basic coverage. I actually got a couple of superficial scratches on the paint on the passenger side from an overhanging tree branch, but these were not noticed when I returned it and I was not charged anything for them. Cost for 2 days was $96 including basic coverage and all taxes.

One thing I do now is take my digital camera & take photos of the car before I leave & they see me do this. It may not always help but The photos do have the time & date on them. I always rent from the bigger companies (hertz,alamo, thrifty,etc.) but still half the time have had arguments on little scratches which is just reporting the facts. Better to be aware of these things if you do not take out the extra insurance.

Zippy

Prolijo wrote:



I DID NOT lecture anyone about renting a car one way or the other.

I DID relate my experience and DID NOT say I was dissatisfied with the experience or the company.



Would respectfully request that you follow your own advise and not editorialize on your opinions about renting a car. Or if you choose to do so do not chastise others who do also.

_________________
Pura Vida
Only Irish coffee provides in a single glass all four
essential food groups:
alcohol, caffeine, sugar and fat.
Alex Levine

I just got back from CR saturday. I have used economy rental car agency the last 3 times to CR. We had a 4 wheel drive hyndai i forgot the exact make but it only had 10000 kilometers on it. It only cost us 325 for the week. I drove the whole week becuase my buddy was constantly drinking. My liscence is suspended in the USA. I got stopped in Jaco and just gave the cop 20 bucks.

20 years ago when i 1st started going to CR the deposit on a rental was only 300 dollars. They raised this alot becuase surfers and other adventurers were getting cars wrecked, swept down rivers ETC. trying to get to hard to reach places in the rainy season. If you are going to just hang out in the gulch there is no reason for a rental. If you wanna do some exploring of your own i LOVE the freedom a rental cars gives you. Driving on some of these roads is a pure thrill for me and doing some offroading on your own is great cheap fun.

I recommend a rental car

Surfdog