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Comments (4)
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Save/ShareTravel sites are battling with a few major car rental brands. So where does that leave travelers shopping online? The quick answer is that you may have to do more comparison shopping before you book a car.
On April 1, Alamo and National will remove their rental car listings from Orbitz and CheapTickets.
This is no April Fools' Joke. The companies behind the brands could not agree on a new contract, says Reuters. The move represents a deadlock over the fees that rental car companies must pay to list their bookings with online travel agencies.
For years, National and Alamo have been offered on Orbitz and CheapTickets, but sister company Enterprise has been absent.
Orbitz and CheapTickets will add Dollar and Thrifty as replacements, reports Christopher Elliott.
If you want to book tickets on Alamo, National, or Enterprise, you have to go directly to each brand's site, or shop at other major online travel agencies and search engines.
All of which goes to show that there's no one-stop shopping for rental cars. You need to check multiple sites before you book.
Or you could try one of four alternatives—off-airport rental, Zipcar, Rent-A-Wreck, or a major car dealership—by following Budget Travel's advice in "Wheel Deals."
This car rental spat isn't the only one that Orbitz is dealing with. As Budget Travel has reported, American Airlines flights are not displayed on Orbitz as part of a similar contract dispute. In that case, Expedia has taken sides with Orbitz and has also dropped most American fares from its site.
MORE FROM BUDGET TRAVEL
Why you won't find American's fares on Expedia or Orbitz
Rental cars: Which ones are the safest
Car rental: How forwarding your confirmation email can lower your rate
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I never liked Orbitz because it did not list all the major car rental agencies. Now it seems it will be almost useless. Recently, I've been using rentalcarmagic.com with some success. They do a search for me and then send me an email with the best price they can find. Last week they found me a midsize at Dollar for over $275 less than I could find. Other times they can't find me a deal.
Posted By CoreyF on April 2, 2011, 6:37 PM
MTV is getting busy with the True Life's!!! LOVE IT!
Posted By Mrs Kelly Kinsella on April 28, 2012, 1:15 AM
Eat well. Stay fit. Die anyway.
Posted By Melinda C. Bradley on May 14, 2012, 11:00 AM
IHATETHISDAMNSITUATION! >:O
Posted By brigitte walters on May 15, 2012, 12:15 PM