Las Vegas - The Consolidated "Experiences/Questions re Consolidated Rental Car facility" thread

Oh, no . . . not another one of those giant, remote, consolidated rental car centers with no viable link to the airport.

Yes, you guessed it, as if LAS wasn't already challenge enough life is about to get another order of magnitude harder . . .

I was there for CES this week and was forced to rent from National to get a decent rate. Those in the know, know that National / Alamo are already quite literally through the tunnel and off of airport property many minutes from the terminal.

What I didn't know is that the plan is to relocate ALL rental cars to a gigantic consolidated center close to Warm Springs and the Strip.

You guessed it, there is no train or other direct link to the new 'center' instead there will be only a bus bridge to and from.

I personally HATE these gigantic, remote, zero customer service things . . . although this seems to be the wave of the future.

Not sure exactly when it's slated to open, but it looked quite complete on Monday afternoon. Estimated completion http://www.mccarran.com/04_05_CurProjects.asp is already well past so we have something to look 'forward' to.

Lihue1k

Yep, Soviet rent-a-car facillities are soon to be a reality at LAS along with their surly public-employee-union bus drivers, marathon bus rides, and probably marathon luggage haulage to look forward to. Maybe rental rates might possibly come down as people get fed up and switch to taxis.

But the biggest kick in the teeth will be when they bulldoze LAS and move the entire airport to Jean, 50 miles away.

Yep, Soviet rent-a-car facillities are soon to be a reality at LAS along with their surly public-employee-union bus drivers, marathon bus rides, and probably marathon luggage haulage to look forward to.

And we had to pay $3 PER DAY, starting about 3 years ago, until probably forever for this!!!

... along with their surly public-employee-union bus drivers...Your generalizations about public employees are unwelcome.

And we had to pay $3 PER DAY, starting about 3 years ago, until probably forever for this!!!
Probably not forever - just for the next 75 years! :rolleyes:

"Why kill a cash cow", the local Governments say! "After all, we don't have to pay it!" :mad:

Your generalizations about public employees are unwelcome.
I'm generalizing about people who drive buses that go from the airport to the Soviet centralski rent-a-car facility. Who would you rather have, an employee of the Local Airport Bureaucracy, or the friendly Hertz driver who is willing to help you with your bags?

If one could figure out how to get biz and people not to build right on top of airport property so that when expanion is needed....such as a bigger car rental facility....it wont have to be so remotely located.

Oh, and I left out...complain about the noise that the airport generates.

Boy, I just don't see the big deal ... I never pack more than I can handle by myself anyway, so I don't mind handling my bags myself, I just want quick and efficient bus service to and from the rental car facility. In Phoenix for example, it's nice that the buses now only run to and from one terminal, no multiple stops for the different terminals. In Kansas City the new consolidated facility will be closer and easier to access than any of the current facilities, plus they too will have it so the buses only serve one terminal, not multiple terminals. (I'm pretty sure you're also going to be able to board the buses, which will probably be painted green or some other color besides red and blue (which are existing bus colors for KCI), at the inside curb instead of having to go to the outer curb as you do now for rental car buses). Maybe I'm crazy, but I just don't see much benefit as I'm standing on the curb of my airport watching buses for each car rental agency go by with one or two people on each one, I know it's not necessarilly cheaper for me (though it should be), but it's certainly more efficient.

My solution....take a taxi from LAS to hotel, then have Enterprise pick me up at the hotel and take me to my car. Their people are invariably polite and professional...the manager of each branch has a financial stake in the success of the branch and its customer rating so is customer service oriented....also for multi-day rentals I save almost enough $$$ to pay for the cab fares....saves time and hassle which is worth $$$ to me.

My solution....take a taxi from LAS to hotel, then have Enterprise pick me up at the hotel and take me to my car. Their people are invariably polite and professional...the manager of each branch has a financial stake in the success of the branch and its customer rating so is customer service oriented....also for multi-day rentals I save almost enough $$$ to pay for the cab fares....saves time and hassle which is worth $$$ to me.

