Among all your options, there are some things you don’t need to do, or even should not do, when renting a car. Below are 10 of them.

Prepaying for Gasoline

Prepaid gasoline charges appeal to the desire for simplicity while traveling, and also to concerns about being late for flights, as every few minutes added to the trip to the airport create more risk for arriving too late to board. As airport security has added considerable time to this process, rental companies have come up with new options for car refueling, and are giving them the hard sell at the rental desk.

Unless you are completely sure you will return the tank empty, or you have a pre-dawn flight that would make it worth the money not to have to refuel yourself, don’t fall for this one. Even the option where the company charges you only for fuel you actually use is tipped aggressively in the rental agency’s favor because the cost of having them refuel your car is almost always higher than the cost of doing it yourself.

To beat the rap on this one, don’t make the next mistake:

Failing to Check on Your Way Out for a Place to Refuel on Your Way Back

The best time to find a place to refuel your vehicle is immediately after you pick it up. As you are driving away from the airport or rental agency, take note of the local gas stations, and make a plan to return to the most easily accessible or best-priced of them at the end of your rental. The neighborhoods around airports can be confusing and unfamiliar, so you don’t want to be driving in circles looking for a gas station as your flight time approaches. Figure this out on your way out, when you are not pressed for time.

Purchasing Insurance, Reason No. 1: Your Own Auto Insurance Covers You

Before accepting this one at face value, it should be emphasized that auto insurance policies can vary considerably, so you will want to check with your own insurer directly. If you have the minimum legally permissible coverage, it may not include coverage for rental cars—whereas if you have what companies call “full coverage,” it almost certainly does, at least in your home country. Call or email your insurer to find out.

In general, the rule of thumb is that the coverage you have for your main vehicle extends to your rental vehicle, because the rental is considered a replacement vehicle under the policy. So if you have comprehensive coverage on your own car, your policy would also give you comprehensive coverage for the rental vehicle.

Most policies will cover you even if the rental car is a “better” or more valuable car than your own car, so you don’t have to worry if you get an upgrade or rent a much better car than the one you insure at home.

Note, however, that an accident in a rental car will typically raise your rates if you have to make a claim on your own insurance policy.

Purchasing Insurance, Reason No. 2: Your Credit Card Covers the Rest

Anything your own car insurance does not cover, it is likely that your credit card will. In some cases the credit card coverage is as good as or better than your auto insurance; in others it is intended to be secondary insurance to help cover anything your auto insurance does not.

Of course, you will need to pay for your car rental using that card; just having a qualifying credit card does not give you any protection.

Ignoring One Possible Caveat: “Loss of Use” Insurance

When a rental car is damaged, “loss of use” charges are applied to cover the potential revenue lost when the vehicle is off the road for repairs. This is typically charged in the amount of a day’s rental for that vehicle, and most auto insurance companies do not cover this fee. Many credit cards do, however; American Express, MasterCard, and Visa all offer “loss of use” coverage with rentals paid for with some of their cards. Check the terms and conditions in advance to make sure.

Ignoring Potential Offers for Upgrades

In the past, I’ve recommended reserving a low-priced car and then inquiring about upgrades at the rental desk. This works best at busy times when the garage is running low on its cheapest vehicles, and may offer you free or very affordable upgrades to a larger car class due to inventory management issues.

In most cases, the desk agent has considerable discretion in setting upgrade rates, so if he or she asks if you are interested in a larger car, respond that it depends on the price; you might find yourself in a bigger and better car at minimal additional cost.

Failing to Check for AAA, AARP, Reward Programs, or Other Discounts

Many membership programs establish relationships with car rental companies as a member perk. These include travel organizations like AAA, airline frequent flyer programs, age-specific organizations like the AARP, and even some sports- or hobby-focused groups. Rental car discounts are typically listed on the organization’s website; you are already paying membership dues, so have a look before booking, and you could find a great deal.

Making Too Cursory an Inspection Upon Departure

When you pick up your car, check it inside and out for anything that could potentially be considered damage before you drive away. Look for scratches, scuffs, loose parts, and working power windows and mirrors.

Keep an eye out for problems both small and big; the tendency is to take a quick walk around the car looking for scratches and blemishes, thinking that big problems would have already been noticed, but this is not always the case. I once rented a car with a loose back bumper that the car rental company had not noticed previously. If I hadn’t caught this before we left the garage and an inspector had seen it later, I would have been held completely responsible.

Your best protection here: Take photos or a video of a slow walk around the car, and “kick the tires,” so to speak.

Leaving Final Inspection to Chance

Recently, the procedure of returning cars has come to resemble checking out of a hotel, where you leave your keycard on the night table and head out the lobby door with only a wave to the front desk. Car rental returns have taken on a similar feel; as often as not, you follow signs to the back of a row of recently returned cars, take out your stuff, leave the key in the car, and walk away without speaking to anyone directly.

If it feels unsettling just to leave the car without an agent checking it over, it should; the most serious complaints about car rental companies in recent years have been disputes over damage claims. If no attendant is present at dropoff (and sometimes even when there is), the dispute later becomes your word against theirs.

Again, your best protection here is to take photos or a video of a slow walk around the car.

Crossing International Borders

Most U.S. car rental agreements do not allow you to drive the car across international borders. Additionally, your U.S. car insurance rarely covers international car rentals, so you will likely want to purchase insurance from the rental company at the time of rental.

Credit card companies may help here, as most do offer coverage in many international destinations.

Outside the U.S., policies on border crossing vary by destination and car rental agency. In some cases driving into another country is permitted if you give advance notice and/or pay an extra fee.

If you do drive across international borders without authorization and you have a problem, the protections of your rental contract, insurance, and other sources may be negated.

Editor’s note: This story was originally published in 2017. It has been updated to reflect the most current information.

The post 10 Things Not to Do When Renting a Car appeared first on SmarterTravel.

To help you avoid these rental car nightmares, J.D. Power conducts an annual North America Rental Car Satisfaction Study. This study surveys over 8,000 travelers who rented cars at airport locations for either business or leisure trips. 

Participants ranked rental car agencies based on seven factors:

1. Ease of rental
2. Pick-up/drop-off experience
3. Level of trust
4. Vehicle
5. Staff
6. Value for price paid
7. Digital tools

The Best Rental Car Companies

A famous name doesn’t guarantee a good rental car experience. “Trust fosters loyalty, enhances the company’s reputation, and differentiates it in a competitive market,” said Azari Jones, rental car practice lead at J.D. Power. “This leads to higher customer retention and positive word-of-mouth. Without this trust, even a well-known brand may struggle to maintain long-term relationships with customers.”

