POAm-Port Rental Car Suggestions for July

[uromac]

Hi!

 

We are planning to go on the Pride of America in the beginning of July and would like to rent a car for 4 (2 adults and 2 teens) in the all or some of the ports (Honolulu (before and after cruise), Hilo, Maui, and Kauai). What agency and what kind of car would you suggest to rent for our gang (SUV - either wrangler or closed?, convertible (we've never rented one!, or "regular" type car depending on price) depending on port - we might rent and still do some excursions too- any suggestions for us would be also appreciated!

 

Thanks!

 

Melissa

[HawaiiCruisers]

Hi!

 

We are planning to go on the Pride of America in the beginning of July and would like to rent a car for 4 (2 adults and 2 teens) in the all or some of the ports (Honolulu (before and after cruise), Hilo, Maui, and Kauai). What agency and what kind of car would you suggest to rent for our gang (SUV - either wrangler or closed?, convertible (we've never rented one!, or "regular" type car depending on price) depending on port - we might rent and still do some excursions too- any suggestions for us would be also appreciated!

 

Thanks!

 

Melissa

 

We have rented from all the major companies over the many years of living in Hawaii and traveling to the various islands. From our standpoint it has never been a problem with any of the companies we used. Our rental criteria has/is price price price. Dollar, Budget, Avis, Hertz, Alamo, Enterprise, Thrifty take your choice we have never had any problem with them in Hawaii or any place else in the world.

 

I am not a convertible fan - rain plays a part but safety plays a bigger part so for the type and size vehicle you will need someones elses input. I would go with what I am comfortable with at home.

[kruise66]

Does anyone know how long it takes to get off the ship, get the shuttle and get to the airport when renting cars in Hawaii? We will probably rent a car in several ports.

[lambs2]

Last July we went on our PoAm cruise and used Thrifty at all the ports, except Kona where we did not rent a car. We joined Thrifty's Blue Chip program, free and done online, and we had virtually no paperwork at all. We also found that by booking through Discount Hawaii Car Rental.com website we got the best prices. They get a corporate rate plus you can enter your Blue Chip number too! We did lots of comparison shopping but their prices always were the best for us and we had consistently good shuttle service at all the ports by using them. We always booked the least expensive model available and got upgraded three times. You can't always count on this, but it worked for us!

[kruise66]

Last July we went on our PoAm cruise and used Thrifty at all the ports, except Kona where we did not rent a car. We joined Thrifty's Blue Chip program, free and done online, and we had virtually no paperwork at all. We also found that by booking through Discount Hawaii Car Rental.com website we got the best prices. They get a corporate rate plus you can enter your Blue Chip number too! We did lots of comparison shopping but their prices always were the best for us and we had consistently good shuttle service at all the ports by using them. We always booked the least expensive model available and got upgraded three times. You can't always count on this, but it worked for us!

Thanks for the information. I signed up for Blue Chip and reserved cars through Thrifty, through that web site.

 

Did you have to wait long for shuttles at the pier, and were there long lines at the car rental desk? Are the airports pretty close to the piers?

 

Thanks a lot!

[beachchick]

Does anyone know how long it takes to get off the ship, get the shuttle and get to the airport when renting cars in Hawaii? We will probably rent a car in several ports.

 

Depends on the port. I'll list travel times, but how long it will take to get a shuttle depends entirely on (1) how many shuttles the company is running, (2) how many pax are waiting ahead of you, (3) where the shuttles are in the "cycle," and (4) traffic/construction. How long it takes to get off the ship varies as well. Tender ports take more time, of course. It depends on how many pax are ahead of you in line to move through the check out.

 

Honolulu: Twenty to 25 minutes (or a bit more--traffic is a buggah in Honolulu)

Hilo: Ten to 15 minutes

Kona: King Kam Hotel (Dollar, Thrifty) Ten to 15 minutes (plus tender time); airport locations, about 25 to 30 minutes.

Kahului: Ditto Hilo

Lahaina: About 15 to 20 minutes (plus tender time)

Kauai: Ditto Hilo

 

You must remember to include a "fudge" factor. Do not leave it until the very last second to return your car. We got lost getting back to the National location on Kauai (it's off airport and I lost the directions; we had never rented from National on Kauai before). We got there at a bit after 1 pm (2 minutes shy of our 24 hour period; phew). It didn't take too long to get checked in; maybe 5 minutes. Then a National employee drove us to the pier in one of their cars (not the shuttle--the last shuttle they planned to run had left for the pier). We got to the pier at 1:25--5 minutes before all aboard. That's too close for our comfort. Another example, we rented from Thrifty in Hilo. We returned to their cruise pax location about 3:30 (you rent at the airport, but they have a slightly off-airport return for cruise pax). They were short staffed that day. A bunch of us ended up sitting in a hot van waiting for a driver--this included another shuttle being sent to the ship ahead of all of us who had been waiting because that shuttle had a driver. It took them about 30 minutes before they could manage to get an employee to drive us back. I was really ticked (as was DH). Some pax seemed not to care, but we're sitting in a hot shuttle with no driver in sight while wasting MY precious vacation time. Now, imagine you've returned at the last minute and the ship is not going to wait for you. Not good.

 

Anyway, hopes the times help you plan your schedule.

 

beachchick

[kruise66]

Thanks so much! I'll try to plan ahead.