car rental in Atlanta?

[Morris&Essex]

I'm heading to ATL next month, and I noticed there's a Hertz car rental agency listed in the station. I remember that place being quite small, or is there some kind of shuttle to a real Hertz rental location? Anyone use this? And if there is a shuttle to another Hertz location, is it open on weekends as I plan to arrive in Atlanta on a Saturday?

 

[amtrakmichigan]

I am almost certain that all stations that show Hertz rental service isn't equipped with anything more then a bright yellow direct phone to the local Hertz office. However I beleave if you do make a reservation with Hertz making the Amtrak station your "reservation office", Hertz will pick you up at the station, or pay for your taxi fare to there office with a taxi cab receipt. The best thing to do is to call hertz and explain your concerns, like the time and day your traveling in your case to see what the options are. I do know for a fact in Orlando if you use this service on the eastbound Sunset Limited that arrives at 8:45pm they pay for your taxi fare to the Orlando airport office which is open 24/7. If you do call Hertz make sure you mention that you are traveling on Amtrak. Hertz and Amtrak have a partnership together for rental service, so obviously Hertz wants Amtrak customers.

 

[PRR 60]

The Hertz location at the Atlanta Amtrak station is serviced through the JW Marriott Hotel. There is a Hertz phone at the station. You take a cab from the station to the hotel and Hertz will reimburse your cab fare.

 

[battalion51]

In some cases like Orlando you drop your rental car off at the Orlando Station and Hertz picks the cars up for servicing from there.

 

[Morris&Essex]

Thanks for the advice, everyone. I'm still undecided, but if the Hertz operation is as Battalion describes it, that would be fine.

 

[battalion51]

That's just what I noticed in Orlando. When I rented from Hertz in Charleston I had to take my car back to the Airport, not the station.

 

[Ryan]

Just wanted to bump this thread with some more current information, since this is the first result of googleing "Atlanta Amtrak Hertz" (and thus how I found these wonderful forums).

It is basically as PRR 60 stated above, with the exception that the Hertz telephone seems to have been removed - also, when reserving at Hertz, the Hertz website lists the address as 1688 Peachtree, which is the address of the station, NOT the address of the JW Marriott, where the rental office and cars are located. Upon my arrival at the station this morning, none of the cab drivers waiting there knew which Hertz in the area was considered the "Atlanta Amtrak" office (and the only address I had was the wrong one) - a quick call to Hertz's 800 number confirmed that the JW Marriott location (also known as the "Buckhead" Hertz, or the Hertz at the Lenox Square Mall) was the right location to go to.

The cab ride was quick (10 minutes) but a bit costly - $16.25 base fare, plus $2.00 per extra passenger (more than one). Since Hertz will knock off up to 20 bucks in cab fare, I'm going to end up having to eat the cab ride from the Hertz to the Train station on the return. Cars must be returned to the Hertz location and not at the station, which is a little bit of a disappointment. But, armed with the right info, this can be a pretty painless evolution.

Also of note, the Hertz doesn't open until 9:00 on Saturday - 19 actually arrived in ATL about 15 minutes early, so even with the confusion at the station, I was at the rental counter at 8:50, and had to wait until about 9:05 for them to get opened up and ready to go.

Finally, the pre-pay gas rate listed on the sign was $3.69, but the clerk said that the "Atlanta Amtrak" location rate was still listed in the computer at $3.05/gallon - needless to say, I prepaid the fuel and will return as near empty as possible, as I thought that fueling at $3 a gallon was going to be a distant memory.

Anyhow, sorry to drag up such an old thread, but hopefully this will help some other traveler as it did me.

 

[the_traveler]

When I went to ATL a few years ago, yes the Hertz rental location was at the JW Marriott (in Buckhead, I think), and yes, you had to take a cab there. At that time (IIRC), they reimbursed cab fare "up to $20 or $25". When I got the rental, they did deduct from the contract the cab fare - which just happened to be the $20 or $25! But when I questioned about the return cab fare to the station, the reply was "We only reimburse FROM the station to here!" (How come that was never mentioned before? :huh: )

What we did was, we were staying at an airport hotel and spent the day with friends and took a shuttle (like SuperShuttle or some such) to the station after returning the car at the airport! The shuttle from the airport was actually cheaper than the taxi from the JW!

I had the same excuse when I rented inn RNO. ("We only reimburse one way.") However, the agent in RNO (after my complaint) deducted BOTH ways from the price of my car!

 

[VT Hokie]

The Hertz location at the Atlanta Amtrak station is serviced through the JW Marriott Hotel. There is a Hertz phone at the station. You take a cab from the station to the hotel and Hertz will reimburse your cab fare.

Indeed, I did exactly that when I took the Crescent to a wedding in Atlanta back in 2002. It's probably a bit too far to walk.