According to the survey, these are the best rental car companies in North America.

1. National
2. Enterprise
3. Sixt
4. Advantage Rent A Car
5. Alamo
6. Hertz
7. ACE Rent A Car

The Worst Rental Car Companies

If you want to avoid a bad experience, you shouldn’t book with the following rental car companies, which were ranked lowest in the customer satisfaction survey.

1. Dollar
2. Budget
3. Thrifty
4. Fox Rent A Car
5. Avis
6. Payless

The post The Best and Worst Rental Car Companies in North America appeared first on SmarterTravel.

As with so many other travel buys, like the best hotel booking sites and the best airfare booking sites, to find the very best car rental deals you’ll need to cast a wide net. Still, some places tend to do better than others, at least some of the time.

The Best Car Rental Booking Sites in the U.S. and Europe

Here’s a quick roundup of the candidates for best car rental booking sites, based on detailed car searches in both the U.S. and Europe. (Find more details below on the perks and downfalls of each.)

• AutoRentals.com
• Hotwire
• Rentalcars.com
• Priceline
• Expedia
• Low-cost car rental booking sites Alamo, Payless, and Thrifty
• Sixt Car Rentals
• AARP’s discount with Avis, Budget, and Payless
• Auto Europe
• Rentcars.com
• Kayak
• CarRentals.com
• Autoslash

I tested base rental car rates by searching only for economy or compact cars, for a rental period of one week, and only for picking up and returning the car at the primary airports for a number of city destinations in both the U.S. and Europe. All quoted rates (except for opaque rates that hide car specifics until after you purchase their lower-priced deal) are fully cancellable, although some require an advance payment with the option of a refund given upon cancellation. Some vendors offer lower non-refundable rates. All rates include air-conditioning and all U.S. rates include automatic transmission; European rates are for manual since automatic comes at a premium there.

For the most part, the search-and-buy sequence is roughly the same for all car rental booking sites. No one rose out of the mix as especially easy or dropped as especially difficult. Therefore, my comparisons are based almost entirely on my ability to locate the best deals.

AutoRentals.com

Overall, AutoRentals.com is an excellent place to start a search. It’s a metasearch system that displays a matrix of prices for up to 25 model options available through more than two dozen different sources, including a mix of other metasearch car rental booking sites, online travel agencies, and rental company home pages.

Price displays include both the posted daily rate and the all-up cost of the requested rental. The display also indicates which rental locations, if any, are off-airport—which is important. This matrix feature is especially helpful in comparing options quickly.

Pros: Coverage of major cities is worldwide. Once you select an option to check, AutoRentals links you through to the vendor’s web pages to make your booking, and it includes many rental companies and search systems you’ve probably never heard about, let alone would find on your own.

Cons: Some of the “best deals” reported are not actually the true total price; they exclude some taxes and fees. And some are not fully cancellable—they’re either nonrefundable or entail a cancellation fee. This information is not disclosed until well into the booking process, and even then you have to dig for it.

Hotwire

Car rentals on Hotwire offered some of the lowest rates by way of “opaque” rates in most of my U.S. tests. Opaque means that you don’t find out about the rental company until after you pay the nonrefundable price. Given the sameness of cars, however, you risk very little disappointment with an opaque rate. The option to filter by “free cancellation” also gives peace of mind when booking. 

Pros: Hotwire’s leadership in low rates is confirmed by the AutoRentals matrix, where it shows up as the best buy on a regular basis.

Cons: I did not find as many opaque rates for Europe on Hotwire.

Rentalcars.com

Rentalcars.com consistently yielded good prices for my searches, though it didn’t always win every test. The site covers rentals in 163 countries worldwide, with more than 55,000 pick-up spots to choose from. Offering an “I’m flexible” option in the travel dates field gives customers who don’t yet know when they’d like to travel the ability to peruse rental deals within a wider date range, although this functionality may be less important to a car rental search than a search for flights or hotels. 

Pros: As with AutoRentals.com, Rentalcars.com is a metasearch system that makes it easy to compare offers. In some cases it offers opaque rates for lower prices if you don’t mind not knowing the exact car type.

Cons: Because some of the booking sites Rentalcars.com works with may be unfamiliar to you, the site shows user ratings for each so you can decide whether you’re comfortable booking. Unfortunately, some of them don’t have particularly high ratings (in one search, many of the results on page one were from providers rated just 5.9 out of 10).

Priceline

Like Hotwire, Priceline car rentals list opaque rates as the lowest options in many U.S. cities. Although Hotwire posted lower ones more often, Priceline was a winner in some cases. So if you’re looking for the lowest, you have to try both. The search results page has a summary of the best deals across the top for easy browsing. Customers can sort the page by recommended, lowest total price, or car type and refine results with a robust selection of filters from fuel type to cancellation policy.

Pros: The chance of it having the true lowest price. If you already use this site for hotels or airfare, it’s also easy to add on a car (as with the other big search engine booking sites).

Cons: I didn’t find any opaque rates for Europe in my Priceline searches.

Expedia

Expedia consistently offered or matched the lowest or near-lowest rates as frequently as Priceline and Rentalcars.com did. Plus the option to bundle with your airfare or hotel is easy and could save you money (as with other price comparison engines), if you already use Expedia for those, as many do. Like Priceline, Expedia’s search filters are extensive. Toggle on the “great deal” feature to see the lowest priced car currently on offer in each category.

Pros: In almost all cases, rates were the same as through the rental company’s own system. And if you already use this site for hotels or airfare, it’s easy to add on a car.

Cons: Expedia doesn’t seem to offer opaque rates, which is only truly a con if you’re looking for them.

Low-Cost Car Rental Booking Sites

In general, prices directly from low-end renters such as Alamo, Payless, and Thrifty were always less expensive than the top-name rental companies, usually with a difference of $100 or more per week. If you’re just looking for the cheapest car rental website, these are the sites for you.

Pros: The obvious benefit is you’re paying a lot less. But…

Cons: The trade-off is that the low-end outfits and third-party agencies generally don’t include the bells and whistles that top-end company loyalty programs provide. I also sometimes found lower rates on metasearch sites such as AutoRentals.com or Rentalcars.com than I did when booking directly through the low-cost car rental booking sites.

