Looking for a cheap way to rent a car with possibly unlimited miles. We are taking a trip from Beaumont to South Carolina for Christmas and the car we have is too small for the group going. It would hold us all, but it would be crammed and very uncomfortable. Any recommendations/ideas on affordable ways to rent a car for such a trip?
i took a road trip from phoenix to seattle earlier this year and got a jeep cherokee sport for 10 days (unlimited miles, one-way rental) for only $505 after all the taxes and everything. just search on kayak or any other travel website. most car rental places will offer unlimited miles. just be sure to find one that has no "drop charge" for a one-way trip (assuming you are flying back instead of driving back). most car rental places will have a drop charge if you drop it off at a location that isn't the original rental location. drop charges are pretty expensive.
I usually book through priceline. Just don't pick up at an airport and the price can be pretty reasonable. I rented a decent SUV for 8 days and unlimited miles and only paid 370.
I recently used Autoslash at somebody else's recommendation. Worked well. Got the lowest rate I could find for a rental. It was only the wife and I so a compact did just fine. Five days at $118, full week would've been the same. Good thing about Autoslash is they'll lower your rate after you book if it ever gets cheaper.
I used to hunt around for car rental deals...now I just book one with Costco. Hassle free. https://www.costcotravel.com/Rental-Cars
My usual routine for car rentals are: 1) check kayak for baseline price 2) check carrentals.com. Look at which companies are generally the cheapest 3) go directly to the rental car company's website to book. Look for coupons or discount codes (AAA, costco, aarp etc). Pay special attention to free weekend day coupons if your trip spans a weekend. Book a refundable rental. 4) Check every week or so to see if the prices have dropped. If it has dropped, rebook. 5) Check priceline Name Your Own Price starting about 5 days before you leave. Start with a low bid (say 25% less than your other reservation price), then go up a bit if it's not accepted. You can only bid once per day per account. Reservation made by Name Your Own Price are not refundable, but I've always been able to beat the price of my other reservations. 6) Don't forget to cancel your other reservation! If you need multiple drivers, booking through Costco Travels will typically give you 1 free additional driver. This can save you significant amount of money.
Ace car rental. Hobby. Jeep Patriot. $34/day. Discount code on Web if you search for it. I believe it has unlimited miles.