Budget Car Rental

Are you in need of a rental car? Have you shopped around and gotten the best possible deal. If you have rented cars in the past and have had lots of practice searching out the best deal then you have more than likely done quite well. The purpose of this article is to help the first time and novice car renters with advice on how to search out the best car rental deal.

If you have never rented a car before then you need some practice in searching out the best car rental deal. Shopping around for car rental is not unlike shopping for other products. When buying something you don’t just choose the first item you find. You shop around and try to get the most value for your money. The same is true when you rent a car. You should definitely make a list of all of the companies you contact and what they charge. When you’ve found the cheapest or best offer you need to contact them and see if possibly they can do even better.

Another thing you should do is ask questions. Remember, if you don’t ask you don’t get. Many times you can get special rates if you ask nicely. One thing you can try is to ask for the weekly rate. Sometimes if you’re renting for 4 or more days rental companies will switch you to the weekly rate. This can result in substantial savings of 30-40%.

If you’re renting a car over the weekend you should ask if they have the weekend rate available. Again, weekend rates can sometimes result in substantial savings and generally, you get the car from Friday noon until Monday morning.

A final way to get the best car rental deal is to look online. Again, booking online with a credit card can result in substantial savings. Many companies give discounts of 10-20 percent when making your booking online.

Getting the best car rental deal is not as difficult as it sounds. By doing careful research and asking questions you can be assured that you will get the best rate possible.

For more information on Car Rentals visit http://www.allcarrentals.info.

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Because of the high costs involved in planning and having a wedding and not to mention a honeymoon, many couples are asking how can we ask for money to go towards our honeymoon without showing a total disregard for wedding etiquette? Additionally, many couples are already living together prior to getting married. For some, it may be a second marriage. As a result, the need for the usual household items as wedding gifts is not a need. The natural solution to the wedding “gift giving” dilemma is the popular and growing trend toward honeymoon registries.

The traditional way of gift giving has been to rely on the bridal registry. The honeymoon registry communicates to guests and well wishers where the couple would like to go on their honeymoon, the activities and extra amenities they would enjoy that would make their dream honeymoon a reality.

A honeymoon registry is much like a wedding registry. When you join a honeymoon registry, your chosen destination package is broken down into affordable “pieces” and listed just like a normal gift registry. What’s so great and unique about the honeymoon registry is that it enables your wedding guests to purchase portions of your honeymoon. Yes, your guests can contribute toward your honeymoon, but in some cases giving a particular portion of the honeymoon–dinner at a nice restaurant, or a carriage ride, for example–is more meaningful.

There are three basic kinds of honeymoon registries:

*Registries that require you to book your travel through the travel agency offering the registry.

*Registries that allow you to book your travel either through the sponsoring travel agency (or other affiliated travel agencies), through the travel agency of your choice, or on your own. Usually these registries charge an extra fee or higher service charge if you choose not to book travel through the registry’s parent travel agency.

*Registries that are not affiliated with any travel agencies, requiring you to make travel arrangements on your own or through a travel agency of your choice.

If a honeymoon registry sounds like the perfect solution for you, here is a quick guide to choosing, creating, and using one. Different registries offer various mixes of features and costs. Think about what is most important to you. Take a “virtual tour” of several different registries. Start by looking at a few examples of honeymoon registries. Look for professionalism. Does the site provide a thorough explanation of its services, including all fees and service charges? Does it explain who you can contact or what you can do if you run into problems? If the honeymoon registry is run by a travel agency, does the FAQ explain the company’s policy for cancelled or delayed travel?

Consider contacting couples who have used the registry. You can find couples by looking up old honeymoon registries and doing a web search for their e-mail addresses. Or look for e-mail addresses associated with wedding home pages hosted by the registry service. Send a friendly e-mail explaining your situation and ask for advice; most couples will be happy to answer any questions you may have.

Talk to someone from the registry service, either by phone or e-mail. If the registry service falls short on customer service when you’re signing up, don’t expect better service if a problem arises.