Alamo

Alamo has over 1,000 locations in 92 countries. Although owned by Enterprise, there’s not much resemblance between their initial search pages. If searching by city, Alamo will direct customers to an interactive map that allows them to see all nearby Alamo locations. If customers search for a specific Alamo location, the site brings them directly to the vehicle selection page. My search surfaced a “fits your search” option for an economy vehicle, but also a “recommended for you” option for a midsize SUV that didn’t completely match my search criteria.

Alamo offers a Pay Now and a Pay Later option. Pay Now is typically the cheaper option (about $15 cheaper in a search for Boston economy car rentals) but it comes with a stricter cancellation policy. If you cancel more than 24 hours in advance, you incur a $50 fee—any cancellation with less than 24 hours’ notice will cost you $100. Coupons are also only valid on Pay Later rentals.

Pros: Having the most locations in the most countries of the budget booking set means you’ll be able to find deals at more destinations.

Cons: The free cancellation and coupon policy incentivizes customers to pay the more expensive Pay Now rates.

Payless

Owned by Avis Budget Group, Payless rental cars has 120 locations in 35 countries including the United States. Although laid out similarly to other booking sites, it offers bare-bones filtering options. There’s no option on the initial search page to filter by what type of car you want, and no further filtering options on the search results page.

Payless also offers Pay Now and Pay Later rates, showing higher savings than Alamo—a difference of $38 dollars on an economy car rental. However, the cancellation policy for Pay Now is once again stricter, with customers forfeiting the entire prepaid amount if they cancel their reservation within 48 hours of intended pickup.

Pro: Payless Perks Club members get discounted car rental rates and access to exclusive promotions.

Cons: Lack of filter options makes it difficult to refine search results.

Thrifty

Operating over 1,000 locations in 77 countries, Thrifty is another top budget car rental option. Similarly to Payless, Thrifty offers a member discount if you sign up for an account. Their Blue Chip rewards program comes with perks in addition to discounts, including an additional authorized driver and quicker reservations. 

The search results page shows the daily rate and estimated trip total, where Payless and Alamo only show trip totals. Like some of the major rental dealerships listed above, Thrifty offers opaque rates. Their “Managers Special” rate offers a rental of a “wildcard or similar” at a promised discount price. Opaque rates on electric vehicles are specially flagged.

Pro: Opaque rates can save you even more on top of Thrifty’s already budget prices.

Cons: The opaque rates surfaced in my search were not that much cheaper than the regular deals, and only came up during domestic car rental searches.

Sixt Rent a Car

For European cities, the Sixt booking site is proof that higher-end companies occasionally offer specials better than any other source. At the time of my search, the German company was running a “special” found to be the cheapest option in some cases, but didn’t specify the rental company. Sixt also offers car rental deals in the US, with locations at dozens of major airports across the country.

Pros: Another strong chance of finding the lowest price.

Cons: The grid layout and dropdown details panels on the search results page is not as easy to navigate as the results pages on other sites on the list.

AARP Partners

If you qualify for them, AARP’s car rental partnership with the Avis Group (Avis, Budget, and Payless) promises discounts up to 35 percent as well as a 3% credit toward your next car rental, and in some cases I did find prices lower than those I’d seen anywhere else. The age requirement to join and access these benefits is lower than one may think—anyone over 18 years old can become an AARP member and take advantage of the savings. 

Pros: AARP rates could end up saving you money over all your other options.

Cons: Even with a “discount,” you might not be getting the lowest rate, so you still have to shop around.

Auto Europe

In Europe, Auto Europe generally matched all other sources, including self-described “discounters,” for offering the lowest rates. Think of it as the AutoRentals.com or Rentalcars.com of Europe. Their grid-style search results page makes it easy to compare prices from different rental companies at a glance, highlighting the cheapest deals in each category. However, there’s no option to scroll through all the search results together in one page. 

Pros: I’ve used Auto Europe in the past, and found its customer support to be outstanding. It can also help with difficult rentals, such as finding a rental agency in Ireland that accepts drivers over age 70. It’s a good place to start any European rental search.

Cons: As you’d expect from its name, Auto Europe is best for bookings in Europe. This car rental booking site does offer rentals in the U.S. and elsewhere, but usually won’t get you the best price for them.

Rentcars.com

Rentcars.com is another metasearch system that raises similar results to those search engines that were included in my original tests. Like the others, it manages to dig out some good deals. Like Hotwire, a summary of the best deals in each category is easily accessible at the top of the results page. Customers can also open the interactive map to see all Rentcars.com locations in a given area, making it easy to confirm you’re picking up and returning your rental at the most convenient location. 

Pros: It scans more than 300 rental car companies and confines the search display to the most useful prices.

Cons: As with many other sites, the best prices it finds are sometimes pay-in-advance, including full or partial non-refundability, meaning you need to know ahead of time that your plans are concrete unless you want to lose prepayments.

Kayak

Kayak is best known for airfare metasearch, but it offers a good product for car rentals as well. It searches numerous car rental agencies and booking sites and came up with some of the best prices in my tests. It includes opaque options advertising a “surprise agency” if you’re willing to take a risk.

Pros: The site has lots of handy filters, including “pay now” and “pay at counter” as well as an option to show only hybrid vehicles.

Cons: Kayak works with a wide variety of booking sites, which means you’ll sometimes be pointed to companies you’re not familiar with. Search for reviews before booking with vendors you haven’t used before.

CarRentals.com

CarRentals.com is owned by Expedia, but it didn’t show the exact same results as its parent company in the tests I ran, so it’s worth checking both. (Neither one came out consistently ahead of the other.) However, the search results page is formatted similarly to Expedia’s, with the same extensive set of filters and option to sort by lowest deals on the website. 

Pros: The site has some interesting filter options, including customer rating and the option for online check-in.

Cons: Making a booking through this site automatically signs you up for emails about “special offers,” with no way to opt out until the first email arrives.

Autoslash

Autoslash is a one-stop shopping site for discounts. When filling out your dates, you also check off any rewards programs or memberships you have, and let Autoslash do the searching for you. Within minutes, you will get an email with a link taking you to your best rate.The initial search is broken down into steps, taking customers through a flow of screens asking about their pick-up and drop-off dates, car preferences, frequent flier memberships, credit cards, and more. Unfortunately there is no way to select multiple preferences for your vehicle at the same time (for example, searching for deals on economy and compact cars), so if you want to compare deals across specific categories you will have to run separate searches.

Pros: Ability to search all rewards programs and membership discounts at once. If you’ve already booked through another site, you can enter your confirmation number, and they will let you know if there is a better deal available.

Cons: You may have to pay in advance for the best deal, and you may have to book with a lesser-known car rental company.

