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Experiences with Avis in Skagway and Juneau??


new2cruise
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I rented a car for the day from Avis when we were in Juneau last year. Their office was in a hotel right in the center of town but that office closed and there's a new/different one near the AJ dock now. I think for the day it was about $65-$70 which was not a bad deal in my opinion. (Other's may have a different opinion.) We arrive in port at about 1 PM (2 PM???) and went right for the car. The irritating thing was the lady had left the rental desk (the only Avis employee there that day) and we had to wait about 20 minutes for her to return - she said she'd gone for gas in one of the cars... We were there until 10 PM and they closed much earlier than that - there was a key drop on their rental desk (in the hotel lobby) so I simply parked the car where we had found it and left the key in the box. Easy.

 

As far as what we did: We had a helicopter glacier trip from the airport which is several miles out of town - we could have let them pick us up and bring us back into downtown but I felt the round trip would have been a huge waste of time. We drove there, did the glacier landing (pretty nice - I would recommend it but it's a little pricy) then continued on to Mendenhall Glacier - just a few more miles past the airport. We had plenty enough time to walk around there and do what we wanted. Since we were a little early for the helicopter ride we were able to stop at Fred Meyer (practically across the highway from Coastal Helicopters) to stock up on some items we wanted for our cabin fridge plus they had a pretty nice selection of Alaska/Juneau souvenirs that weren't nearly as expensive as a regular gift shop. When we were back to downtown Juneau we left the car in the parking garage under the library so we could walk around some, had dinner, etc. When we were finally ready to get back on the boat I dropped my shipmate off at the gang plank with all our loot, dropped the car off at Avis then rode the shuttle bus back. I felt the cost of the car was WELL worth it. There was only two of us but if you had 3-4 the savings over paying for the shuttle to Mendenhall might pay for the car. (My shipmate had a Senior Pass so we paid no park entrance fee.) FYI, Juneau Car Rental could be less expensive than Avis and is in the same general location as the new Avis office (I think...) - their cars are older but in good shape from what I understand. I already have a reservation with them for May '18.

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Several years ago we rented from Avis in Skagway. There were several ships in port so we knew the office would be busy. We were some of the first off the ship and headed straight for Avis. There was still a 30 minute wait. Not such a bad thing and the drive up the Klondike Hwy was exceptional. It’s nice to get a jump on everyone and head up the highway early.

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I take the opposite tactic - I get to Avis around 9:00, after the crowds have left. There's no wait and they've always had my car (I call in the morning or day before to confirm the time I will be coming). I also get to the stops along the way after everyone has left. Also, don't forget to download Murray's Guide for the ride to Emerald Lake. Just google murray's guide skagway and it will be the first listing. Well worth the $5 charge. I've already reserved my car in Skagway for next year and I think the cost is about $130 plus gas for the day. The nice thing about Avis is you can cancel the day of your rental and not have to pay a cancellation fee. That way, if something happens or the weather isn't good, you can cancel at the last minute.

 

Oh, and I rent from Juneau Car Rental in Juneau. I've only had positive experiences with them.

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Our experience went like this. We rented from Avis in Skagway this past June. We booked the car in February. When we booked it, the cost was $165 for a mid-size car for the day. We paid no money down. We headed for the agency as soon as we could get off the ship and there were already a couple of people in line in front of us. When we got to the car lot, there were probably 40 or so cars in the lot. We spent the day driving to Emerald Lake and back. We made several stops along the way including lunch in Carcross. We were gone about 6-1/2 hours. When we got back, there were no cars in the lot which means they were sold out for the day. Overall we had a great experience with Avis in Skagway. We thought $165 was a little steep but there were 4 of us so for $41/person, that was a pretty cheap excursion for the day. If you are going to rent, I recommend doing it early to make sure a car is available and that you get the best price. Again, there was no down payment so it didn't cost us any money to reserve the car.

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For our trip which was Sept. 5-12, 2017, I rented a small car from Avis in Skagway. We got a Chevy Cruze, great little car, great on gas too! I made the reservation about 6 months ahead for the going rate at that time---$156 for the day! Pretty high. But I kept watching the Avis and other car rental consolidator site and found the exact same car with Avis about 2 months before the cruise on sale for $126. I made the reservation at that price then cancelled the original one, saving us $30 bucks. There were 2 of us so the price overall wasn't nearly as high as the organized excursions. Plus we loved having control of when we left, where we stopped and for how long. Would do it again. No problems at the Avis office.

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We also rented a car from Avis in Skagway in September for the same $126 as the previous poster for a Ford Focus. It cost around $15 to fill the gas tank on the return. We arrived at Avis sometime after 10 a.m. and there were no other customers there. After filling out the paperwork the desk clerk walked us across the street to the parking lot to pick up the car and we were on our way. Returned around 4 p.m.

 

They provide some maps with directions in the area. There's really no way to get lost. We drove as far as Emerald Lake, stopping at Carcross, Carcross Desert and Caribou Crossing along the way. Most things in carcross were already closed for the season by the third week of September.

 

There are lots of lakes along the Klondike Highway and on a sunny day with no wind the mountains on the other side of the lakes make the most awesome reflections. You wouldn't see this from the train. The Fall colors were an unexpected surprise. The blue green color of the lakes just beautiful.

 

Highly recommend renting a car, having taken the somewhat boring round trip train ride a few years prior.

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As for where to drive, the Juneau Visitor Guide has a map with distances to popular locations like Eagle Beach, Shrine of St Therese, mendenhall, etc.

 

And there''s a milepost guide for the Klondike Hwy iout of Skagway n the Bells Alaska Guides.

 

Links for both sites are in the Helpful Resources thread which is on pg 2 of this forum.

 

Here's the klondike guide: http://www.bellsalaska.com/highway/klondike-highway/skagway-to-fraser/

Edited by mapleleaves
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We rented from these guys a few years ago. No issues or problems, but we saw some people at the rental office who weren't able to get the vehicle that they'd reserved. They had a large-ish family group, and had reserved a van, which was unavailable the morning of the reservation. Instead, they were accommodated in two sedans. But just a word-to-the-wise that, especially if you really-really need/want a specific kind of vehicle, it's best to get there earlier vs. later.

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  • 3 weeks later...

We actually walked off the ship, checked the the shops in town and then stumbled onto Avis. We were watching all the salmon in the creek. Rented a car from them for I believe $140 and drove up the Klondike Highway. That was one of the best days we have ever had in Alaska. We spent a good hour a Emerald Lake prior to any tour bus arriving. You cannot imagine how green that water is. Just mesmerizing. And when they did arrive, people would hop off for a ten minute stint and be gone. What a waste. Peaceful and so beautiful. So many other lakes and bodies of water along the route, waterfalls, flowers. I mean, I have more pictures that I can print. Carcrass cool little town. What a fabulous day and the air is so fresh and pure. Rent with Avis. And you do not need GPS.

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