Car rental TIPS for Portland, Halifax, Charlottetown, Gaspe, La Baie

Hi everyone.

I just returned from a cruise on the NCL Dawn, sailing from Boston to Quebec City. I rented FIVE cars during this cruise. It took me a lot of time to research the various rental options, so I figured I would pass this information along to you guys.

I see so many car rental threads here, and I also ran into so many people onboard who wanted to rent cars but felt confused by the process, especially in tiny towns like Gaspe.

These are based upon my own experiences renting these cars in September, 2015. I do not work for any rental car company. I am a regular traveler just like you.

MODS: I hope I am not breaking any rules by posting this stuff. PLEASE DO NOT DELETE THIS POST. If necessary, just edit out the info that can't be posted here. Thanks.

The following were what I found to be the best options in these ports. Note that I rented all full size cars, but even the economy ones are only slightly cheaper.

Portland, Maine

Rental Company: Enterprise

Address: 1 Marginal Way

Phone: (207) 772-0030

Hours: 8-6 Tue-Fri, 9-3 Sat-Sun, CLOSED MONDAY

Approximate cost after tax for full size vehicle: $US 62

Drop off after closing: Not sure

How to get there: They pick you up. Call them when you are ready to get off the ship.

Warnings: Call the day before or day-of at 8am to ensure they hold your reserved car, or you might get "force upgraded" to an SUV or some other car you don't want. Some employees at this location have a bit of an attitude, so beware of that, as well.

Halifax, Nova Scotia

Rental Company: Hertz

Address: 1099 Marginal Road

Hours: 8am-6pm, 7 days a week

Phone #: (902) 422-8775

Approximate cost after tax for vehicle: $CAD 55, if you use LEGAL CDP code (open to public) 1757580 when booking. This is publicized to anyone who reads Car and Driver magazine. Also, if you have an Amex Platimum card, you can use CDP 633306 to get the rental for under $CAD 40. You don't need to use the Amex Platinum on the rental to get that discount.

Drop off after closing: Yes

How to get there: Very short/easy walk. Ask when you get off the ship (anyone that works at the port) and you will be directed where to go.

Notes: On Sundays, glass door to the building is locked, and you have to knock loudly for the girl working there to hear you. Employees seem nice/helpful.

Warning: Call the day before or day-of at 8am to ensure they hold your reserved car, or you might get "force upgraded" to an SUV or some other car you don't want.

Charlottetown, PEI

Rental Company: Enterprise

Address: 384 UNIVERSITY AVE

Phone: (902) 894-5004

Hours: M-F 8a-6p, Sat 9a-12p, Sun CLOSED

Approximate cost after tax for vehicle: Around $CAD 58

Drop off after closing: Not sure

How to get there: They pick you up at "Founders Hall", which is about a 5 minute walk after you get off the ship. Their car is not marked, so make sure to call them when you arrive and ask for a description of the car coming to get you! They do drop you back off right at the port.

Warnings: A bit disorganized at this location. Allow extra time on both pickup and return for this reason. Staff is generally nice.

Gaspe, Quebec

Rental Company: National

Address: Airport location, but they have a satellite operation at port (will explain below)

Phone: (418) 368-1541 -- woman who answers speaks French, broken English

Hours: Present at port only when ships are docked

Approximate cost after tax for vehicle: $CAD 80

Drop off after closing: Yes, but ask procedure when picking up car

How to get there: Call up at least one day before rental and tell them that you will be at the port. They will have the car there for you, with no shuttles or taxis required! This is techinically airport branch, which is far away, so they need to know in advance to bring the car to port. There will be a National desk right at the port, which you will see pretty easily. If you can't find it, ask someone.

Note: This is "the only game in town" for renting a car in Gaspe.

Warning: They will attempt to upcharge you to $CAD 100 when you pick up the car, telling you that the CDW insurance is "included" for that price. Bring a copy of your booking and insist on the rate you booked, and they will back down. The contract they will give you will be confusing and lack a total price. Write the price somewhere on the page before signing! Check for damage to vehicle before leaving, because they incorrectly have them all listed as "no damage".

La Baie, Quebec

Rental Company: Enterprise

Address: 3380 AV DU PORT

Phone: (418) 697-0404

Approximate cost after tax for vehicle: $CAD 48

Hours: 8am-5pm, M-F, CLOSED WEEKENDS

Drop off after closing: Yes, but must state intention to do so at time of pickup

How to get there: They pick you up. Call when you are ready to get off the ship.

Warnings: Very "backward" location. Nothing is computerized, they write up your contracts by hand. This location is an extension of an auto repair shop. Make sure to get the employee who speaks English, as the main woman working there does not at all. Call the day before or 8am the day of the rental to guarantee that your car type is held. They cannot drive you back to the port after 4pm, but you can drop off the keys and take a taxi back for about $12 CAD.

General suggestions

When you call ahead to make sure your desired car type is held for you, make sure to specify that you DO NOT WANT AN UPGRADE, or they will stick you with a clunky SUV that you probably don't want. I would suggest doing this for every location listed above, but especially the ones I noted.

Avoid taking the CDW insurance for over $20 per day. Most credit cards cover this, and won't cost you anything extra. Check with your credit card to make sure.

Make sure the credit card you're using (in Canadian ports) has no foreign transaction fees, unless of course you're a Canadian resident yourself!

Never trust their claim of "the car has no damage" or "that's too small to write up". Have them write up ALL damage you find when inspecting the car, unless it's a tiny scratch that they say is okay. Any dent, nick, scrape, or long scratch should be written up, regardless of what they try to tell you.

Book in advance! These will all fill up on port days!

Thank you so much for this current report. I will keep it in my notes so I can help future visitors.

Thanks so much. Very helpful.

Here is our car rental info from Sydney, Nova Scotia

Sydney, Nova Scotia

Rental Company: Avis

Address: 224 Welton Street

Phone: 902-564-2611

Hours: Mon - Fri 8:00 AM - 5:00 PM

Sat 8:00 AM - 3:00 PM

Sun 8:00 AM - 12:00 PM

How to get there: You tell them what time you plan to disembark and there will be a car waiting for you at "The Big Fiddle" to take you to their office, which is about a 10-minute drive from the port. The staff was quite organized and got us in-and-out quickly.

Hint: Arrange to have them pick you up soon after the ship docks. You will want to be in the first group that gets to their office so you don't have to wait.

Thank you so much pokerpro and GradUT - this is exactly the information I needed!

BUMP.

These cruises are coming up again.