The Car Rental Booking Site Gotchas to Avoid

No matter where you rent, you have to check out the terms and conditions of any rental before you make your final purchase. Among them:

• Great-looking deals that are nonrefundable or entail a stiff cancellation penalty.
• Cancellable deals that require upfront payment rather than payment at the end of a rental.
• Best deals that apply to tiny “economy” or “mini” cars that are not practical for anything other than running errands around town.
• Occasional deals with a mileage cap instead of the unlimited mileage you normally expect.
• Supposedly all-up prices that exclude some local taxes and fees.

How old do I have to be to rent a car?

In the United States, you must be at least 21 years old to rent a car in most states. However, many spots in Europe allow car rentals starting at age 18. If renting in Europe, check the policies of your specific car rental service. 

Renting a Car if You Are Under 25 Years Old

Drivers under 25 years old are typically charged an extra daily surcharge and potentially subject to restrictions on what types of cars they can rent. The fees vary by car rental site and can be waived in certain scenarios—for example, AAA member under 25 years old renting with Hertz can have their young renter fee waived.

Rental Car Insurance

Purchasing a Collision Damage (or Loss Damage) Waiver from your rental car provider is the one way to guarantee you won’t be held liable for any damages incurred during your rental period, but it can be expensive. Alternatives include sourcing your own insurance from your credit card or a third-party provider, but gaps in this coverage could leave you in trouble. Read our comprehensive guide on car rental insurance to learn what type of coverage is right for your situation.

Always document existing damage when first picking up your rental car. Fill out a damage from if provided by the company and take photos and video of any notable damage. 

Book a Stay With SmarterTravel Hotels

Now that you’ve found the perfect rental car, you’ll need to find the perfect place to stay. Search SmarterTravel Hotels for great deals wherever your drive takes you.

Book Now

Consumer advocate Ed Perkins has been writing about travel for more than three decades. The founding editor of the Consumer Reports Travel Letter, he continues to inform travelers and fight consumer abuse every day at SmarterTravel. Carol McPherson contributed to this story.

Editor’s note: This story was originally published in 2019. It has been updated to reflect the most current information. Sarah Schlichter contributed to this story. Some of the links featured in this story are affiliate links, and SmarterTravel may collect a commission (at no cost to you) if you shop through them. As an Amazon Associate, we earn from qualifying purchases.

The post The 16 Best Car Rental Booking Sites for 2024 appeared first on SmarterTravel.

“I’m interested in finding a complete bumper-to-bumper, ‘drop off the keys at the counter’ car rental coverage when I travel. I recently thought I had complete coverage though a credit card, but when my car suffered a small dent, the car rental company flat-out refused to document that it actually lost income from having the car rental in the shop (which took three weeks to repair a small dent). I was left with responsibility.”

This experience is uncommon, but not unique. Car rental companies desperately want you to buy their collision damage waiver, or CDW (sometimes also known as loss damage waiver, or LDW), and will go to great lengths to make you pay for even the smallest damages if you don’t. Here’s what you need to know before you shell out for car rental insurance on your next vacation.

Car Rental Insurance: What You Need to Know

The One Way to ‘Drop the Keys and Forget It’

When you buy a CDW, the rental company surrenders its rights to charge you for damage to a car rental—with a few exceptions, such as tire damage or gross negligence. (CDW terms and conditions vary by car rental company, so you’ll want to read them carefully before committing.) But otherwise, no matter how banged up the car could be, you’re off the hook: Just turn it in and be on your way. No other approach—your own insurance, your credit card, or a third-party policy—is as comprehensive or convenient. If you want that full flexibility and peace of mind, pay for CDW.

CDW Insurance Is Ridiculously Overpriced

Typically, a CDW starts at around $30 per day and can go higher. The actuarial cost to the rental company—the amount it would allocate toward a damage pool based on risk experience—is probably just a few dollars a day; the rest is theirs to keep. No wonder the agents push it so hard: It’s clearly a lot more profitable than the car rental alone.

You’ll Pay Up Front for All Damage

You can cover your major damage responsibility by relying on your own insurance, a credit card with insurance, or a third-party policy. But in all of those cases you have to pay a damage claim up front, then recover as much as you can (all of it, you hope) by filing a claim afterward. That means signing a credit card bill for hundreds or even thousands of dollars when you return the damaged car, and not knowing if you’ll get that money back.

That’s why some rental companies won’t accept rentals via debit card, or a credit card with a small limit. If you can pay the initial rental fee with a debit card, you may still need to provide a credit card to cover a possible damage claim, which would be filed before you can leave the return counter.

‘Damage’ Is More than Fixing a Dent

If you don’t buy CDW, rental companies can charge for more than just fixing the damage. They may also charge for:

• “Loss of use,” meaning the potential revenue lost while the car is out of service being fixed, even if the company had lots of other cars available. And they generally figure that daily loss at the full retail rate.
• Towing charges, if you are unable to drive the car back to the return station.
• “Diminished value,” or the potential loss of the car’s resale value (because of your damage) when the rental company disposes of it, usually within two years.
• Administrative fees associated with the claims process.

Most non-CDW car rental insurance will cover those extras. But, in some cases, coverage depends on cooperation from the rental company—and it may not be forthcoming, as our reader’s above wasn’t.

You Need General Liability Protection

You should never get behind the wheel of a car—or lawnmower, for that matter—without liability protection. But you don’t buy that from a car rental company: It usually comes with household, homeowner, or tenant insurance, and it covers far more than a car rental. And if your net worth is in six figures, you probably need an “umbrella” liability policy that covers a million dollars or more.

Car rental companies in most countries are required by law to include liability insurance. In the U.S., required coverage can be ludicrously small (usually only the minimum required by the state)—it’s usually much better in Europe. If you don’t have substantial liability insurance, you might consider buying the rental company’s offering. Still, your best bet is to make sure you’re covered 24/7 with your own insurance so you can forget about the rental company’s overpriced insurance.

Alternatives to Rental Company Collision Damage Waivers

Alternative #1: Pay with Your Existing Car Insurance

In many cases, if your regular auto insurance covers collision damage to your insured car, it also covers damage to a short-term rental. But this coverage is generally limited to driving in the U.S. and maybe Canada, and won’t cover car rentals in Mexico, Europe, or anywhere else. So, before you plan on using your own insurance, check its coverage. If it does cover rentals, you can place a claim on it. Still, you must typically pay your policy’s deductible, and any claims may cause your rates to go up.

