US Road trip and car hire advice needed please!
Discussion
Hi guys,
We're planning on doing an east coast road trip next year (new york down to florida) we're going to rent a car from new york's JFK but we'll be dropping it off at orlando's airport, due to dropping it off at another location, when I did a quote online they've quoted a $430 drop of fee as well as a $90 airport access fee (which i presume can be dodged if we don't rent from the airport). Are there any car rental companies that don't charge you for dropping the car off at another location that you could recommend?
Also can anyone suggest any nice places to stop of the way down or any good sites to see? we have a week to do the driving bit of the trip, we were thinking of stopping at washington, charlotte and charleston.
Thank you in advance
We're planning on doing an east coast road trip next year (new york down to florida) we're going to rent a car from new york's JFK but we'll be dropping it off at orlando's airport, due to dropping it off at another location, when I did a quote online they've quoted a $430 drop of fee as well as a $90 airport access fee (which i presume can be dodged if we don't rent from the airport). Are there any car rental companies that don't charge you for dropping the car off at another location that you could recommend?
Also can anyone suggest any nice places to stop of the way down or any good sites to see? we have a week to do the driving bit of the trip, we were thinking of stopping at washington, charlotte and charleston.
Thank you in advance
No way to avoid one-way rental penalty - but you can avoid a tax by returning your car to an off-airport rental return. There are lots of them.
What time of year are you planning this drive? If it's during fall/winter, ignore all of the following, due to inclement weather at altitude.
I would take Jersey Pike south from New York and pick up I-95 to Washington DC.
From there, I would head west on I-66 to I-81 and then south west on 81 (Blue Ridge Parkway) This is a great scenic drive that takes you down the spine of the Appalachian/Blue Ridge range.
I'd then head south on I-26 to Asheville NC (this skirts Charlotte - Asheville is MUCH nicer than Charlotte). From Asheville I'd head west toward Chattanooga TN making sure you drive the Tail of The Dragon at Deals Gap TN - the most beautiful road in North America.
From Chattanooga take 75 south to Atlanta (Awesome, vibrant city) and then 75 and I-16 out to Savannah GA - then south again on 95 passing (don't stop) Jacksonville FL, St. Augustine (definitely stop here), Daytona Beach and Kennedy Space Center.
Finally take 528 west to Orlando.
What time of year are you planning this drive? If it's during fall/winter, ignore all of the following, due to inclement weather at altitude.
I would take Jersey Pike south from New York and pick up I-95 to Washington DC.
From there, I would head west on I-66 to I-81 and then south west on 81 (Blue Ridge Parkway) This is a great scenic drive that takes you down the spine of the Appalachian/Blue Ridge range.
I'd then head south on I-26 to Asheville NC (this skirts Charlotte - Asheville is MUCH nicer than Charlotte). From Asheville I'd head west toward Chattanooga TN making sure you drive the Tail of The Dragon at Deals Gap TN - the most beautiful road in North America.
From Chattanooga take 75 south to Atlanta (Awesome, vibrant city) and then 75 and I-16 out to Savannah GA - then south again on 95 passing (don't stop) Jacksonville FL, St. Augustine (definitely stop here), Daytona Beach and Kennedy Space Center.
Finally take 528 west to Orlando.
I would second most of Matt's route. Late May this year I bought a 1973 Reliant Scimitar in New Jersey and drove it down to South Carolina, via the Great Smokey Mountains. Driving through the backroads in Virginia was very pleasant, and the weather was perfect. The mountains are great too. I haven't done the Tail of the Dragon yet, but do it if you can. In May there is the Mitty Challenge historic car racing weekend at Road Atlanta, just outside Atlanta. Its a great event and you have a lot of access. Look up staying at Chateau Elan if you can, as its close to Atlanta and the track. You can even do track touring during the races in your car.
I am bias as I live in Charleston, but for a stop over I recommend Charleston over Savannah. PM me if you want more info on the place. I love it here, and May is a great time of year to come. Getting to Chas from the mountains is about 4 hours and pretty boring though. Ashville is nice, consider the Biltmore House for something to do there. Charlotte isn't worth it unless you want to visit a NASCAR track.
I am bias as I live in Charleston, but for a stop over I recommend Charleston over Savannah. PM me if you want more info on the place. I love it here, and May is a great time of year to come. Getting to Chas from the mountains is about 4 hours and pretty boring though. Ashville is nice, consider the Biltmore House for something to do there. Charlotte isn't worth it unless you want to visit a NASCAR track.
Tonsko said:
Hey all. We're going from SF -> Tampa mid-jan-feb next year.
With regards car rental - will *anyone at all* rent me a Challenger?
Aside from that, there's Alamo etc., but has anyone used Rent-a-wreck? Any other companies that you have used/can recommend?
Cheers in advance.
You can get them from Hertz - when I was in Minnesota a few weeks ago I could choose from a V8 Mustang (might have been a 500 or something), a Camaro SS, and the equivalent Challenger - picked the Camaro and was mildy amused but noticed you couldn't do burnouts or anything fun. With regards car rental - will *anyone at all* rent me a Challenger?
Aside from that, there's Alamo etc., but has anyone used Rent-a-wreck? Any other companies that you have used/can recommend?
