If you’ve had trouble finding a rental car for this summer or felt like the rates have gone WAY up, you’re not alone. Over the past year, as we all stopped traveling, the car rental companies sold off their fleets. And now with the computer chip crisis, they are unable to purchase new cars to replace them. As a result, there is a serious shortage of cars available to rent across the country.
This spring we planned a 10-day summer trip to Alaska. We would be driving from Anchorage to Seward and then up to Denali. It was a great itinerary and we were really excited about everything we had found. We were just about to start booking when we realized we hadn’t checked the prices on cars. Whoa! Most car rental companies in Anchorage were completely out of cars and the one that wasn’t was outrageous! Needless to say, we won’t be going to Alaska this summer, but it did make us really think about how we would need to plan differently this summer.
Here are 5 ways to navigate the car rental shortage.
Try Modifying your Dates
Its crazy to think of changing the dates of your trip to find a car, but if a car is essential to your trip, you might have better luck starting with the dates a car is available and then looking for flights and lodging.
Also, check to see if cars are available if you pick up your car a day later or return it a day earlier. Certainly not as convenient, but if it gets you a car, it might be worth a night at an airport hotel.
Several years ago we ended a trip in Zurich. Since it’s such a walkable city, we returned the car as soon as we pulled into the city. We stayed in a hotel close to the airport that provided a free shuttle, so they picked us that day and returned us the next and we still had a full day to explore the city by foot.
Check Other Rental Locations
If you’re traveling to a metropolitan area, see if there are car rentals available from the downtown location instead of the airport location. That’s an easy Uber or Taxi ride if that’s the only option.
Also, consider flying into another airport in the region (i.e., Oakland or San Jose instead of San Francisco) if car rentals are available there.
Consider a City with Public Transportation
Many cities offer public transportation options that make renting a car more of a luxury than a necessity. Look for lodging options that are close to public transportation or an easy Uber or Taxi ride away from the airport.
San Francisco’s BART, the Metro in Washington, DC, the subway in Boston, the Paris Metro and the Tube in London, among others, are all easy to navigate. They are cheap ways to get from the airport to your lodging and you can also use them to get from activity to activity during your trip. We’ve done all of these cities without a car.
Also, many cities have attractions close together, so you can easily walk between them without needing any transportation. When we visited Sydney we took an Uber to our Airbnb that was right downtown and then walked everywhere from there.
Only Rent for Part of the Trip
If it works for your itinerary, consider renting a car for just part of the trip. When we went to San Francisco, we rented a car for one day from a location right next to our hotel but spent the other two days either walking or using public transportation. In England, we did London without a car and then took the Tube back to the airport on the day we were leaving the city and rented a car to use for the rest of our trip.
Take Your Own Car
Of course, if you’re really having trouble finding a car, this might be the summer to drive to your vacation. Every state has hidden gems that would make for a perfect getaway, so don’t discount the activities that are close by.
Hopefully these tips will make planning your vacation this summer a little easier and this shortage won’t last much longer. Do you have other tips for finding rental cars this summer? Share them in the comments.