Alternative #2: Use Credit Card Benefits

These days, most credit cards provide “free” collision coverage for car rentals, provided you use the card to secure the rental. A sample credit card benefits statement describes coverage as:

“Physical damage and/or theft of the covered rental vehicle. Valid loss-of-use charges assessed by the rental company while the damaged vehicle is being repaired and is not available for use, as substantiated in the company’s fleet utilization log. Reasonable and customary towing charges related to a covered loss to take the vehicle to the nearest qualified repair facility.”

Note that this typical Visa card’s benefits do not cover diminished value or administrative costs. A few premium credit cards offer primary collision coverage, meaning the card takes full responsibility for the payment. But coverage on most cards is secondary, meaning the card picks up only what you can’t first recover from your own insurance. And you still have to pay the rental company up front, then file for reimbursement from your card issuer.

Another gotcha in the above fine print: This card (and many others) pays for loss of use only if verified by the rental company’s log. Unfortunately, some rental companies don’t cooperate with credit card issuers in providing this type of documentation in a timely manner.

Alternative #3: Third-Party Car Rental Insurance

If you rent a car through one of the big online travel agencies (OTA) such as Expedia or Priceline, the agency normally offers you the option to buy collision coverage for around $10 a day. That coverage is provided by a third-party insurance company such as Allianz. The cost is a lot less than the rental company’s CDW, but, as with credit card coverage, if you damage the car, you have to pay up front and claim later.

Typical third-party collision coverage includes about the same contingencies as credit card coverage, but because it’s grouped with the booking you won’t have to make any other claims. You can also buy collision coverage independently: Bonzah, for example, sells coverage at around $10-$20 per day.

You should never get behind the wheel of a car—or lawnmower, for that matter—without liability protection. But you don’t buy that from a car rental company: It usually comes with household, homeowner, or tenant insurance, and it covers far more than a car rental. And if your net worth is in six figures, you probably need an “umbrella” liability policy that covers a million dollars or more.

Car rental companies in most countries are required by law to include liability insurance. In the U.S., required coverage can be ludicrously small (usually only the minimum required by the state)—it’s usually much better in Europe. If you don’t have substantial liability insurance, you might consider buying the rental company’s offering. Still, your best bet is to make sure you’re covered 24/7 with your own insurance so you can forget about the rental company’s overpriced insurance.

The Uncertainty Principle

The takeaway from all this: No alternative source of collision damage coverage—your auto insurance, your credit card, or a third party—completely isolates you from risk. Lots of travelers successfully rely on lower-cost alternatives to CDW without encountering any problems, sure. Occasionally, however, your own insurance, credit card, or third-party policy may not cover an unusual charge a rental company might impose.

If you’re unwilling to accept any risk at all, you might want to buy that overpriced CDW. For most travelers and circumstances, credit card or third-party coverage is sufficient, and primary coverage is a lot better than secondary.

Consumer advocate Ed Perkins, the founding editor of the Consumer Reports Travel Letter, has been writing about travel for more than three decades.

Editor’s note: This story was originally published in 2017. It has been updated to reflect the most current information.

The post The Truth About Car Rental Insurance You Need to Know appeared first on SmarterTravel.

Get a Better Rate Even After You’ve Booked

When you book a nonrefundable flight and then see a cheaper fare later, you’re pretty much out of luck—but that’s not the case when renting a car. Most car rental companies give you the option to reserve a car without prepaying, which gives you the opportunity to cancel or change the reservation later if you see a better deal.

If you’d rather not spend time continuing to shop around after you’ve made your reservation, AutoSlash will do it for you. You can make your initial booking through the site, or put in your existing reservation code from the car rental company, and AutoSlash will notify you when a cheaper rate becomes available.

Look for Coupon Codes

Before pulling the trigger on your booking, check the car rental company’s website for discount codes to use toward your rental, and also do a Google search for “[car rental company name] coupon code.” Sites like RetailMeNot and SlickDeals often list codes that can save you up to 25 or 30 percent.

Check Rates on Multiple Versions of the Car Rental Company’s Site

When renting in a foreign country, try both your home country’s version of the car rental company’s site as well as the local version. For example, I tested prices for a three-day car rental in Glasgow, Scotland, on both Alamo.com (the company’s U.S. site) and Alamo.co.uk (the U.K. site). The U.S. site quoted me a rate of $207.71 for a small car with a manual transmission, while Alamo.co.uk offered a rate of 158.81 GBP for the same vehicle, just $199.51 at the current exchange rate.

A couple of caveats: First, if the price difference is very small, it might be canceled out entirely if your credit card charges you a fee to pay in a foreign currency. Second, this car rental hack can be tricky if you’re trying to book on a site in a language you don’t speak. Google Translate and other machine translators aren’t always reliable, and you want to make sure you understand the terms and conditions before you book.

Take Advantage of Group Memberships

Are you a member of a group like AAA, AARP, Costco, BJ’s, or USAA? If so, you’re probably eligible for car rental discounts.

The AARP lists partnerships with Avis, Budget, Payless, and Zipcar in its member benefits, while Hertz offers exclusive deals for AAA members. Hertz will also waive the youth driver fee for AAA members between the ages of 20 and 24. Additionally, Costco, BJ’s, and USAA have search engines where you can look for car rental deals from their partners.

Keep in mind that group memberships are just one possible discount and that other, more generous offers are sometimes available. You probably won’t be able to combine both, so don’t simply default to your preferred group rate without shopping around.

Book Your Car as Part of a Package

You can often save big by bundling your car rental into a package with your flight and/or hotel. For example, I priced out a weeklong trip from New York City to San Diego on Expedia and found that the flight would be $495.30 per person and a car rental would be $267, or $133.50 per person. The total cost of booking flights and car separately: $628.80 per person. But when I tried a flight + car package, the cost was just $461.70 per person—less than the cost of the flight alone.

Get a One-Way Rental for Free

One-way car rentals are notoriously expensive, as the rental company often charges a fee to cover the cost of getting the vehicle back where it belongs. But what if you’re actually doing the company a favor by driving it where it needs to be?

That’s the premise of Transfercar, which lists vehicles that need to be moved from one destination to another; if you’re willing to do the driving, you can snag a car or camper for ultra-cheap—or even free.

For example, Transfercar might have an automatic-transmission compact campervan that needs to be driven from Perth to Broome within the next few weeks. You’d be able to drive it for up to eight days for free (including insurance) to help them get the campervan back to where it needs to be.