Many thanks for a GREAT solution to what I obviously think IS a change for the worst.

Moreover, nobody in the universe travels lighter than do I (a long running joke amongst colleagues).

Still no one who remembers the pre-Airtrain days at SFO after the new remote consolidated rental car center opened (read - Friday night lines at the UA terminal hundreds long, 40 minutes between groups of 4 buses (which by the way doesn't equal "buses run every 10 minutes")) can think these huge, remote centers are a good idea.

At least at SFO the wait for the train was only 2 years. In LAS there is no evidence of even a PLAN to have rail service to the center.

I predict Heck for years to come - light bags or no.

Lihue1k

Enterprise is very quick to/from the airport. Pick-up and return are located
right on the entrance road to the airport. In addition, my wife arrived a few days after I did, so I left rental at the dropoff, shuttled to the airport and picked her up, and shuttled back to the dropoff and drove away in my parked rental in short order-no hassle.

His generalization about public employees was way understated and overly complimentary, to a non-public employee, that is. Is the complainer a public dolee by chance?

I looked at the McCarran project info, but it still states the facility will open in 2006. Any updates on when it will finally open? I think I read back in Nov. or Dec. that the new car rental will open in March but so far have found no further solid information.

Also, will National and Alamo also move to the new facility?

as I've stated elsewhere, this will be an improvement. the location is much better. a negative is there will be no stop light at the intersection to the north of the facility.

and for other nonesense in this thread: when Jean opens LAS will not be closed. the jean project is already behind schedule and it will not have the capacity to replace LAS.

My solution....take a taxi from LAS to hotel...

But one of the main reasons to rent at LAS is to avoid the hour-long cab line on Thursday or Friday night. This is going to suck. :mad:

But one of the main reasons to rent at LAS is to avoid the hour-long cab line on Thursday or Friday night. This is going to suck. :mad:

A porter will handle your bags and hail you a cab at their own pick up spot with no waiting, no matter how long the line.

A porter will handle your bags and hail you a cab at their own pick up spot with no waiting, no matter how long the line.

Ahh... @:-)

I didn't know that. Apparently I'm an idiot. :D

A porter will handle your bags and hail you a cab at their own pick up spot with no waiting, no matter how long the line.

True dat, used it many times.

Their big ol cart($300), my 21" roller($55), Tip($5),to the front of the Taxi line at LAS (priceless)

I read on a reliable Vegas board that the opening date for the new car facility is March 28.

I then phoned National Car directly at their Las Vegas Bermuda Road office this afternoon, and the agent verified that the new car rental facility will open on the 28th and that both National and Alamo will relocate there.

Wirelessly posted (probably driving while typing: SCH-U620/1.0 NetFront/3.0.22.2.3 (GUI) MMP/2.0)

Signage on warm springs road at gilespie indicates that national and alamo will be housed at the new facility

I was at the Hertz facility last week, and the security agent was excited about the move "next month."

I don't have a problem with the consolidated facilities. It means that there's always buses coming by.

I don't have a problem with the consolidated facilities. It means that there's always buses coming by.

It means lots of fun during evening rush hour. 5 - 25 minute rides to/from the remote lots that National Renters are already are familiar with. Lots of changes coming to LAS between now & 2010.

our friendly hertz shuttle driver last week he's been there for 6 years and will now be out of a job as are all the other shuttle drivers he knows..

he said they weren't given a chance to apply for the new CRF, but he wouldn't have wanted to anyway--they pay their drivers nearly 2/3 less money. He said the burger places like In & Out pay more than the consolidated rental facility.

I predict this will be an end to reasonable rental prices in LAS. As if the $3/day CRF surchase isn't enough--look at how high the surcharge is in Albuquerque (I believe I read that the surchase = 65% of the rental total, so many people there pay to take a cab from the airport to the CRF instead of boarding the shuttles).

