Rental Cars at Port Canaveral

[Murphs]

My wife and I are cruising on Freedom in late February, and are planning to fly in a day early, rent a car and stay over in Cocoa Beach. We would then turn in the rental car in Cocoa Beach the morning the ship leaves. My question is, do the rental car companys offer shuttle service to the ship once you turn in your car. Anyone done this before, and how did it work for you.

 

Thanks

 

Mike

[pb&j23]

We did this two years ago and will do it again this Feb. as well. They will offer free shuttle to and from the port... Go to the Florida departure thread and look at the "I work in Cape Canaveral" thread.

[HB Cruiser]

Yes there are several. We personally like Budget as they are much more accomodating than some of the others we have used.

 

You can find discount codes at http://www.mousesavers.com

 

Tim

[papakaiser]

Have to agree with Budget. Good deal for free shuttle over to the port, and will pick you up at the end of your cruise to shuttle you back over to rent a car for getting back to the airport.

 

You can also go to budget.com for good rates. Reserve a car for your arrival and departure prior to leaving for less hassle.

[Murphs]

Thanks everyone!

[Clarea]

We've used Avis in Cocoa Beach about 4 times and have had great service every time.

[Harleycat]

My wife and I are cruising on Freedom in late February, and are planning to fly in a day early, rent a car and stay over in Cocoa Beach. We would then turn in the rental car in Cocoa Beach the morning the ship leaves. My question is, do the rental car companys offer shuttle service to the ship once you turn in your car. Anyone done this before, and how did it work for you.

 

Thanks

 

Mike

 

We used Entreprise when we were in Port Canaveral and they drove us back to the ship.

[HB Cruiser]

We've used Avis in Cocoa Beach about 4 times and have had great service every time.

 

We used Avis on three different occasions, the first being a great experience. The last two they were so rude and not very accomodating.

 

Off topic, noticed you were from central Illinois, what city? We live down by Carbondale.

 

Tim

[Clarea]

We used Avis on three different occasions, the first being a great experience. The last two they were so rude and not very accomodating.

 

Off topic, noticed you were from central Illinois, what city? We live down by Carbondale.

 

Tim

We're in Springfield. I think we've talked before on CC because your CC name seems familiar. Maybe we were both on a roll call that one of us cancelled? We're you booked on a Mariner cruise last year that got rerouted north to Canada?

 

Bob

[HB Cruiser]

We're in Springfield. I think we've talked before on CC because your CC name seems familiar. Maybe we were both on a roll call that one of us cancelled? We're you booked on a Mariner cruise last year that got rerouted north to Canada?

 

Bob

 

No, not us. Maybe since you saw IL you are like me and said, "Wow, don't see many people from Illinois here."

 

We have not been to Springfield in years. Unfortuately most of our trips there was the hospital for my mother in law's heart surgeries. Did take our kids there one summer for vaca for the Lincoln sites and the capital.

 

Tim

 

Tim

[silentbob007]

Another vote for Budget here ... they even got us out of a "bad" decision we paid for when we picked up the car at MCO.

[kfs44]

Has anyone Hertz? Are they good/reliable?

[Clarea]

Has anyone Hertz? Are they good/reliable?

I have not used Hertz, but their office is the closest to the cruise terminal. It's right in front of the Residence Inn.

[duffsdad]

DW and I will be going on the FOS in JAn and we are using a rental car prior to the cruise but wonder what the best way to get to the airport after the cruise is over? Are there shuttles from the pier that you can take without booking ahead? Cost of shuttle? Thanks.

[HB Cruiser]

Has anyone Hertz? Are they good/reliable?

 

I personally have not but been with some friends that rented from them twice (yes I was with them, hitched a free ride ;) ) and their service was horribly sssslllloooowwww. To top it off, they did not have the size car that was previously reserved.

 

Did I say they were slow. ;)

 

I would not recommend them but I am sure others have and did not have a problem.

 

Tim

[HB Cruiser]

DW and I will be going on the FOS in JAn and we are using a rental car prior to the cruise but wonder what the best way to get to the airport after the cruise is over? Are there shuttles from the pier that you can take without booking ahead? Cost of shuttle? Thanks.

 

Number 1, WELCOME TO CRUISE CRITIC!!!

 

Yes, there are shuttles that will take you to their rental office without a reservation HOWEVER I do not recommend that. The rental agencies are sooooo busy with cruisers that sometimes they run out of cars.

 

The cost of the shuttles if you rent a car from them is ZERO, both ways, to and from pier. Only way to go.

 

You can get some discount codes from this website http://www.mousesavers.com

 

Tim

[reallyitsmema]

I personally have not but been with some friends that rented from them twice (yes I was with them, hitched a free ride ;) ) and their service was horribly sssslllloooowwww. To top it off, they did not have the size car that was previously reserved.

 

Did I say they were slow. ;)

 

I would not recommend them but I am sure others have and did not have a problem.