Join a Loyalty Program

Become a member of your favorite car rental company’s loyalty program, and you’ll immediately enjoy benefits such as skipping the line at rental counters and access to members-only deals—even if you’re not a frequent renter. Most of these programs have partnerships with airlines and hotels, so you can apply points from your rentals toward future flights or stays.

Check Your Credit Card Benefits Before Buying Insurance

Do you really need the pricey insurance the rental car agent is trying to peddle? Maybe not. Many credit cards offer certain types of rental car insurance as long as you pay for your rental with that card. It’s worth calling your credit card company or digging into your card’s terms and conditions to see what coverage you already have. You might also be covered by your own car insurance policy at home.

To learn more, see 9 Nasty Truths About Car Rental Insurance.

Take Photos or Videos of Your Car During Inspection

During your initial walk around the rental vehicle, take out your phone and snap a few pictures or even a video of any dings or scratches. Note that this doesn’t take the place of reporting these issues to a rental company staffer as soon as you see them—but it gives you documentation just in case your rental company tries to charge you after the fact for damages you didn’t cause. For an easy time stamp that proves dings and scratches were there at the time of rental, text the pictures to someone.

Don’t Overpay for Gas

Most car rental companies expect you to return the vehicle with a full tank, and they’ll often give you the option of prepaying for fuel. This is nearly always a terrible deal. Instead, use an app such as GasBuddy to find the cheapest nearby station and fill the tank yourself. Keep in mind that gas stations right near the airport tend to be quite expensive; you’re often better off filling up about 10 miles away.

Follow Sarah Schlichter on Twitter @TravelEditor for more travel tips and inspiration.

Editor’s note: This story was originally published in 2018. It has been updated to reflect the most current information.

The post 10 Clever Car Rental Hacks That’ll Save You Money appeared first on SmarterTravel.

An estimated 37 million people are planning to travel 50 miles or more from home from May 27 through May 31—a 60 percent increase from Memorial Day 2020. 

However, this is still about 6 million fewer people planning to hit the road than had previously traveled for Memorial Day weekend 2019.

According to AAA, the top five most popular road trip destinations for Memorial Day weekend 2021 are: 

1.       Las Vegas, NV
2.       Orlando, FL
3.       Myrtle Beach, SC
4.       Denver, CO
5.       Nashville, TN

The Worst Times to Travel on Memorial Day Weekend

Planning to leave early to beat the Memorial Day traffic? You’ll probably need to leave earlier than you think. AAA forecasts that travelers will encounter the longest travel delays if they leave between 1pm and 7:45pm on Thursday, May 27th or between 2pm and 6:30pm on Friday, May 28th. 

The Best Times to Travel on Memorial Day Weekend

If you can, leaving in the morning or very early afternoon on Thursday or Friday will be your best bet for avoiding traffic. Delaying your trip slightly, and heading out early Saturday morning might also make your trip faster (and save you the cost of a night’s lodging as well). 

No matter when you choose to travel, be sure to follow all CDC travel guidelines as well as any regulations at your destination. 

The post The Best (and Worst) Times to Travel for Memorial Day Weekend appeared first on SmarterTravel.

Carbon offset companies, ecotour operators, green hotels, hybrid rental car agencies … with so many eco-friendly resources on the internet, where’s a would-be green traveler to start? I’ve cut the confusion by gathering my favorite green travel resources in one convenient spot—so whether you’re interested in renting a hybrid car or offsetting the pollution from your last flight, you can find the info you need right here.

General Ecotourism and Green Travel Resources

Learn more about the principles of ecotourism and green travel by browsing these sites.

• Ethical Traveler
• Green Lodging News
• International Ecotourism Society
• Nature Conservancy
• Rainforest Alliance
• Sustainable Travel International

Carbon Offset Companies

There are a number of companies and charitable organizations that will offset your carbon emissions, not only for flights but also for car travel and household energy use. The range of projects varies widely, so I’ve explained a little bit about each organization to help you decide which offsetter is right for you.

• Atmosfair: German nonprofit organization that donates funds to alternative energy projects
• Carbon Footprint: British company that retires carbon offsets, plants trees, and supports international energy-saving projects
• ClimeCo: American nonprofit organization that retires carbon offsets, plants trees, and supports renewable energy and energy-efficiency projects
• The Conservation Fund: American nonprofit organization that plants trees across the U.S.
• GreenSeat: Dutch company that supports renewable energy projects
• Terrapass: American company that funds clean energy, biomass, and industrial efficiency projects

Eco-Friendly Lodging and Green Hotels

Looking for a hotel that takes steps to care for the environment? These green travel resources can help.

• a&o green: Sustainable hostel brand
• B’n’Tree: Plants a tree for each hotel booking that originates on the site
• Design Hotels: Upscale green hotels
• ECOCLUB: Ecolodges across the world
• Element Hotels: Environmentally friendly chain with worldwide locations
• Green Getaways Australia: Eco-friendly lodging in Australia
• Green Globe: Certified eco-friendly hotels across the world
• GreenHotels: Green hotels in Greece
• Green Hotels Association: Eco-friendly hotels in the U.S. and worldwide
• ResponsibleTravel.com: Eco-friendly lodging worldwide

Eco-Friendly Tour Operators

These tour operators take a sustainable approach to travel, with some even paying for carbon offsets for their trips.

• Adventures Within Reach: Adventure travel around the world
• AdventureSmith Explorations: Expedition cruises and wilderness trips
• Backroads: Biking, hiking, and adventure trips around the world
• Blue Ventures: Volunteer trips for marine conservation projects
• Context Travel: Small-group city walking tours with an educational focus
• Country Walkers: Walking tours around the world
• Dragoman Overland: Overland tours
• Earthwatch Institute: Research expeditions worldwide
• Ecoteer: Volunteer trips in Asia
• Ecoventura: Carbon-neutral luxury yacht cruises in the Galapagos Islands
• Elevate Destinations: Travel combined with local philanthropy
• Escape Adventures: Biking and multi-sport tours
• Explore!: Small-group adventure trips
• G Adventures: Small-group adventure tours
• Gamewatchers Safaris: Safaris in East Africa
• International Expeditions: Nature-focused tours and small-ship expeditions
• Intrepid Travel: Small-group tours around the world
• Lindblad Expeditions: Expedition cruises around the world
• Mosaic Adventure: Trekking expeditions in Nepal, Tibet, and Bhutan
• Natural Habitat Adventures: Wildlife- and nature-focused trips around the world
• OARS: Outdoor adventure tours
• Peregrine: Small-group trips led by local guides
• Rainforest Cruises: Expedition cruises
• REI Adventures: Adventure tours
• ResponsibleTravel.com: Eco-friendly tours worldwide
• ROW Adventures: Whitewater rafting and other adventure trips
• Seacology: Volunteer trips to various conservation project sites
• UnCruise Adventures: Small-ship cruises
• Wildland Adventures: Luxury trips, including family vacations

Hybrid and Fuel-Efficient Rental Cars

Opt for a hybrid or other fuel-efficient car rental on your next trip from one of these providers.

