Ever since I met my husband, he loves to be behind the wheel and in charge of our next destination. I knew that when we were headed to Maui that a car rental was important to him to be able to navigate the island on his own accord.
We had pre-arranged reservations for a car, so we simply took the shuttle from Kahului airport the Budget-Rent-a-Car (BRAC) location a minute or two away to choose our vehicle. Lory in the office was wonderful to work with, she and I chatted about California as she formally lived near us and discussed how she got to the island. Everyone in Hawaii is happy, and I don’t blame them considering their daily surroundings.
We were informed of all the options we had from extra insurance, pre-paid gas fill up, and car upgrades. On the island you’ll see many people driving convertibles, though being on the conservative side and happy with rolled-down windows, we opted for a standard compact car. We were assigned a Nissan Versa in red and were pleased, as it was plenty of room for the two of us. Had we had the family with us, we’d may have splurged for a Jeep with more room.
Pre-paying for gas is cheaper and you can bring it back in any condition, half-full, near-empty, whatever, this is what we chose. Gas ran us about $60 to fill the tank which is approximately what we pay here in CA anyway. The other option is to bring it back with a full tank, chancing that you’ll pay up to $4.75/gallon anywhere on the island. We did buy a full tank and added about $10 worth of extra gas over the course of our 8 day stay.
The car ran smoothly, never had a problem, and was a champ over some of the dirt roads of the hidden beach areas and rocky paths of the south end of the island’s old volcano fields. We both felt comfortable behind the wheel and that our belongings would be safe when left in the car, the car had a locking alarm that added bonus security.
Returning the car at the end of our trip was convenient as they accept it at a time that coordinates with most flights. We reviewed our bill, turned over the keys (and perhaps some sand on the floor of the car) and we were good to go back on the quick shuttle ride to the airport. If you are traveling with a family and kids for a week or more, I think choosing to rent a car is the most economical and reliable choice. Timing of shuttles and buses can often leave you feeling pressed for time, renting a car through Budget will give you the flexibility you want on vacation and at a competitive price!
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