 

Tim

We have used Hertz twice and they were excellent. We have also used Budget and we found their shuttle slower. I would use either again though since they both have competitive prices.

[HB Cruiser]

We have used Hertz twice and they were excellent. We have also used Budget and we found their shuttle slower. I would use either again though since they both have competitive prices.

 

Exactly why I always say others will have a different prospective about things. One likes, one dislikes, same way about cruising.

 

The ONLY real way of knowing is if you have a large group of people that have the same experience and post it, kind of like the bad Navigator experiences some have been posting about.

 

Tim

[reallyitsmema]

Exactly why I always say others will have a different prospective about things. One likes, one dislikes, same way about cruising.

 

The ONLY real way of knowing is if you have a large group of people that have the same experience and post it, kind of like the bad Navigator experiences some have been posting about.

 

Tim

They really just need to look into prices and get it booked. The prices go up as you get closer to rental date. The one thing to consider also is whether they are on airport or off airport at MCO. Hertz is off airport so you need to take a shuttle to their location. If you are #1 Gold, you don't have to wait, your name is on the board and off you go.

[Clarea]

They really just need to look into prices and get it booked. The prices go up as you get closer to rental date. The one thing to consider also is whether they are on airport or off airport at MCO. Hertz is off airport so you need to take a shuttle to their location. If you are #1 Gold, you don't have to wait, your name is on the board and off you go.

This is a good point that I had not considered. I've always used Avis, and am Preferred (like Hertz #1, but free) and Avis is on site at MCO. If you are Preferred, you just walk across the street, grab your keys, and get in the car. There is very little waiting.

 

I didn't realize that some of the rental agencies were off site.

[Clarea]

DW and I will be going on the FOS in JAn and we are using a rental car prior to the cruise but wonder what the best way to get to the airport after the cruise is over? Are there shuttles from the pier that you can take without booking ahead? Cost of shuttle? Thanks.

I would book a shuttle ahead of time. I've used Cocoa Beach Shuttle several times, and have had good luck. If you mention Cruise Critic they will give you a 10% discount. There are other companies to choose from also. There's a great thread in the Florida Departures board called "I work in Port Canaveral..." This thread has a wealth of info on shuttles, hotels, rental cars, restaurants, etc.

[welshrich]

We used budget 3 weeks ago, they dropped us off at the port and picked us up and were very helpful when I discovered I'd prepaid a tank of fuel and hardly done any mileage they took the charge off and advised me to fill up in the gas station next door.

[kfs44]

They really just need to look into prices and get it booked. The prices go up as you get closer to rental date. The one thing to consider also is whether they are on airport or off airport at MCO. Hertz is off airport so you need to take a shuttle to their location. If you are #1 Gold, you don't have to wait, your name is on the board and off you go.

 

 

Offsite? How much of a hassle is that? Are there hertz shuttles waiting outside from the luggage area?

[reallyitsmema]

Offsite? How much of a hassle is that? Are there hertz shuttles waiting outside from the luggage area?

Yes, they have multiple shuttles that run from MCO luggage area to their offsite location. It really isn't that far, we were there in less than 10 minutes. If you are renting from them after your cruise and have an early flight, it is just something to consider. We have always been able to get on a shuttle right away but I would bet at times you might have to wait a few minutes.

 

Just make sure you check whether the rental company is on airport when you book your rental car. I don't remember if any of the other rental companies are offsite. I know years ago Budget used to be but are now on airport.

[HB Cruiser]

Yes, they have multiple shuttles that run from MCO luggage area to their offsite location. It really isn't that far, we were there in less than 10 minutes. If you are renting from them after your cruise and have an early flight, it is just something to consider. We have always been able to get on a shuttle right away but I would bet at times you might have to wait a few minutes.

 

Just make sure you check whether the rental company is on airport when you book your rental car. I don't remember if any of the other rental companies are offsite. I know years ago Budget used to be but are now on airport.

 

One of those free rides I got with our cruise buddies we had a situation that had nothing to do with Hertz slowing us down but it possibly could have caused an issue.

 

We were on the Beach Line back to MCO from our cruise when we noticed traffic was being diverted to the off ramp. It took us about 15 minutes to get off the highway. As we were exiting, we asked an officer what had happened. He told us there had been an accident and there was fatality. The highway going west (towards MCO) was going to be blocked for a couple of hours. Unfortunately none of us knew how to get around.

 

Luck showed up, we had taked our GPS for our precruise rental (this was before most rentals had the GPS). Turned it on and got to the Hertz building just off the highway. We made it 1.25 hours later than we would have taking the Beach Line straight without any problems. Fortunately we left Cape Canaveral early just in case something like this happened.

 

Moral of this story, had we not left early, with Hertz being off-site, we possibly could have been late at the gate for our flight. LEAVE EARLY, does not matter whether you are renting from Hertz, Budget, Avis, or others, get out of there as you never know what can and will sometimes happen.

 

Tim