• Alamo: Hybrid rentals at select locations
• Avis: Hybrid rentals at select locations
• CarRentals: Search engine for hybrid rentals around the world
• Enterprise Rent-A-Car: Hybrid and electric car rentals
• Fox Rent A Car: Hybrid rental vehicles at select locations
• Hertz: “Green Collection” of hybrid and fuel-efficient rental vehicles
• National Car Rental: Hybrid rental vehicles at select locations

Follow Sarah Schlichter on Twitter @TravelEditor for more travel tips and inspiration.

Editor’s note: This story was originally published in 2017. It has been updated with the latest information.

The post Green Travel Resources Every Responsible Traveler Should Know appeared first on SmarterTravel.

The Worst Traffic in the U.S. Is In…

INRIX reports that the most traffic-congested city in the U.S. is Boston, where drivers lose an average of 149 hours a year to congestion. Things aren’t much better in Chicago, where commuters slogged through 145 hours of congestion each year.

Which U.S. cities were the worst? According to the 2019 Global Traffic Scorecard, the 10 most congested American cities, and the number of annual hours lost to congestion (read: stuck in traffic), were:

1. Boston – 149 hours
2. Chicago – 145 hours
3. Philadelphia – 142 hours
4. New York City – 140 hours
5. Washington, D.C. – 124 hours
6. Los Angeles – 103 hours
7. San Francisco – 97 hours
8. Portland, Oregon – 89 hours
9. Baltimore – 84 hours
10. Atlanta – 82 hours

Note that the cities were ranked not only by total hours lost to congestion but also other factors such as the cost of congestion per driver.

For travelers, there’s a clear link between congested cities and popular tourist destinations. You’ll want to consider timing your sightseeing to avoid rush hour and using public transportation (or walking) instead of driving while on vacation in these cities.

The Worst U.S. Routes for Traffic Congestion

INRIX also identified America’s most congested roads, and the I-5 in Los Angeles between the I-10 and the I-605 took home this dubious honor. Los Angeles also claimed the number two spot, with the stretch of the 101 between the 134 and the 110. New York City’s Brooklyn Queens Expressway and I-95 claimed the third and fourth spot, and Atlanta’s I-85 rounded out the top five most congested U.S. roads in 2019.

The Worst Traffic Cities in the World

If you think Boston’s delays are bad, you might want to give Bogota and a miss. The Colombian capital was the most congested city in the world, with drivers sitting through a whopping 191 hours of delays a year. Other traffic-choked cities around the world include Rio de Janeiro, Mexico City, Istanbul, and Sao Paulo, with annual hours lost to congestion topping 150 in each.

Do you take local traffic conditions into consideration when choosing trip destinations?

Expecting Traffic? Boost Your Safety With a Car Mount

Navigating foreign cities is difficult enough without the traffic. Having a car mount to deter distractions and mitigate risk of an accident is pivotal for these trips- long or short.

More from SmarterTravel:

• The 10 Cities with the Best Public Transportation
• The World’s 12 Most Walkable Cities
• The 5 Hardest and Easiest U.S. Airports to Reach from Downtown

Follow Sarah Schlichter on Twitter @TravelEditor for more travel tips and inspiration.

Editor’s note: This story was originally published in 2018. It has been updated to reflect the most current information. Tim Winship contributed to this story.

The post The 10 Cities with the Worst Traffic in the U.S. appeared first on SmarterTravel.

Getting around Australia takes a little planning. It’s a huge country, only slightly smaller than Canada and the U.S., with big distances between major cities. Fortunately, low-cost airlines offer competitively priced flights on the main domestic routes, and highways connect most of the country. Long-distance passenger trains (plus buses that connect at train stations for travel to outlying areas) are also available in some parts of Australia. Read on to learn everything you need to know about Australia transportation.

Australia by Air

Getting to Australia is a long haul—approximately 14 to 16 flying hours from the West Coast of North America, and another four to five hours if connecting from the East Coast. Flights from Europe typically connect in Asia and take nearly a full day.

The majority of North Americans will arrive at Sydney International Airport (also known as Kingsford Smith), Melbourne, or Brisbane. Major airlines connecting the two continents include Qantas, United Airlines, Air New Zealand (via Auckland), Virgin Australia, and Air Canada.

Flying within Australia is easy between major cities. The Sydney-Melbourne leg is the busiest with plenty of services, and fares for this 1.5-hour flight are quite competitive. Flights between Sydney and Brisbane also take 1.5 hours, while it’s five hours in the air from Sydney to Perth.

Qantas, its low-cost subsidiary airline Jetstar, and competitor Virgin Australia have most of the country covered. As all three carriers also operate international flights, it’s important to ensure you’re at the correct terminal for the correct flight.

Virgin Australia and Jetstar started as as low-cost, no-frills airlines where passengers paid extra for food and beverages (apart from tea/coffee/water). Nowadays Virgin Australia offers complimentary snacks and beverages (as well as meals on select routes), and allows passengers to check a single bag for free. Jetstar is more restrictive, with a strict carry-on baggage allowance (and hefty fees if your hand luggage is overweight) and no food included. Jetstar permits one complimentary checked bag. Fares on most Australian airlines are cheapest when booked online.

A handful of smaller regional airlines also serve country towns and remote Outback areas. Regional Express Airlines, known as REX, flies to towns in New South Wales, South Australia, Queensland, and Victoria, with limited service in Western Australia; Skytrans flies to remote regions in northern Queensland from a base in Cairns; and Par Avion operates in Tasmania. Aircraft on these regional airlines are often quite small, and fares can be expensive, as there may be little or no competition on the route.

Renting a Car in Australia

Car travel is popular in Australia, and most Aussies take to the road over Easter and during the six-week holiday season from mid-December to the end of January. North Americans will find it easier and cheaper to travel outside of peak season, particularly between February and April (before Easter) and in October or November when prices are cheaper and the weather is pleasant.

