MCO Orlando Midsize Hertz

[bobcook54]

Last year,I got a great rate on a full size car(Mazda CX 5) through Priceline with Hertz for $143.00 total(12.00 day...8 days)from 06/10 to 06/18/2008. I booked it on 02/19/2008. This year, I have gone up to 18.00 day starting with a midsize and rebidding the same price for full,standard and premium with no luck. Also,the fees,taxes,etc seem to be much higher. Did I get lucky last year or am I bidding too early? As always, I used the PRICELINE link.

[thereuare]

Last year,I got a great rate on a full size car(Mazda CX 5) through Priceline with Hertz for $143.00 total(12.00 day...8 days)from 06/10 to 06/18/2008. I booked it on 02/19/2008

Please remember to share your wins with the board so others can benefit from the information.

For your stay above, what is the best rate you're able to find thru conventional booking channels? (try using our Car Rental Checker to assist in your search)

[bobcook54]

Sorry,I thought I did. The best rate so far is directly on Payless's site ....$212.00 with all taxes/fees for a mid size.Most are in the 400.00 to 450.00 range...HOTWIRE was 316.00 to 335.00. Any suggestions?

[thereuare]

Using the Payless rate isn't an apples-to-apples comparison since neither PRICELINE or HOTWIRE use them for their 'opaque rentals' and they're a "second tier" agency.

If you're comfortable with Payless i could book that as a canceallable back-up and continue to try PRICELINE every 3-4 days in an effort to beat that back-up rate.

Please use these PRICELINE and HOTWIRE links to begin your travel purchases.

Keep us updated as to your progress or if we can be of further help.

[bobcook54]

Looked back at my bid on Priceline from 2008...the taxes and fees were $46.92 on my full size rental @12.00 day....this year it would be $80.94 on athe same $12.00 day bid for the same 8 day rental! Anyone know why the increase of $34.00?

[thereuare]

Assuming you're seeing similar taxes thru both PRICELINE and HOTWIRE (and an increase thru direct bookings as well), it could be a change in tax rate(s) or a new "Airport Revenue Improvent" tax.

Please use these PRICELINE and HOTWIRE links to begin your travel purchases.

[bobcook54]

I took your advice and reserved the car at Payless(have used them in the past and have had no problems) at 212.00 total for the 8 days(midsize).I noticed last night that they lowered their rate to 185.00 total so I cancelled the first one and booked the lower rate. Even if I can get the $12.00 a day through Priceline eventually,it still will be around $176.00 total with all their fees,but I will continue to watch both HOTWIRE and PRICELINE and report back my results.

[thereuare]

Good... now at least you know exactly what your "price to beat" is and also protect yourself from any price increased between now and your rental.

Keep us updated.

[trukyram]

I was going to post the same problem as the OP when I logged in, and then saw this thread. Last year I booked a standard-sized rental via Priceline (from a link at this site) at Orlando MCO for 10 days and got $12 per day. This year I haven't even been able to come close. I'm looking for similar dates again -- 5/29/09 - 6/09/09. I too noticed that when I went to bid, the fees have more than doubled. I can't find my bid from last year, but I'm pretty certain that with taxes and fees, a 10 day rental mid-sized rental came out to $163.00. Even if I won a bid at 12 per day, it now comes out to $236.00 I have one extra rental day added this year, but sheesh! That's a big difference even without the added rental car price increase.

So with the economy being in the tank, why the big increase in the bidding prices and the fees doubling? You'd think the rental car companies would be giving good deals with less people traveling & booking rental cars. I'm really disappointed in the big price difference and the fee increase.

I may go ahead and book through Payless as well and then see if I can beat that price. OP, was there a coupon code through Payless to get that price, and does Payless have a pick-up location at the airport?

[thereuare]

I haven't researched this (don't have the time right now) but i'm guessing that this is not a "priceline fee" increase and more likely a new tax imposed by the aiport/city... rental car fees/taxes are an easy target to raise money... the local voters dont' seem to mind since they seldom (if ever) rent cars at the airport so they typically overwhelming suport such increase if it keeps the rest of their own taxes down.

How does PRICELINE's total fees and taxes compared to HOTWIRE's for a similarly priced rental?

[bobcook54]

The price on Payless is now $279.00 for the same rental!!!! When I did book it, I joined their Perks Program(free) and it knocked off a little....like $8-10.00 for the 8 days. I too thought that the economy would have an impact,but not so far. I am in the car business(26 years) and we have been told the rental car companies have put fewer cars into service than normal due to the economy,so maybe that has an impact.....supply vs demand.

[trukyram]

I could not come close to the price you got From Payless. I went ahead and reserved a mid-sized through Advantage for $16 per day which was the best deal I could find. No coupons needed. It came to $64.94 and with taxes/fees the total is $94.93. I only reserved for four days since the other 7 days we'll be staying on-site and can use the Disney transportation. It would have been nice to have a rental for the entire stay, but not at these prices. I'll continue to bid on priceline and see if I can get it for less than that. Who knows, maybe I'll get lucky as the date gets closer. Thanks for your help though.

[bobcook54]

trukyram-Payless is back to the cheaper price on midsize as of 5:45PM EDT on 3/10/09. A 4 day rental(5/30 to 06/02) was $74.60 with all fees. Just thought I'd let you know.

[bobcook54]

Just cancelled my reservation with Payless and rebooked with them because the rate dropped! $97.00 week for a midsize,plus $16.00 extra day,-$5.67 for being a Perks member = $107.33 for 8 days before taxes/fees. That is $13.42 per day before fees......total is $162.00 for 8 days. With PRICELINE's higher fees,I don't think it will get much less expensive than this,but I will keep all posted!

[bobcook54]

I received an email alert from HOTWIRE stating that prices have dropped. Checked them and they did indeed drop to $14.95 a day for mid size....$181.00 total with all fees.Decided to give PRICELINE a try (used link here) at $11.00 per day midsize and low and behold,it was accepted by Hertz! $159.00 for 8 days with all fees. I could have upgraded to full size for $3.00 per day,but really don't need a full size. Looks like the summer market has finally broke loose!

[thereuare]

Congratulations on your success!

Glad to see your perseverance paid off and you manged to get a great deal on this rental.

Thank you for sharing your win with the board and using our PRICLINE link to begin your bidding.

Have a good trip!