If you're a bit of a gambler, said Brian Ek, Priceline.com spokesman, then wait until the last minut

When is the best time to reserve a rental car? I m planning a road trip in Arizona in the spring and wondered whether I d get a better rate if I locked in a price well in advance, or if I m better off waiting until the last minute. Do rental car prices fluctuate as much as airplane tickets?
Instead, I got advice: Reserve a car well in advance if I find a rate I like -- most agencies don t make customers pay in advance when they reserve a car. Then as my trip nears, check last-minute deals. If I find a better rate, I should take it and cancel my earlier california vacation rentals reservation.
The downside, said Mark Kahler, About.com s budget travel guide, is that if I want a big car or a specialized vehicle like a SUV and wait until the last minute to reserve, the agency may be out of that particular vehicle. That s particularly true this time of year, when a lot of people travel and rental agencies run out of cars – or charge premium rates,
If you’re a bit of a gambler, said Brian Ek, Priceline.com spokesman, then wait until the last minute and try Name Your Own Price. When rental car companies see that they’re likely to have vehicles sitting on the lot un-rented, that’s when they’ll make them available through Name Your Own Price at discounts of up to 40 percent over published rates.
california vacation rentals One online agency, Autoslash.com, says it will regularly check rates on behalf of customers who have booked rental california vacation rentals cars in advance with them and get them the lower rate if the price drops. I haven’t california vacation rentals tried Autoslash.com, but the Los Angeles Times said it regularly gets lower rates for its customers who reserve a car well ahead of time.
Now I m intrigued. california vacation rentals How much do rental car prices change? I ve looked up rates through several agencies for my Arizona trip and will check periodically on whether they ve changed. I ll let you know what I find.
Rental rates can change with varying california vacation rentals frequencies depending on the company and location. In a very competitive market like LAX airport, prices can actually change hourly. california vacation rentals We re not just talking about swings of a few dollars either. Rates can swing wildly from one change to another. The great things about rental car bookings is that if a better rate comes along, you can just cancel and re-book to lock in the savings. That s the whole idea behind AutoSlash.com.
california vacation rentals I ve used autoslash 3 times since discovering it about 2 months ago. All three times it came through with lower rates. Last week I reserved a minivan in Cabo for next June and this week received an email that they found me a better rate with a differnet company and automatically rebooked me.