Cozumel: Car Rental at Pier???

[TBRay]

Does anyone have first-hand knowledge of renting a car at the main Pier? Any information would be greatly appreciated (prices, companies, etc.). our ship (Mariner) is scheduled to be there from 10 AM until 7 PM.

 

Do you consider it mandatory to get the optional insurance?

 

Thanks in advance.

[cali-croozer]

My friends rented at the pier for about $30. The car was an old VW Bug but it did get them around the island. Ask your insurance agent if you need the optional insurance or if you are covered under your policy. Being out of the country, I would say the extra cost, if any, is worth the peace of mind.

[Crystynatheone]

We reserved a car through Hertz before we traveled. Got to the booth, the man was surprised to see a reservation. I had a small economy car reserved, for $41. They offered to let me take a Jeep for the same price. I declined the insurance. We did walk around the vehicle first to note any dings or scratches, to make sure they didn't try to blame us for anything we didn't do when we brought it back. We used a quarter tank of gas, didn't fill up before we turned it back in. Cost $18 when we turned it back in. Was an easy experience.

[TBRay]

We reserved a car through Hertz before we traveled. Got to the booth, the man was surprised to see a reservation. I had a small economy car reserved, for $41. They offered to let me take a Jeep for the same price. I declined the insurance. We did walk around the vehicle first to note any dings or scratches, to make sure they didn't try to blame us for anything we didn't do when we brought it back. We used a quarter tank of gas, didn't fill up before we turned it back in. Cost $18 when we turned it back in. Was an easy experience.

Very good information. I have one additional question though. How did you reserve your car? All the websites I've looked at list 'Cozumel Airport' as the pickup/dropoff point. Are the booth's and cars right at the pier?

 

I like the prices you mentioned. We could travel the whole day for less than one shore excursion.

[cindygad]

We rented from Budget at pier. $40 for new compact car with air. We did take out insurance for $10 also. The car was right outside pier. The island is very easy to get around and marked well. We filled up at gas station one block from pier for $6 dollars. Easy to rent and took only about 5 min to do. Have fun!

 

Cindy

[TBRay]

We rented from Budget at pier. $40 for new compact car with air. We did take out insurance for $10 also. The car was right outside pier. The island is very easy to get around and marked well. We filled up at gas station one block from pier for $6 dollars. Easy to rent and took only about 5 min to do. Have fun!

 

Cindy

SOLD! Sounds perfect. No advance reservations?

[Crystynatheone]

Very good information. I have one additional question though. How did you reserve your car? All the websites I've looked at list 'Cozumel Airport' as the pickup/dropoff point. Are the booth's and cars right at the pier?

 

I like the prices you mentioned. We could travel the whole day for less than one shore excursion.

Hertz sent me a confirmation that listed the pick up location as the International Pier. This is where Carnival usually docks. I didn't realize it at the time, but NCL docks at a different pier. It was about a five minute taxi ride for about $6 total each way. Yes, the booths and cars were right at the International Pier. Hope that helps!

[cindygad]

We were at international pier. Pick up and drop off was right there. Correction we paid $l5 for car insurance.

 

Cindy

[TBRay]

I also used Hertz. Got the reservation confirmed yesterday. $34 for a compact for the entire day. The optional collision insurance is $26 which still brings it lower than one 'Deluxe Beach Break' excursion ticket. I never opt for the coverage in the states but will probably get it there just for the piece of mind.

 

Just going to get a Frommer's book, a decent map at Barnes & Noble, and we're all set. Thanks everyone for the tips.

 

And a MERRY CHRISTMAS to one and all!!!

[Carey on Cozumel]

In Mexico, your foreign car insurance will not be honored. And, if you get into an accident, you will be expected to pay in cash -- no credit cards accepted. Perhaps your insurance company or credit card back home will reimburse you later. However, on the spot, you will be expected to pony up the money for any accident at the police station. So its really a good idea to take the insurance even though it's more expensive than I think it should be, frankly.

