Travel and Leisure
Here’s a recent lesson that I learned the hard way - book your rental car as far in advance as you are able to. See, almost all rental companies allow you for free cancellation right up to the day of your pickup, so there is no reason not to book when you establish your travel plans.
I didn’t do this. I knew where we were going, had found a reputable and inexpensive rental agency, and even checked their pickup and return locations. And then I got to thinking, “Hey, maybe I should book this with a credit card that doesn’t have foreign transaction fees”. So I signed up for a Home Trust VISA, and after a couple of weeks, it showed up. But as I was reading through the insurance benefits, I realized that it did not include the typical rental car coverage that my other VISA card has. Oh well, I might as well bite the bullet on the increased transaction fees, in return for the rental car insurance.
Imagine my surprise when only a few weeks later, the cost for the same rental had doubled! Yes, the exact same pickup and drop-off locations, same dates and vehicle selection. But using a car to get around Croatia is still going to be the best way, so I continued with the booking. And guess what? I didn’t even need a credit card to secure the rental! So ultimately, I didn’t need to wait, as I could have used any old credit card when we arrived to pick up the car in Dubrovnik. With the no-risk cancellation policy, it should have been a no-brainer to take care of this a month ago!
Ultimately, it is not a big deal in the overall cost of our upcoming vacation, but it still pains me that we’re paying more than we should have. Oh well, 4 days x $50 = $200, or as I like to equate it to, is one day of working in Background.
Edit; After doing a little more research online, I managed to find a slightly better deal, saving $100. The new rental agency isn’t charging the drop fee for returning at a separate location, and using a discount code I found on the web, trimmed off another few dollars. Still, it would have been another $100+ cheaper if I had booked a month ago!
