Port Canaveral - New Car Rental Option

[Johncn]

Hello,

 

Some relatives were visiting us to do a cruise, and needed a car. While looking for options for them, I discovered that a new Payless office opened a little over a week ago on Port Canaveral property....the only car rental agency located directly at the port, I believe.

 

The new Payless office is located immediately next to the Port Galley restaurant (great little dinner) near the South Intermodal Gate, the Victory Casino and Jetty Park. This is also immediately adjacent to the dock where ships on a "port-of-call" visit to Port Canaveral frequently berth.

 

This Payless office seemed very customer-oriented for my relatives, and provided a pickup and drop off service. Although they are new to the area, I liked their attitude and customer service approach...seems like they are shooting for a personal connection with the customers. They're are also set up for "less than full day" rentals for those who just need an hourly rate. One-way rates to or from MCO are in process, but I couldn't find those yet.

 

Anyway, I talked to Jeff Edgar (the Payless general manager for this area who was at the new location yesterday) and he said that he would offer CruiseCritic Forum members an additional 10% discount (or free upgrade) if they requested it at pick up. :D Request promo code "CCForum".

 

Here is the basic info on the new Payless at Port Canaveral:

 

Payless Car Rental - Port Canaveral Location

99 George King Blvd.

Cape Canaveral, FL 32920

321-613-5639 / 321-613-5640

http://www.paylesscar.com/

 

Wheelchair / Hand Control Rentals - Available with 48 hours notice

 

 

 

 

Hope this helps,

 

Johncn

[Dcellbattery]

Thank you for the info. Cruising on the 3rd out of Baltimore and stopping at port canaveral. Rent a car perfect.

[hp_slash]

Thank you so much for the info! My cruise isn't for 7 months but I booked a car rental through Payless to drive around on my port day. It's good to know that they are doing a great job over there already. I've heard mixed reviews about Payless in other locations so knowing they have good customer service here (as well as a CC discount!) is great peace of mind.

 

May I ask, when did you drop off your rental car, and was it a speedy-easy service? I picked Payless because their website says their office is open until 7PM--a full hour than their closest competitor. Which gives me more time to drive around! But I don't want to show up there in the 6:00 hour and have hassles with returning the car or getting a shuttle back to the ship. TIA!

[Johncn]

May I ask, when did you drop off your rental car, and was it a speedy-easy service? I picked Payless because their website says their office is open until 7PM--a full hour than their closest competitor. Which gives me more time to drive around! But I don't want to show up there in the 6:00 hour and have hassles with returning the car or getting a shuttle back to the ship. TIA!

 

It seemed very personalized and quick to me, but to make sure I'd contact them and explain that you will be arriving close to their closing time. I'm pretty sure they will meet your needs if they know in advance.

 

Regards,

 

Johncn

[jtheile]

Payless is $33 more than Budgets regular price for the day I am going to be in Port Canaveral. $40 more if I book through Costco.

 

That's a lot for an extra hour.

[patsfan4life]

Payless is $33 more than Budgets regular price for the day going to be in Port Canaveral. $40 more if I book through Costco.

 

That's a lot for an extra hour.

 

OK. So I have rented many times. The rates for any company will change depending on the market . Payless is open from 7-7 seven days a week. On afternoon port calls they stay open till last guest arrives, so you really should not have hourly charges. Call the office directly , they will work with you . GREAT CUSTOMER SERVICE...

[patsfan4life]

What month are you sailing?

[jtheile]

What month are you sailing?

 

 

April

 

I did not mean that they are charging per hour, I meant that is quite a bit more to gain an extra hour because they stay open longer than Budget.

 

Somebody from Payless reading this, patsfan4life?

 

Earlier today a standard car from Payless was $84, it now is $51, which is $25 cheaper than their compact.

[patsfan4life]

April

 

I did not mean that they are charging per hour, I meant that is quite a bit more to gain an extra hour because they stay open longer than Budget.

 

Somebody from Payless reading this, patsfan4life?

 

Earlier today a standard car from Payless was $84, it now is $51, which is $25 cheaper than their compact.

 

I looked up rates after this post. Actually a few other companies have a higher rate that day. You were right their rates did change.

[hp_slash]

Payless is $33 more than Budgets regular price for the day I am going to be in Port Canaveral. $40 more if I book through Costco.

 

That's a lot for an extra hour.

 

On the day I'll be in port, Payless was $10 less than its competitors (Budget, Avis, etc.) It all depends on what date you're renting.

[Beachgirl 2]

Do you mean $10.00 less per hour or per day ?

[hp_slash]

$10 less for the day. I only used daily quotes from the company's websites. Someone said upthread that Payless will accommodate hourly rates for cruisers in on a port day, but the corporate website doesn't reflect that and you probably have to call directly to the Port Canaveral office for that.

[mailgirl1978]

The rate showed $25...ive never rented a car but this sounds extremely cheap!