(I believe I read that the surchase = 65% of the rental total, so many people there pay to take a cab from the airport to the CRF instead of boarding the shuttles).

I'm semi-surprised they can even do that - why can you get to the consolidated facility by private transportation but not, say, the Avis lot at LaGuardia?

I was at the Hertz facility last week, and the security agent was excited about the move "next month."

I don't have a problem with the consolidated facilities. It means that there's always buses coming by.

Yup, six at a time = "every ten minutes". ;)

+

Every one totally full (if not, send drivers on 'break'). @:-)

+

No call ahead to make sure your elite car is ready. :(

=

A huge reduction in service. :td:

But hey, the consolidated facillity will at least save me the few dollars tip I always gave the Hertz driver. I'm already paying for the 'service' in the rental fee . . . no way will I pay on top.

Okay, I admit I'm a cynic. But I've just never seen one of these giant remote rental car centers work well with bus service. SFO was finally tolerable after AirTrain started, but before it was a night horror.

Lihue1k

My solution....take a taxi from LAS to hotel, then have Enterprise pick me up at the hotel and take me to my car. Their people are invariably polite and professional...the manager of each branch has a financial stake in the success of the branch and its customer rating so is customer service oriented....also for multi-day rentals I save almost enough $$$ to pay for the cab fares....saves time and hassle which is worth $$$ to me.

Why not have the cab just take you to Enterprise? :)

This is bad news. Why do airports keep opening these horrible things?

VERY bad news...:( A BIG :td: from me. I just think of what a pain it is to rent at the PHX CRF and imagine that compared to what a picnic a Hertz rental has been at LAS in the past. Well, I guess it's goodbye to the 3-minute ride from the Hertz lot to the terminal. I just can't believe this is the first I've heard about the change. :confused:

If anyone has an exact opening date, would be interested to know it... TIA.

Edited to add: I just found the answer to my own questions here;
http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/showthread.php?t=674322
(Sadly 3/28 is the opening date. I can't believe the Hertz lot there is no more :()

VERY bad news...:( A BIG :td: from me. I just think of what a pain it is to rent at the PHX CRF and imagine that compared to what a picnic a Hertz rental has been at LAS in the past. Well, I guess it's goodbye to the 3-minute ride from the Hertz lot to the terminal. I just can't believe this is the first I've heard about the change. :confused:

If anyone has an exact opening date, would be interested to know it... TIA.

Edited to add: I just found the answer to my own questions here;
http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/showthread.php?t=674322
(Sadly 3/28 is the opening date. I can't believe the Hertz lot there is no more :()

I flew in last night and Hertz is still operating from their orginal location, along with all the other companies.

I flew in last night and Hertz is still operating from their orginal location, along with all the other companies.

Beat me to the punch, dknn! I drove through LAS on my way to dinner last night and detoured down rental car road. Everything seems intact. I will take another look around tomorrow when I leave my office.

In other news, the permanent Russell Road detour looks nearly complete where it intersects McCarran's roadways. I have not recently driven by the eastern edges of it to see how that part is doing. Perhaps DebUA1k can walk down the street and give us a status update?

i returned my avis car today in LV at the usual location----was in the terminal 5 minutes later

i assume next time will take me 20 minutes

I returned my car today at the original Hertz location. Today is the last day of operations them. Apparently the front line employees I talked to are happy with the move. In the gold booth, they tagged the walls with "Good bye, good riddance, au revoir, etc."

I took a tour of the new CRF 2 days ago. It was fully up and running and looked pretty efficient. I will get the full review up tomorrow.

MrpAlert: Are you awake way too early or you up way too late? In an hour or so, I'll exchanging cars at the new Hertz facility.

I was able to experience the new facility this weekend. Upon pick up there were about 9 buses outside and no wait.

Today, the return was awful. At 515am there was a line that stretched from the front loading zone to the drop off zone. It took about 20 mins before I was able to get on a bus.

According to the bus driver, the trip takes 420 seconds.