 

[jamesontheroad]

My only advice is don't bother with Hertz. I've almost always rented from Enterprise, including further down the line at Tuscaloosa, AL. They offer a free pick-up and drop-off with all rentals, meaning they're almost always the most convenient for Amtrak travelers. They have also been able to monitor train running online to meet me if the train is late.

 

[Walt]

In some cases like Orlando you drop your rental car off at the Orlando Station and Hertz picks the cars up for servicing from there.

I have rented from Hertz in Orlando many times.

They have a counter right in the station (similar to what you find in airports), and it is open when the Silver Trains arrive. They even keep track (pun?) of the Silver's actual times, and adjust their counter times accordantly. If the Silvers are running really late, the counter attendants might lag by a few minutes, but I have found they get there (though I always have a reservation so they know I am coming).

Hertz has "reserved" spaces in the station's parking lot where incoming and outgoing cars are kept.

Also, if you reserve using Hertz's website, in the pull down for airline names, is "Amtrak" too. I also type in my train number in the box for flight number.

 

[Guest]

To save on cab fare take the Marta bus going north to Lenox Square (to your left as you face Peachtree from inside the train station). It's a busy street so it will be slower than a cab ride.

 

[D.P. Roberts]

Since Hertz is somewhat convenient for many Amtrak travelers, anyone looking to rent a car in June may want to look at their current gas special for June- a free tank of gas with a 3-day rental. It was originally for AAA members only, but I believe they have expanded it to all customers. I was considering Enterprise as well, but with gas at $4.00 per gallon now, the free tank was too good to pass up.

 

[jackal]

Just be careful, because at least in the markets I look at, Hertz's prices are often four to six times Enterprise's (and the others). One day at Hertz's price may cost you more than you'll save with the free gas...

 

[the_traveler]

Just be careful, because at least in the markets I look at, Hertz's prices are often four to six times Enterprise's (and the others). One day at Hertz's price may cost you more than you'll save with the free gas...

I agree. Once I was in SLC and took a cab to the airport to get my rental (from Thrifty, I think - but it doesn't matter). Because the CZ came in ~3:30 AM, the counter was not open yet, so I had to wait. While I was waiting, the Hertz agent asked me if I was waiting for a car. I said yes, and he told me his price. He even offered to reimburse my cab fare. The price was good, so I said yes.

Only once I read the contract did I see it was for 1 day! My other res was for 2 days! I quickly declined, and waited a 1/2 hour.

 

[D.P. Roberts]

Just be careful, because at least in the markets I look at, Hertz's prices are often four to six times Enterprise's (and the others). One day at Hertz's price may cost you more than you'll save with the free gas...

I agree. Once I was in SLC and took a cab to the airport to get my rental (from Thrifty, I think - but it doesn't matter). Because the CZ came in ~3:30 AM, the counter was not open yet, so I had to wait. While I was waiting, the Hertz agent asked me if I was waiting for a car. I said yes, and he told me his price. He even offered to reimburse my cab fare. The price was good, so I said yes.

Only once I read the contract did I see it was for 1 day! My other res was for 2 days! I quickly declined, and waited a 1/2 hour.

Thanks for the warning - I have been looking at prices carefully. Enterprise is about $30 cheaper right now ($76 vs $106 for a 3-day reservation in Portland, OR). However, a typical midsize car in the Hertz fleet has a gas tank of about 18 gallons - at $4 per gallon, that's $72 worth of gas! In other words, when you factor out the price of gas, I'm paying only $10 per day for the rental, tax included. I know Hertz must buy gas wholesale, but I'm beginning to wonder whether Hertz knew gas prices were going to go as high as they are before they made this special.

 

[Walt]

Just be careful, because at least in the markets I look at, Hertz's prices are often four to six times Enterprise's (and the others). One day at Hertz's price may cost you more than you'll save with the free gas...

Don't forget about the Amtrak discount that is available from Hertz. Depending on destination, from my experience, it varies between 6 and 10%.

BTW, are Hertz's rates really four to six times Enterprise's (and the others) rates? I pay about $172.00 for a weekly rental from Hertz. Can I really get a rate as low at $28 a week from Enterprise?

 

[the_traveler]

BTW, are Hertz's rates really four to six times Enterprise's (and the others) rates? I pay about $172.00 for a weekly rental from Hertz. Can I really get a rate as low at $28 a week from Enterprise?

Probably not. In my example, (I forget the exact prices) it was like $70 from Hertz and something like $85 from Thrifty. Only difference was Hertz was for 1 day and Thrifty was for 2 days.

 

[jackal]

Well, every time I look at my local market in the off-season, Enterprise/Dollar/Thrifty/Budget/Alamo are around $20-$25 per day for a small-to-midsize car; Avis and National are around $40, and Hertz is around $60. OK, so it's only a factor of three--I may have exaggerated a bit the first time around...