Last Minute Car Rental : How to Score a Great Deal

Almost everyone likes a good road trip, but not everyone has the vehicle needed to do it. If you have advanced notice of your trip, you can search around for the best rent on a cheap rental car, but what happens if you’re in need of a last minute car rental?

We’ve got you covered, and not just with our own affordable rental suvs, cars or vans, but with a slew of travel tips designed to help you save money on the fly!

Hit the internet first. Calling rental car agencies can of course help you book a car reservation, but if you do that without searching around, you may be leaving money on the table. You can use online travel agencies like Expedia, places that will present you with a list of rates for your dates and choose from available vehicles, all in one place. The obvious biggest advantage to this approach is saving time, but it can also help you see right away if the agencies still have the SUV you need or that other specific car class. (Because agencies do run out, this is the downside to last minute car rental reservations.)

Visiting rental car websites individually can take additional time, but a big plus to this is that many rental car agencies offer deals, discounts or coupons on their site that you won’t necessarily see in your aggregate searches. For example, if you visit Fox Rent a Car’s website, one more click onto our Deals page and from there, you can select one of various deals or even our Hot Deals, which are rates that go quickly but can be as low as under $6 per day.

Coupons may show up in random Google searches or websites, but visiting a site directly can display a long list in one area, allowing you to immediately drill down into the reservation process for a specific location (where you may score a City Special) or vehicle.

Consider checking into pre-paid rentals or weeklong rentals, where you can sometimes find significant discounts.

Be flexible. If you want the comfort of an SUV but just need to get from Point A to Point B (and back) and you’re unhappy with the rate or lack of availability, consider a smaller vehicle. It may not give you the space to sprawl but if budget is your number one concern, this can make the difference between being able to go or not.

If you can change your dates, even a day earlier or later can yield better rates, though a lot of spontaneous travel won’t allow for this.

Say no to add-ons. Yes, that navigational system can be helpful, but you can save a few dollars per day if you use your phone system in a safe, hands-free way. (Be sure to check out your travel destination, as some states will give tickets if you are holding your phone, even when stopped at an intersection.)