A couple years ago, we rented form alamo(I think). Took the bus to their facility, and they have a line out the door, with the zig zag barriers. Yes, OUTSIDE. It was a miserable experience, compounded by the gentleman next to us with the worst BO ever. They had those canopy type shade things, I think it even had the misters. Now sure it's something, but that's the kind of treatment I expect from standing in a line at an amusement park, not at a car rental agency. At least with the consolidated complex, some of the companies who ran the dumpier facilities are going to provide a better service to customers. It isn't so good for those with hertz gold, etc.

Looking forward to checking it out in 9 days.

Just used the facility this weekend...

1) Getting the car was no more painful than anywhere else. Hertz moved me through the line fairly quickly and I was on my way. The way out of the facility is fairly well marked.

2) Turning in...Monday morning (Easter), arrived at the facility with full tank at about 10:00 AM (for 1130 departure). Turning in, there were more cars lined up than spots, so I ended up parking behind another vehicle (not in a spot). There were about 3-4 harried Hertz people closing out contracts.

3) The line for the bus was about 30 people in front of me. Unfortunately, there were quite a few people in front of me who were moving (how can I put this nicely) well...slowly. Patience is not one of my virtues and I realize this. Hindsight being 20/20, I should have known I was cutting it close on time. After about a 10 minute wait, I was on the bus enroute to the terminal.

4) Traffic in front of the airport was ungodly. The bus was stuck in traffic for at least 5 minutes very close to the terminals. Thankfully, I did not have any luggage to check. Also, a godsend in LAS are those automated B/Pass kiosks that work for any of the airlines. I checked in quick and made it up to TSA.

5) Lines at TSA were long but looked like they were moving fairly well. Luckily, the US Silver Preferred card is the fast pass for the 1st class lane, even though I was in coach. I was through in, like, 5 minutes.

In the future, if I know I'm leaving at a busy time, I'm gonna pad the time a little more. Being late is something I despise, and missing a flight due to Vegas complications would have been a heavy blow. I'd rather drink a beer in the airport bar with an hour to spare than stress over missing a flight or having my seat given away (I did not OLCI).

Vegas is screaming for a subway and/or light rail. Driving on the Strip after noon is a lost cause and it is only getting worse with all the construction. I would just as soon take public trans up the strip and if I need a car, just get one and turn it in at the hotel. While the car rental complex worked for me (sort of), it seems to be a fragile organism and I'm sure will be overwhelmed time and time again in the near future.

I used the new CRF a week ago. A big :td: here from me. As a frequent LAS Hertz renter, the CRF offers no upside, only downside... more crowds, longer walks, longer waits for a bus and longer rides. Maybe an improvement for some of the 3rd-tier rental companies but a major step the wrong direction for Hertz, IMHO.

Here's an article from In Business: Las Vegas, extoling the virtues of the new McCarran Rental Car Hub. See what you think about it:

http://www.inbusinesslasvegas.com/2007/04/13/tourism.html

Here's an article from In Business: Las Vegas, extoling the virtues of the new McCarran Rental Car Hub. See what you think about it:

http://www.inbusinesslasvegas.com/2007/04/13/tourism.html

I think the author said it all in the first sentence with: ". . . one most local travelers won't use". :td:

Lihue1k

Used the new facility this past weekend. It really wasn't bad - true, it added a few minutes of time for Hertz but it seemed to be pretty efficient.

We arrived around 1:30 pm on a Thursday, there were 3-4 buses waiting outside. We boarded, the driver cheerily helped us with our bags on and off the bus (not that we needed the help, but it was a nice touch) and we were off. Walked through the (pretty empty) building, up the escalators to the Gold Canopy, and we were quickyl in the car and on our way.

Drop off on Sunday morning was similarly uneventful, but more crowded. There were 3-4 buses taking passengers to the airport, the driver helped everyone with their bags. It didn't feel any more/less convenient than renting a car that didn't have on-airport access. You could check bags and print boarding passes at the rental center, making it slightly more convenient, and the center itself was easier to find than the rental car return when Hertz was at the terminal at LAS.