Cheers in advance.
For interstate travel, a larger, softer-riding car might be better for a trip like that - we tend to drive in straight lines here.
Due to a flight cancelation I was forced to do a one-way rental earlier this week from Detroit to Indianapolis - only a 4 hour drive, but all major highway.
I used National and rented a 2012 Dodge Charger STX - a fairly numb, but quiet and surprisingly economical 3.5L V6. It was very nicely appointed, roomy, comfortable, awesome stereo and very easy to drive long distance without being tiring.
Today I'm in a VW Passat and that same 300 mile run would have been miserable, due to the hard ride and uncomfortable seats, driving position etc.
If you want an exciting, more muscular car there are companies that will accommodate you - but not one way. Like most things in life, it's a compromise.
Due to a flight cancelation I was forced to do a one-way rental earlier this week from Detroit to Indianapolis - only a 4 hour drive, but all major highway.
I used National and rented a 2012 Dodge Charger STX - a fairly numb, but quiet and surprisingly economical 3.5L V6. It was very nicely appointed, roomy, comfortable, awesome stereo and very easy to drive long distance without being tiring.
Today I'm in a VW Passat and that same 300 mile run would have been miserable, due to the hard ride and uncomfortable seats, driving position etc.
If you want an exciting, more muscular car there are companies that will accommodate you - but not one way. Like most things in life, it's a compromise.
Few thoughts..
You do realize that this is a good 1,200 mile drive and if you're taking 95, once you get past Richmond, Virginia the next real city is, well... Jacksonville?
Once you leave the Northeast, Southern California or the southern half of Florida, cities here are generally hundreds of miles apart.
Oh, if you want to spend time in NYC then rent the car once you leave New York. I live very close to Manhattan and a car is a pain in the butt there.
Whatever you do, rent something with Bluetooth and with satellite radio, for hundreds of miles through the south your radio choices will be country, gospel, country or gospel on FM.
You do realize that this is a good 1,200 mile drive and if you're taking 95, once you get past Richmond, Virginia the next real city is, well... Jacksonville?
Once you leave the Northeast, Southern California or the southern half of Florida, cities here are generally hundreds of miles apart.
Oh, if you want to spend time in NYC then rent the car once you leave New York. I live very close to Manhattan and a car is a pain in the butt there.
Whatever you do, rent something with Bluetooth and with satellite radio, for hundreds of miles through the south your radio choices will be country, gospel, country or gospel on FM.
FM stations here are on the odd tenth, local stations to me are 92.3, 95.5, 100.3, 101.1, 101.9 etc. There's no 95.8 or 102.2
AM (MW) stations here are on the 10s as well, local stations are 660,770,880,1010,1130, etc. there's no 642 AM for instance.
There's still lots of commercial stations on AM here, but almost exclusively news or talk.
In fact in the NYC area 880 has traffic on the 8s and 1010 has traffic on the 1s, 8:48, 8:58, 9:08 or 8:51, 9:01, 9:11 etc. otherwise they're nonstop news. Handy to know if you're going to be driving around here.
SiriusXM is really nice to have, although BBC R1 isn't on it any longer.
AM (MW) stations here are on the 10s as well, local stations are 660,770,880,1010,1130, etc. there's no 642 AM for instance.
There's still lots of commercial stations on AM here, but almost exclusively news or talk.
In fact in the NYC area 880 has traffic on the 8s and 1010 has traffic on the 1s, 8:48, 8:58, 9:08 or 8:51, 9:01, 9:11 etc. otherwise they're nonstop news. Handy to know if you're going to be driving around here.
SiriusXM is really nice to have, although BBC R1 isn't on it any longer.
Captain Cadillac said:
SiriusXM is really nice to have, although BBC R1 isn't on it any longer.
For those unfamiliar with Sirius XM it is a satellite radio service and leagues better than normal radio, where seemingly the bulk of airtime is spent playing commercials.It is worth downloading a channel guide in case your rental car has Sirius XM.
http://www.siriusxm.com/channellineup
Tonsko,
If its on the odd 10ths then it should work. However most any car you're going to rent these days will have an AUX or USB input, and those sound much better than an FM transmitter. I have an AM transmitter wired into my '60 Lincoln and it sounds like crap.
Also, if you car has Sirius you will have Howard Stern on ch 100
If its on the odd 10ths then it should work. However most any car you're going to rent these days will have an AUX or USB input, and those sound much better than an FM transmitter. I have an AM transmitter wired into my '60 Lincoln and it sounds like crap.
Also, if you car has Sirius you will have Howard Stern on ch 100
This is an email reply from a friend who just hired a car to drive East to West.
"We went through a company here called carhire3000, a broker who then organised our hire with Alamo. Unfortunately the Mustang didn't even make it from the depot and we were instead given a Camero.
£600 for 3 weeks + a one way fee of $500."
They also had a Focus for three days, I'm not sure if that was included. (Which I made them park in the street)
"We went through a company here called carhire3000, a broker who then organised our hire with Alamo. Unfortunately the Mustang didn't even make it from the depot and we were instead given a Camero.
£600 for 3 weeks + a one way fee of $500."
They also had a Focus for three days, I'm not sure if that was included. (Which I made them park in the street)
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