National Car Rental

People like to try things before they buy them; cars are no exception to this rule. Trying a car out before you buy it is even more important when you consider the amount of money spent on one and the time spent in one. A great many dealers will let prospective car buyers test drive a car over night, but is that really enough time to decide if you want to buy it? If not, you may want to consider your option to rent a car for a short period of time.

You will want to ask about any special instructions that are required of you while renting the car, for example, filling up the gas tank or pick up and drop off times. Not adhering to these policies can result in fees.

The rental company may offer you insurance to purchase, however, your personal auto insurance may be all you need in the event of an accident with a rental car. Call your auto insurance agent and ask before paying extra at the rental counter.

When you call, be sure to ask about price, vehicle availability, as well as any specials that the branch has to offer. It is worth noting here, that many of these companies will have special arrangements with hotels, airlines or even warehouse stores.

There are a number of choices that are open to you when renting a car. Each class of car will vary in price and gas mileage; consider this when making your decision. While many companies may be willing to upgrade you, this is not always the case. It is wise to choose the car you want and hope for an upgrade than to reserve less of a car and be disappointed when an upgrade is not offered.

It is wise to shop around when looking for to rent a car. Always find at least three rental car companies to compare, although more will be better. Be sure to ask all the companies the same questions to get the most accurate answers. Most rental car companies will have websites online to find basic information, but it is best to call as local branches may have deals that are not advertised online.

Have a credit or debit card handy to reserve the rental car with, most companies will only guarantee a car with this assurance.

John Mancini has been writing about rental cars online and offline for a long time. Visit http://find-exotic-car-rentals.com or http://car-rental-center.com to read more about matters like budget rent a car and budget car rental.

Share This

Filed under: nationalcarrental.car-rental-zone.info on June 22nd, 2008 | No Comments »

There are times in one’s life when the use of rental cars cannot be avoided. When someone plows into you at an intersection, when you are taking a 2-day trip and your compact car just does not have enough room to stretch out, these are times when you are happy that there are rental cars at your disposal. Before you rent that car, though, you should know some things about the process.

1- The first step involved in obtaining a rental car is to do research on the companies in your local area. There are a number of nation wide companies and more than likely local companies to choose from when conducting your research. Try to narrow them down to three or four companies that are closest to either your pick up location or your destination.

2- You will want to ask about procedures that may be required by the rental company. Many companies require that the car be fueled up before its return, if this is not done, they will charge you extra for it. It may also be in your best interest to ask what the fee would be if the car is needed for longer than expected as well as what the rate is for late drop off.

3- If you have personal auto insurance, call your agent to see if you are insured with a rental car as well. This will allow you to save money by turning down the insurance offered by the rental company at the time of vehicle pick up.

4- Finally, you have chosen the company and the car, its time to pick it up. Make sure that you have the paper work that you will need. Most companies will require you to show your drivers license, be sure to have it. Also, your proof of auto insurance, if you will be turning their insurance down. A major credit card is necessary; if you are not using cash to rent your car, do not count on them taking a check.

5- Be sure to read the contract and ask questions about anything that you do not understand. It’s better to take sometime at the counter or on the phone to pin down the details, than to think you got it and have to deal with the company in the event of an accident. Ask questions!

John Mancini writes about rental cars online and offline. You can read more about national car rental and alamo car rental on his websites.

Share This

Filed under: nationalcarrental.car-rental-zone.info on June 11th, 2008 | No Comments »

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

Share This

Filed under: nationalcarrental.car-rental-zone.info on June 8th, 2008 | No Comments »