Just used the facility this weekend...

1) Getting the car was no more painful than anywhere else. Hertz moved me through the line fairly quickly and I was on my way. The way out of the facility is fairly well marked.

2) Turning in...Monday morning (Easter), arrived at the facility with full tank at about 10:00 AM (for 1130 departure). Turning in, there were more cars lined up than spots, so I ended up parking behind another vehicle (not in a spot). There were about 3-4 harried Hertz people closing out contracts.

3) The line for the bus was about 30 people in front of me. Unfortunately, there were quite a few people in front of me who were moving (how can I put this nicely) well...slowly. Patience is not one of my virtues and I realize this. Hindsight being 20/20, I should have known I was cutting it close on time. After about a 10 minute wait, I was on the bus enroute to the terminal.

4) Traffic in front of the airport was ungodly. The bus was stuck in traffic for at least 5 minutes very close to the terminals. Thankfully, I did not have any luggage to check. Also, a godsend in LAS are those automated B/Pass kiosks that work for any of the airlines. I checked in quick and made it up to TSA.

5) Lines at TSA were long but looked like they were moving fairly well. Luckily, the US Silver Preferred card is the fast pass for the 1st class lane, even though I was in coach. I was through in, like, 5 minutes.

In the future, if I know I'm leaving at a busy time, I'm gonna pad the time a little more. Being late is something I despise, and missing a flight due to Vegas complications would have been a heavy blow. I'd rather drink a beer in the airport bar with an hour to spare than stress over missing a flight or having my seat given away (I did not OLCI).

Vegas is screaming for a subway and/or light rail. Driving on the Strip after noon is a lost cause and it is only getting worse with all the construction. I would just as soon take public trans up the strip and if I need a car, just get one and turn it in at the hotel. While the car rental complex worked for me (sort of), it seems to be a fragile organism and I'm sure will be overwhelmed time and time again in the near future.

The 20$ trick or let say only $10 works when your return a car without much more time. I have only done this at Hertz DFW and at Hertz Phoenix. Basically I pull in or close to the outside supervisor for the employees closing out contracts or ask one of the employees closing out contracts. I state that I am late for my flight and can they give me a ride to the terminal while I give them a tip. They jump in the driver seat, close out the contract, and then drive me and drop me off at the terminal in the rent a car. Next time your are in a hurry try it.

Here's our experience. It wasn't all that great but I suspect this was mostly due to using Alamo/National, what I consider the "bottom of the big chains".

Bus was right there when we exited terminal 2(Hawaiian) at 12:30am. Hopped on the bus and we were on our way within a minute. Got lucky on the timing. Did seem like a bit of a drive.

Facility looks almost identical to PHX one, though it doesn't seem quite as elaborate.

Walked over to Alamo counter where there was a little bit of a line. But there was another line with only 1-2 people for the self-service kiosk. We liked this. Took us some time to figure out how to use it with scanning of our drivers licenses and such. Slightly less intuitive than an airline self-service ticketing kiosk. Got through that. Bonus is that you don't get a hard sell on the insurance from a kiosk. I mean, it does ask you twice, but there's no pushy feeling like you get from a live person. Reserved a midsized, kiosk instructed us to walk out to the midsize row, where there were no midsize cars. No Alamo/national representative out with the cars at this time of night. Go to the national customer service booth in the lot and it's manned by some guy who says, "that's not my job". So after standing around a few mins, Mrs. Ripper3785 went back inside to the counter to ask what we're supposed to do. The response, "girl, sounds like you need to take a fullsize". So we go out again, no fullsize cars either. So we hop in a premium(buick) and take it out, booth attendant doesn't say anything so we got a double upgrade out of it. Not sure if it was worth it.

All in all, I think the facility is fine, and we experienced the norm for dealing with alamo/national.

