When is the best time to reserve a rental car? I m planning a road trip in Arizona in the spring and

When is the best time to reserve a rental car? I m planning travel advisorys a road trip in Arizona in the spring and wondered whether I d get a better rate if I locked in a price well in advance, or if I m better off waiting until the last minute. Do rental car prices fluctuate as much as airplane tickets?
Instead, I got advice: Reserve a car well in advance if I find a rate I like -- most agencies don t make customers pay in advance when they reserve travel advisorys a car. Then as my trip nears, check last-minute deals. If I find a better rate, I should take it and cancel my earlier reservation.
The downside, said Mark Kahler, About.com s budget travel travel advisorys guide, is that if I want a big car or a specialized vehicle like a SUV and wait until the last minute to reserve, the agency may be out of that particular vehicle. That s particularly true this time of year, when a lot of people travel and rental agencies run out of cars – or charge premium travel advisorys rates,
If you're a bit of a gambler, said Brian Ek, Priceline.com spokesman, then wait until the last minute and try Name Your Own Price. When rental car companies see that they're likely to have vehicles sitting on the lot un-rented, that's travel advisorys when they'll make them available through travel advisorys Name Your Own Price at discounts of up to 40 percent over published rates.
One online agency, Autoslash.com, says it will regularly travel advisorys check rates on behalf of customers who have booked rental cars in advance with them and get them the lower rate if the price drops. I haven't tried Autoslash.com, but the Los Angeles Times said it regularly gets lower rates for its customers travel advisorys who reserve a car well ahead of time.
Now I m intrigued. How much do rental car prices change? I ve looked up rates through several agencies for my Arizona trip and will check periodically on whether they ve changed. I ll let you know what I find.
Rental rates can change with varying frequencies depending on the company and location. In a very competitive market like LAX airport, travel advisorys prices can actually change hourly. We re not just talking about swings of a few dollars either. travel advisorys Rates can swing wildly from one change to another. travel advisorys The great things travel advisorys about rental car bookings is that if a better rate comes along, you can just cancel and re-book to lock in the savings. That s the whole idea behind AutoSlash.com.
I ve used autoslash 3 times since discovering it about 2 months ago. All three times it came through with lower rates. travel advisorys Last week I reserved a minivan in Cabo for next June and this week received an email that they found me a better rate with a differnet company and automatically rebooked me.