fluctuating rental car prices?

[knaidel]

We are going to visit grandparents in FL next month. I need to rent a minivan out of Fort Lauderdale airport.

When I booked the plane tickets in August, car rental prices seemed high.....the cheapest I was finding was around $450-475 for a minivan for a week (for this specific week in mid-January). Then when I was looking last month, I found much better prices, starting around $200 for the week for a minivan. I don't know why, but I didn't book at that time....I think I got distracted and forgot about it....


Well, I went back again this morning to book, and prices are up again.....for my dates in mid-January, i could find nothing less that $280 for the week.

What's up with these fluctuating prices? Isn't it strange that when I tried to book far in advance, prices were crazy high? any suggestions on how to get a good deal? I've checked all the sites...hotwire, priceline, my company's employee discount program, visa cardholder discount program....no dice. nothing less than $280 (not that it's a bad price to pay, but when I KNOW it could be lower.....)

[liz]

Check out Mousesavers.com for car rental codes. I have had the best luck with Thrifty and Dollar. For me a good deal is usually less than 300$ for the week, including taxes. Good luck!

[liz]

oops, double post

[knaidel]

thanks for the tip...re: mouse savers.

taxes and fees in FLL add up to to around $75-90, so yeah, like you, I am hoping to pay around $300 total, not $300, plus taxes.

will check thrifty and dollar, thanks!

[mikeys_mom]

I would try again on January 1st or 2nd. A similar thing happened to me. We were going to FL for a weekend and needed a rental minivan. Prices were really high but I found a great deal through Alamo using a Visa coupon code (found it on mousesavers.com). Don't know why but I didn't book it and then a week later I couldn't get that rate anymore. I tried again a few weeks later, which happened to be early in the month and I got the low rate again. Someone told me that they might only allow a certain number of codes to be used in a month so that's why it worked again. No idea if it's true but worth a try.

I agree to try mousesavers. They have tons of codes listed there.

[psimpson3-5]

I'd strongly suggest booking through Hotwire. We got a great deal on a standard SUV using Hotwire.

[mom2akm]

Your observation is correct: car rental prices fluctuates all the time. I was told the strategy should be: reserve a car as soon as you need it and check back regularly and see if it's cheaper. If it is, make another reservation and cancel the first reservation. Also, it's harder to find a deal for vans as well. I suppose the supply is limited and demand is always there. Good luck in finding the right car!