To create your honeymoon, you must first submit basic personal information such as your names, the date of the wedding, contact information, and so on. Then you create your registry, which is an itemized list of all your honeymoon expenses. Some registries charge a setup fee, which is usually between $100-$150; others charge nothing to the wedding couple, but charge wedding guests a “service fee” when they buy part of the honeymoon. Most honeymoon registry websites allow you to create your registry right away over the web. Other sites put you in touch with a representative who will assist you in creating your registry.

What can you list on your registry? If you can buy it, you can list it. Typical registries list transportation, lodging, activities, special amenities, and meals. Expensive items are usually broken down so guests can choose to pay only a portion of the item. For example, a honeymoon registry might list ten gifts of $100 each toward your $1,000 airfare expense.

Some honeymoon registries allow you to personalize your registry with a message to your guests and descriptions of the different parts of your honeymoon, perhaps even allowing you to upload pictures.

Once your registry is set up, you need to let your wedding guests know that it exists. Many registries will provide you with printed cards announcing the registry and its web address; you can either mail them with the wedding invitation or separately. Some registries will email your wedding guests if you provide their email addresses.

The more tactful approach is to let your guests know about your registry indirectly. Let your parents, close friends, or wedding party members know that you have a honeymoon registry; they can pass the word along to other guests and well wishers. You can also create a wedding web page with up-to-date information for guests, and include a link to your registry on that page and list the address of your wedding web page in your invitation without directly bringing up the issue of gifts.

Wedding guests can look up your registry by typing in your last name into a search box on the registry website. After reading what you want, they click on the item they want to purchase and pay for the items on the website. Most registries also allow guests to purchase items by phone.

The gift-giver usually receives a certificate that is either sent to the wedding couple or to the purchaser to deliver personally the couple. Some registries charge a fee to mail this certificate. Other registries notify the couple of the gift by e-mail. On any registry, you can track how many gifts you have received simply by logging into the registry.

It’s important to note that most registries require guests to pay a service charge for the privilege of contributing to your honeymoon. The service charge is a percentage of the cost of the gift ranging from 3.5% to 15%. So if a guest wants to pay $100 toward your airfare and the honeymoon registry website imposes a 10% service charge, the guest will end up spending $110.

The wedding couple is ultimately responsible for paying for their honeymoon expenses which means any portion of the honeymoon that needs to be paid prior to the wedding will be at the wedding couple’s expense. Some or all of those expenses could be purchased by your guests however; some of the honeymoon expenses are not completely covered by the registry. It’s wise not to plan an extravagant honeymoon that you cannot pay for yourself.

Whatever money wedding guests contribute toward the honeymoon is placed in a holding account. The registry sends the couple a check (or electronically deposits the funds into their account) on a predetermined date, usually a week before the wedding. Even though the wedding guests paid for certain parts of the honeymoon, the couple can use the money for anything they want.

Janice Willingham is a travel enthusiast that likes exploring innovative ways to travel or in this case sharing information about the honeymoon registry option in wedding gifts. You can enjoy reading tips, articles and other information about travel at http://wealthpath.wordpress.com

Tags: car rentals, cruises, honeymoon, honeymoon registry, hotels, marriage, registry, travel, weddingcar rentals, cruises, honeymoon, honeymoon registry, hotels, marriage, registry, travel, wedding

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I need a car. I’ve been a pedestrian for too long. I need information. I’ll hop on the web. Search for “car buying guides.” Whoa! Over 15 million sites/pages! Refine my search. “Free first time car buyer guides” and narrow it down to only 4 million. That’s about as refined as I can get right now. Look over the first page of my results, chose some links with names I recognize. Open some pages. Lots of interesting articles. Let’s see if I can pull together a cohesive list.

What type of vehicle do I need? Notice I wrote “need” not want? I want a cool car, but this is a major investment and cool doesn’t really last that long. Do I buy new or used? What kind of driving am I really going to be doing, and in what kind of conditions? How much can I reasonably spend for monthly maintenance? How much can I spend on a loan or lease payment? Should I buy from a dealer, an auction or private sale? How’s my credit rating? Where should I buy insurance? Lots of questions to answer, and probably some I haven’t included here.