All the major international rental car brands are based in Australia. An international driver’s license is not required if your own driver’s license is written in English. Prices can be quite high, with lower rates for seven-day hire. Low-cost companies charge less, but they may use older cars and/or restrict the areas of travel. Local company Bayswater Car Rental, which has depots in Sydney and Perth, is popular for its low rates and affordable insurance.

All rental car drivers will incur a charge, called an excess, if they damage the vehicle. This excess can range from hundreds to thousands of dollars, and insurance can be purchased to bring down this cost.

Australians drive on the left side of the road and should only use the right-hand lanes on freeways when overtaking. Speed limits vary from 70 to 110 kilometers per hour (between 43 and 68 mph) on freeways and from 40 to 60 kilometers per hour (25 to 37 mph) on city and suburban streets. School zone speed limits (usually 40 kph) are rigorously enforced. Police regularly carry out random breath testing (RBT) for drivers to detect alcohol levels. If you’re caught with more than a 0.05 alcohol reading, you’re under arrest.

Most metropolitan motorways in Sydney, Brisbane, and Melbourne charge a toll, paid electronically via an e-tag device attached to a car’s windscreen. Overseas travelers must pay toll costs or be fined. Visitors can pay online or purchase a 30-day toll pass through a service called Linkt. To get a pass, drivers go online, pay a small set-up fee, and register their credit card and the license plate of their rental vehicle. The freeway toll machines detect the vehicle, then charge the toll back to the associated credit card.

Prepare for long distances if you’re driving in Australia. From Sydney it’s a 10- to 12-hour drive to Brisbane and slightly less to Melbourne, although no one should attempt to drive such long distances on unfamiliar roads all in one trip. (We recommend making at least one overnight stop along the way.)

Take particular care when driving in the Outback or other remote regions. A four-wheel-drive vehicle is highly recommended (and some rental car companies won’t let you take other types of vehicles into the region). Bring plenty of water, especially if you’re traveling during the hot summer months. Keep in mind that gas stations are few and far between, so you’ll want to fill up when you can.

Australia Campervans, Motorhomes, and Caravans

Campervans, motorhomes, and caravans can be rented from a variety of outlets (note that it may prove costly to choose a caravan, as you’ll also need to rent a four-wheel-drive vehicle to tow it). Campervans are perfect for a couple without much luggage who don’t mind roughing it. The cheapest versions will simply turn the back area into a sleeping area; other vans have a pop-up enclosed roof where the double bed is fitted.

Motorhomes are more luxurious and usually have a bed above the driver’s cabin, another bed that assembles on the kitchen table, and often a small bathroom with toilet. There are many camping and caravan sites (called caravan or holiday parks) dotted along the coast of Australia and in regional towns, providing bathroom facilities, power, barbecue areas, a convenience store, and often Wi-Fi.

Jucy and Britz are two of the most popular local operators.

Australia by Train

Two of Australia’s most iconic train journeys are the Indian-Pacific (IP) and the Ghan, privately run tourist rail services operated by Journey Beyond Rail Expeditions. They are far from cheap but well worth taking for the sheer experience of traveling the length and breadth of the country in comfort with fascinating stops along the way.

The aptly named Indian Pacific links the two oceans from Perth to Sydney over four days and three nights. The Ghan links Adelaide in the south with Darwin in the north in a journey spanning three days and two nights. You can opt for a longer journey with the Ghan Expedition, which runs over four days and three nights.

Journey Beyond also recently introduced its Great Southern service, which runs between Adelaide and Brisbane over up to four days.

Queensland Rail offers great scenic train journeys on coastal and Outback routes at affordable rates. One of our favorites is the Spirit of Queensland, a 25-hour, 1,044-mile route between Brisbane and Cairns. There are traditional tourist trains as well, providing jaunts on barely used railway lines in remote areas that include tours and stays in country hotels.

In NSW it’s possible to take trains in four directions from Sydney—north, northwest, west, and south—to cities including Brisbane, Melbourne, Canberra, the Blue Mountains, and the Outback towns of Moree and Broken Hill. Economy and first-class cabins with sleepers are available on long journeys such as the 11-hour and 14-hour trips to Melbourne and Brisbane, respectively.

In Victoria trains travel from Melbourne to the gold fields towns of Bendigo and Ballarat, the Murray River town of Swan Hill, and the Great Ocean Road town of Warrnambool, with buses feeding off the main rail arteries.

In Western Australia, Transwa links destinations such as Perth, Kalgoorlie Boulder, and Kalbarri.

Australia by Bus

Traveling long distances is also possible by coach (bus), with some trips cheaper than train travel. Greyhound Australia has the country covered, while smaller companies such as Premier and Murrays operate in certain regions. Greyhound has travel passes for hop-on/hop-off options. Vehicles usually have restrooms, USB charger points, and Wi-Fi. The only way to get around Tasmania without a car is by coach. Tassielink connects most of the state, with services supplemented by regional operators.

More from SmarterTravel:

• 25 Ways to Save on Australia Travel
• 10 Ways to Survive a Long-Haul Flight
• The Best Places to Stay in Australia, from Wilderness Lodges to Beach Resorts

Original reporting by Caroline Gladstone. Sarah Schlichter contributed to this story.

Editor’s note: This story was originally published in 2017. It has been updated to reflect the most current information.

The post Everything You Need to Know About Getting Around Australia appeared first on SmarterTravel.

Not sure if that crazy deal you found is on a reliable booking site? We’ve rounded up the top options for every travel type and weighed their best (and worst) features. From getting a steal on a cruise to securing a vacation rental, here are the best travel booking sites.

The Best Booking Sites by Travel Type

• The 11 Best Flight Search Sites for Booking Cheap Airfare
• The 11 Best Hotel Booking Sites
• The 10 Best Sites for Booking a Cruise
• The 8 Best Travel Package Sites for Booking a Cheap Vacation
• The 17 Best Sites and Apps for Last-Minute Travel Deals
• The 9 Best Vacation Rental Sites for Travelers
• The 16 Best Car Rental Booking Sites
• The 5 Best Ticket Websites for Booking Day Tours and Travel Activities

Check out SmarterTravel’s roundup of the best in booking sites for 2020. Want more expert tips and vacation inspiration? Subscribe to SmarterTravel on YouTube.

Editor’s note: You can find more information here on how the COVID-19 pandemic has affected cancellation policies for booking sites like the ones included in the above stories.

More from SmarterTravel:

• The Ultimate Guide to Travel Insurance
• Everything Travelers Need to Know About REAL ID
• The Ultimate Packing List

The post The Best in Travel Booking Sites appeared first on SmarterTravel.