Rental Car in San Francisco for one day?

[daveAZBC]

I need some advice about where to rent a car on a port day in San Francisco. My ship (HAL Nieuw Amsterdam) docks at Pier 35 from 8AM to 11PM next Wednesday, Oct. 2, 2024. I want to rent a car and drive to Merced, CA to have a visit with my Grandson, who is attending Merced Junior College. I would probably need the car from 10AM to 7PM. I realize there are several rental agencies near Fishermans' Wharf, which is within walking distance of Pier 35. The problem is that those agencies all close in the afternoon and don't permit a key drop after closing. I think my best option is to take public transit to and from Oakland Airport and rent a car there, since they are open late for the return. Do any of you know of a better solution? Thanks. 

[princeton123211]

On 9/28/2024 at 2:42 AM, daveAZBC said:

I would probably need the car from 10AM to 7PM. I realize there are several rental agencies near Fishermans' Wharf, which is within walking distance of Pier 35. The problem is that those agencies all close in the afternoon and don't permit a key drop after closing.

Have you considered using something like ZipCar? https://www.zipcar.com/san-francisco

 

You have to sign up for it in advance but you can buzz into and out of cars using your smart phone at any hour of the day. Cars are usually returned to garages where they have a reserved spot or sometimes they are located in their own spots on street parking lots. No going to a counter or anything like that. 

 

On 9/28/2024 at 2:42 AM, daveAZBC said:

I think my best option is to take public transit to and from Oakland Airport and rent a car there, since they are open late for the return.

It's a lot of running around and will take a lot of time to do it that way. 

[ATSEAMYLIFE]

I would love to hear how it worked out.  That's a lot of moving parts in one day with unpredictable traffic.  I wouldn't have attempted it unless the ship was staying overnight.  I would have had my grandson drive half way and meet up for lunch.    

[daveAZBC]

Thanks for the replies, however I wasn't able to read them due to lack of internet access once I boarded the ship. Nonetheless, here's how it worked out - IT DIDN'T!

 

I disembarked the ship at 9AM and walked about 30 min. to the BART station. I took a train to Oakland Airport. There were several delays related to an earlier electrical incident. After a change of trains and then a shuttle bus, I got to the rental counter, only to learn that I could not claim my already paid for rental car because I didn't have my passport, which I had carefully locked in the cabin safe on the cruise ship. (I'm Canadian - apparently ALL non-US citizens must show a passport to rent a car.) I checked with several other car rental companies and they all had the same rule. (I did have my D/L and I had a US Amex card!) By now it was 1230PM and I wasn't prepared to go back to the cruise ship, retrieve my passport, and try again. Both myself and my grandson were disappointed we were unable to get together. 

 

PS. I've rented cars in the past without a passport many times!

[ATSEAMYLIFE]

4 hours ago, daveAZBC said:

Thanks for the replies, however I wasn't able to read them due to lack of internet access once I boarded the ship. Nonetheless, here's how it worked out - IT DIDN'T!

 

Should have had him come to you it would have been much more fun for him to come to SF than you go to Merced.  

[princeton123211]

10 hours ago, ATSEAMYLIFE said:

Should have had him come to you it would have been much more fun for him to come to SF than you go to Merced.  

That one was doomed from the beginning-- way too complicated to go out to Oakland Airport via public transportation when there were plenty of viable options in town (and the passport issue could have been much more easily and quickly rectified). 

[ATSEAMYLIFE]

On 10/15/2024 at 6:16 AM, princeton123211 said:

That one was doomed from the beginning-- way too complicated to go out to Oakland Airport via public transportation when there were plenty of viable options in town (and the passport issue could have been much more easily and quickly rectified). 

He could have ridden the train from Merced to San Francisco.  He's young let him do the heavy lifting.