Before you search for that cool car, decide exactly what your needs and wants are. Don’t buy what you want, buy what you need. Don’t get into a cash bind because you spent more than you can really afford because the “cool” factor fades fast but those monthly payments continue. Review your budget to determine how much you can really afford. That means not only the car payment, but insurance and an estimate of your monthly maintenance (gas, oil, etc.)

Check your credit so you have an idea of what type of loan you can qualify for. Decide on a firm price (payment or full-purchase), because dealers and salespeople will be doing their best to get more out of you. Be firm and stick to your dollar amount. If financing, decide on a realistic maximum payment you can make. If possible, check with your bank to see what type of loan you qualify for.

With the internet, it’s now much easier to compare vehicles. Take the time to check out some websites that offer information about vehicles and compare. Don’t just rush out and buy the first car you see. Remember, your vehicle is a major investment and unless you can change vehicles every year, this car will probably have to last you 4 or 5 years. Be choosy. Look at the pictures, sure, but READ the information. Check to see if the dealership offers web discounts (that is, if you buy from them they will offer some discount for using the web).

Educate yourself about vehicle pricing. Dealerships have to make a profit; otherwise they would not be in business! Simple economics. Dealers will negotiate, but YOU have to be prepared as well. The dealers and salespeople know their bottom line on any vehicle. Again, check the web for information regarding pricing. Ask family and friends to help you learn about vehicle pricing. There are many factors that most people don’t even know about.

Make certain you qualify for insurance. Check out your state’s department of motor vehicles website and learn the minimum insurance necessary. Check around the web and you’ll find many major insurance companies with rate comparison features. Use those resources. Be very aware that your past driving record will affect your rates, but also if you are a first time buyer, be ready for slightly higher rates to begin with. After all, the insurance company is really gambling on your not making any claims against the insurance. Think about the type of driving you will be doing and review the “extras” offered by the insurance provider. Also, the type of vehicle you are looking to purchase will affect your rates as well. Older cars usually mean less safety features, so rates will be higher. Your vehicle insurance is just as important as your health insurance.

A short note here about car dealerships (and not just the new vehicle showroom guys). I personally have not had good results buying from a private seller. Way too many variables and basically no recourse if something isn’t right. Dealers have certain rules and restrictions they must comply with, such as title registration time limits, the lemon law, and the “buyers remorse” (3 day changed my mind) rules. Dealerships must be licensed and follow the laws; private sellers often don’t. Dealerships also can provide a wider range of options than a private seller. Go to your state motor vehicle or department of licensing website and educate yourself. What you don’t know can hurt you.

Also, there is a list called the Customer Service Index (or something similar) which each car maker maintains for dealerships. The ranking indicates who a dealership satisfies customers not only in sales, but also in service. Basically, go to the manufacturer’s website, search for customer service index and then navigate the website to find that manufacturer’s criteria for a great dealership. Yes it takes time, but this is a major investment. Family and friends can help here as well.

Once you have decided what type of vehicle you want, and which dealerships you want to check out (always try at least 2 dealerships, don’t just settle on one!), take someone with you, preferably someone knowledgeable about the vehicle you have chosen (a family member or friend you feel comfortable with). That person will probably ask some questions you didn’t think of! I’m a wimp when it comes to negotiating, but my hubby isn’t, and he knows about cars. I let him do most of the questioning, even though I was the one purchasing the car. Believe me, it helped, because he asked questions I really never thought about.

Last, but certainly not least, TEST DRIVE THE CAR! Sounds simple, but it is very important. Just because you found what looks like the car of your dreams, it may still not be right. You need to be comfortable behind the wheel, your sight lines should be clear, you should be able to judge your surroundings based on the size of the vehicle, and you should be able to find all those little areas of vehicle maintenance you can do yourself.

Remember, a vehicle is a major investment. It should be chosen with care and deliberate thought. There a many factors to consider and, ultimately, you are the one that has to pay for any mistakes in your choice.

Steven Anderson is the Reservations Director for Hawaiian Discount Car Rentals, specialists in car rentals Kauai. He has personally researched and experienced many of the Hawaiian activities and as described above.

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