Renting a car choosing an operator · Choosing an operator in Renting a car
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Choosing an operator in Renting a car
Choosing an operator in Renting a car
Major global car rental companies have famous brands that operate in many countries throughout the world, for example Avis, Hertz, etc. Sometimes the regional operator can be an independent company using the name under licence, and often the local operator is just a franchisee. These major brands allow bookings through all the electronic booking services, and there is a seemingly endless amount of Internet booking services that allow you to do comparison searches between them.
Using a global operator can have advantages. They often have priority "clubs", which record your details in advance, and can make renting a car as simple as just picking up the keys. You can generally rely on them operating out of prime locations, such as in the airport terminal, rather than in the shed down the street. They usually run cars for a short period of time before updating their fleet. However, don't think that because you are renting from a global operator you can rely on them to do the pre-rental car inspections correctly, or that their terms and conditions of rental are consistent.
The next level is the national or regional chain. Many countries have national operators, which may also operate out of a few neighbouring countries in the region. Sometimes these operators can also have prime locations, and sometimes they operate using shuttles or from less prestigious sites.
The next level is the purely local operator. It is unusual for these operators to have the prime locations, often they operate from less prestigious sites. The rental car industries sees its share of shady operators, and often they can be found in this category. This is unfortunate, as many of these operators can offer good value, and good service. It pays to seek out some local advice or reviews.
Often the choice is one between brand, price and convenience.
The Most Frequently Asked Travel Questions about Renting a car
Where To Stay & Best Hotels in Renting a car - updated May 2024
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Renting a car Travel Guide from Wikitravel. Many thanks to all Wikitravel contributors. Text is available under Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0, images are available under various licenses, see each image for details.