Car hire in Idaho

louisehj

Hi,

I need advice please on car hire. We have never hired a car before.

We are staying with family in Idaho and want to rent a car. What is essential to look for when looking online please?

Many thanks

Louise

pollypenny

Settlements are distant from each other and the views are spectacular.

I'd go for comfort and height, do an SUV.

DS lived in Idaho for a year and we had a great time driving about in his jeep.

If you book from thE UK, packages are better, I think. Alamo often has offers .

agrinnall

Read MSE's cheap car hire guide.

http://www.moneysavingexpert.com/travel/cheap-car-hire?_ga=1.30094079.1193631705.1415385279

Take particular care over CDW when hiring in the USA.

louisehj

Thanks for the advice!
I had a look at the link but can't seen info on cdw? Can you expand on what you mean about take particular care over it please? Thanks ��

EssexExile

If you want it simple for your first time then Alamo Gold, all inclusive, refuse whatever else they try to sell you when you get there.

pollypenny

Yes, Alamo Gold, often on offer when booked from the UK.

John259

If you plan to travel to other states and/or Canada then choose a well-known company because a small local company won't be able to assist you a long way from its base. In my experience Alamo is a good choice.

Roads in the USA are good and you don't need an SUV for that reason, but you might prefer one for space and height.

All normal rental cars in the USA are automatics. If you're not familiar with driving an automatic it's very quickly learnt but you might want to have go in a friend's car beforehand if possible.

If you're not familiar with driving in the USA and the way signposting works there then it would be worth checking your initial journey on Google Maps and doing it as a virtual drive in StreetView mode.

At big city airports such as Los Angeles there's often a free bus ride from the terminal to the car rental depot but at smaller airports the car rental desks are usually in the terminal and there's a short walk to the car. The airport's web site might help to check that, plus searching on Google Maps for the relevant car rental company's locations near that airport.

FWIW here's the map of the rental car parking lot at Boise Airport (apologies if I guessed wrong and you're not going to Boise):
http://www.iflyboise.com/media/5444/rental_car_lot_spaces.jpg

Are you up to speed regarding the different rules for driving in the USA such as being able to turn right on most red traffic lights (after stopping)?

agrinnall

louisehj wrote: »

Thanks for the advice!
I had a look at the link but can't seen info on cdw? Can you expand on what you mean about take particular care over it please? Thanks ��

You need to make sure what you have is adequate as my understanding is that included cover in the USA is much less than in the UK/Europe. It is likely to be expensive if not arranged in advance, and the best option may well be taking it out through a provider other than the hire company (I have used insurance4carhire in Europe but I don't know if they cover USA).

louisehj

Just an update - in the end I booked Alamo gold. Thanks for the help everyone ��