 

The most important thing to have is personal liability insurance and many but not all car rental companies automatically include that in the price. Others do not. So check that out to be sure you're comparing apples to apples on pricing. Personal liability usually runs around $6/day. Collision runs pretty standardly either $10/day for $800 deductible or $20/day for complete coverage. Kind of a rip, as you can see. But you need at LEAST the personal liability portion because if you injure a third party, you WILL be going to the police station and be expected to deliver cash to pay for medical treatments if you don't have personal liability insurance.

 

Also and while I'm on the subject of cars, you can often get a much better deal on a car if you are willing to take a cab into town. It can be half the rate. On the other hand, the taxi ride from outside town runs at least $5. And you have to find the rental car place. (Easy as they're all right downtown by the pier and downtown is extremely safe.) But many people just don't want to take the time for this in which case paying twice as much may be worth while for you.

 

If you do decide to pick up a car in town, the rental company will always drive you back to your ship free. You just have to get into town to get the car. And while you're there, do a little shopping and sightseeing. San Miguel is a very friendly, very safe town. I'm a woman living here full-time and I live right downtown. I go out by myself at night all the time and have never felt anything but very safe.

[bruce-r]

One other thing. If you are renting a jeep, thinking that it has 4 wheel drive, you will be unpleasantly surprised to find that the 4 wheel drive has been disconnected, especially if you go off-road and get stuck in the sand. If you get a jeep either stay on the paved roads or be sure that the 4 wheel drive will work.

 

We rented from Avis and other than no 4 wheel drive it was a positive experience. They do have jeeps with 4X4, but you have to ask for it specifically.

[J&B in GA]

We had just the opposite experience last week trying to rent from Avis', downtown location on Juarez. :mad:

 

Our large family group pre-reserved 5 cars on Avis' website two weeks in advance, selecting the downtown Juarez location, as we arrived at the Punta Lungosta pier. After a 20 min. walk we found the Avis "kiosk" on Juarez and presented our printed confirmation slips, with confirmation numbers, to a very surprised Avis employee who had NO CARS and was not expecting any ! :o

 

He tried to get us to rent from a "buddy" :rolleyes: down the street who had cars for the same price quoted on our reservation slips, $71usd per car, which included the optional Avis insurance. Why too high for a local rental, IMHO ! Was not even certain the local outfit would fully insure their cars for the same price ? We were disappointed as we wanted the flexibility of the 5 cars so we could explore different parts of the Island, while others stayed at the beach.

 

We declined however and negotiated a bus for 5 hours from a local taxi dispatcher a few blocks away on 2 Norte, I believe. $250usd for five hours for ALL 20 of us, so not a bad price after all. Went to Dzul Ha for snorkeling and Paradise Beach for lunch and swimming. We lost about an hour of time walking around San Miguel though which is significant as our ship was only in port until 7pm. :(

[kujobie]

that's a bummer story. We rented with Hertz also, right off the pier. We reserved online, ahead of time. About $50 total, including full insurance for the day for a VW Beetle. It's pretty cool. They continued making the "old" rear engine Beetle in Mexico until the mid-1990's, many years after they stopped making them in the States. So, if you rent one, you'll be driving a newer "old" Beetle. This was a year and a half ago, so it may be a little more $$ now.

[pjbrock]

We reserved a car with Hertz before we left. Picked it up at the pier. We took the extra insurance per advice here. Apparently in Mrxico you need it if there is a problem or you will be paying now and as the "foreigner"-it will be your fault. It was worth the extra for the piece of mind. They were very nice- even credited us back at thr end some for the extra gas we had put into the car..it had more in at return than when we picked it up. That doesn't happen in the US-just an extra charge if it's less.

[PelicanBill]

I have reserved an Avis car for $44 + $20 + 10% tax for a couple of weeks from now. They are at the international Pier, which is a short walk from the Puerta Maya Pier (where we will dock.) I had trouble finding on online booking capability with secure forms. Was pointed to http://www.cozumelinsider.com which satisfied my needs. Others wanted email, phone, or web site just did not work. Having printed confirmation I can at least show proof of my reservation and price, and avoid phone mis-communications.

 

In many places outside the US, your credit card does not provide excess insurance, and you will be expected to settle up for any damages before you leave, even if your home auto insurance will cover you. So bite the bullet and get all the extra insurance. Also, none of your own insurance will cover off-road use. So get the insurance.