Are they inside the airport?

 

Sent from my SCH-I535 using Tapatalk 2

[hp_slash]

The rate showed $25...ive never rented a car but this sounds extremely cheap!

Are they inside the airport?

 

All the Port Canaveral car rental offices serve the port primarily, and most are situated about 4 miles away on Astronaut Boulevard. Payless is on George King Boulevard, about the same distance away. The closest airport to Port Canaveral is Melbourne Int'l Airport, which also has car rentals, but not Payless. (Most people departing from PC seem to be flying into Orlando, anyway!)

 

I've rented a few cars before and that is a really good price. Of course this is just the base price: extra insurance, GPS, car seats, etc. are all extra. And like I said upthread, it all depends on what day and how long you are renting the car, just like fares for hotels, flights, and even cruises :)

[jbn12]

Dont even bother. If you want good quality service you should go with budget. The customer service sucks at the port canaveral location... I mean they get the job done... but expect to wait around on the slow, rude, shuttle driver and get thrown around on prices.. First trip there I used them and they were excellent. They HAD a good driver, good person behind the counter (im not sure if the driver was the normal one though he said he worked at the "other location" back in central florida) . But recently when I used them just about a month ago. Garbage.

 

And BTW i think patsfan4life is actually the employee there... Im pretty sure I caught him when i spoke with him...

Edited August 29, 2013 by jbn12

[softball29]

I actually had a great experience with them in early August. I got off the boat with a plan to take a taxi somewhere, but the taxi drivers didn't seem to have a clue where I wanted to go. I stood around as the people helping you find taxis continually loaded other people and ignored me.

 

So I went over to the rental area and the driver told me it would be $35 for the day for a mid-size car. I needed a GPS, though. They worked with me to make sure I got a GPS. All told, with taxes, I paid less than $40 for the car for the day.

 

The service was excellent. The car was clean. The people were nice and helpful and I enjoyed my experience with them. There's no doubt I'd use them again if I was in the area.

 

When I got back and turned in my car, the shuttle driver was there and got me back to the port without issues.

 

All in all, an A+ effort.

[EmJakeBubbie]

very helpful phone service to make our reservations - reason to use this company: they are the only company who stay open till 7PM and they are only 1/4 mi from where the GRANDEUR will dock.

used CC discount. reasonable cost for an economy day rental.

looking forward to posting a good review, upon our return.

[ARI421]

I just boked through payless.. seemed very cheap, did you call them frm the ship to make sure they were there with the shuttle? I was confused about this!

[EmJakeBubbie]

we made sure to be in the first off of the ship group and walked out/looked right and the big gray van was waiting for us. used our cell phone, from the ship, to call them to let them know we were walking off the ship. they know when and where the ship arrives. imho, this is a very efficient company. would definitely use their service again.

[corinnv]

we made sure to be in the first off of the ship group and walked out/looked right and the big gray van was waiting for us. used our cell phone' date=' from the ship, to call them to let them know we were walking off the ship. they know when and where the ship arrives. imho, this is a very efficient company. would definitely use their service again.[/quote']

 

Thank you for this information! We will be on the Pride next month with our 2 daughters. We are looking to go to the space center independent of the cruise line. We like to tour at our own pace.

 

Did you find the car to be in good condition? :)

[EmJakeBubbie]

we had a little red car which was more than acceptable - didn't expect show room new and didn't get it.

Don't forget to bring your personal GPS (you can program it before you leave home). a printed out map, might also come in handy, since you know where you want to go.

 

It's not a very interesting port, but all the things you might want are there - the beach/the museums-attractions with emphasis on the SpaceProgram. You can stop at any market and put together a picnic to enjoy at any beach overlook. or McD's, etc.

 

You can see alot during your port-time with a rental car.

 

imho, even with the rental car, it's an affordably Fun Day with lots of options, once you off the ship. (Walmart isn't far, if you need anything)

 

(we no longer disembark in Nassau - crime has been on the rise, and honestly, there isn't anything that interests us - we like having the ship and pools to ourselves :rolleyes:)

 

Bon Voyage

[jacksmycat]

Anyone ever rented a car with Dollar and used their shuttle to the port? How was your experience?

[canadiangal40]

Anyone ever rented a car with Dollar and used their shuttle to the port? How was your experience?

 

We have rented with dollar before, never any problems. We are renting again from dollar, this time with port Canaveral, we are cruising on the 20th, I can let you know how it works out. We were given very specific instructions to call when we were in port and they will send the shuttle to get us. Dollar had the cheapest rates for minivans 44.95 for the day.

[sammerz]

Thanks for bumping this thread! This is awesome they are opened till 7 on a Sunday!

 

So maybe I will rent a car now bc we dock on a Sunday in May and most of the rental places are only open till 4 which isn't even worth it. So yeahhhh happy dance!

[AandBmom]

Do they not do one way rentals from airport to port? I couldn't find a way to do it on their rate search.