Walked over to Alamo counter where there was a little bit of a line. But there was another line with only 1-2 people for the self-service kiosk. We liked this. Took us some time to figure out how to use it with scanning of our drivers licenses and such. Slightly less intuitive than an airline self-service ticketing kiosk. Got through that. Bonus is that you don't get a hard sell on the insurance from a kiosk. I mean, it does ask you twice, but there's no pushy feeling like you get from a live person. Reserved a midsized, kiosk instructed us to walk out to the midsize row, where there were no midsize cars. No Alamo/national representative out with the cars at this time of night. Go to the national customer service booth in the lot and it's manned by some guy who says, "that's not my job". So after standing around a few mins, Mrs. Ripper3785 went back inside to the counter to ask what we're supposed to do. The response, "girl, sounds like you need to take a fullsize". So we go out again, no fullsize cars either. So we hop in a premium(buick) and take it out, booth attendant doesn't say anything so we got a double upgrade out of it. Not sure if it was worth it.

We had a similar experience with Alamo last fall when they were in their old facility; LONG lines to get an Alamo/National bus, a LONGER line to get a car, and, when I went out to the lot, no full-size cars. Sounds like the only difference between your experience and mine was that there wasn't a lot attendant to immediately tell you to take an SUV instead.

I HATE consolidated off-airport car rentals centers. They made BWI hell, they made SFO far more difficult, they have always made DFW time-consuming, and now they are ruining LAS.

Cabs for me from now on at LAS.

Over the weekend, Payless had prices that were $40. per week less that what i have been seeing lately. $168. inc. taxes. I reserved it. The next day prices were back above $200 for full size. Now I'm waiting to hear about somebodys dealings with Payless lat LAS. I will keep watching every day for better deals!!

Used the new consolidated facility last week. Bus ride was quick and the driver very helpful. The facility was fine. No complaints at all.

My experience here:

Saturday April 14th about 9pm - bus out was fine, short wait, driver was helpful with luggage. Took a couple of wrong turnings as I was leaving so maybe the signposting isn't quite clear or maybe after a long flight from the UK I was just tired and not paying attention.

Return Sunday May 6th about 8am. Rental Car centre is very well signposted from the Strip so no trouble finding it. At the Shuttle bus pickup point they had 2 guys managing queues and I barely had to wait a minute for a bus. All passengers bags loaded and unloaded again by helpful staff.

Overall it's a bit of a nuisance having to get the bus to and fro but it's not the h*ll that this thread was suggesting.

There is a brochure on McCarran's website: http://mccarran.com/pdf/RACBrochure_03_30_07

Hate the off-site car rentals. Fortunately, I don't tend to rent in LAS given the traffic on the strip. Easier to just get a cab or rent for day use when golfing.

As some literary figure once scribbled: "The evil that men do lives after them, the good is oft interred with their bones."

I suggest that a public employee whose response to public criticism by frequent flyers in the form of reaction to the standard treatment and response displayed by public employees ought to hold still his typing fingers until after a long period of self-reflection and maybe a little Marxist self-criticism.

Warning, the brochure in #49 is 15 MB ... for a 2 page pdf containing little useful info

Arrived very late on a Sunday night to no line for the shuttle (not that it mattered, since the skycap would've taken us to the front of the line anyway...) and a very helpful driver (who's employed by First Group, not the local goverment, for you knee-jerk anti-government Rush Limbaugh types). A couple of people in line ahead of us at the National desk, and we got a hard sell on upgrades and insurance. Turned down the upgrade offer because it was more money than it would've been if I'd upgraded on their website before leaving. Walked upstairs to discover no full-sized cars were available, then back downstairs to be told cars are brought up continuously and I'd have to wait. OK then. At least at the old facility I'd have been given a free upgrade, but I digress. Was given a choice between a Sonata and another make/model that reeked of stale pot smoke, so I told the lot attendant I'd wait for something else. He finally dug up a Malibu with 17 miles on it, so off we went and were at the Luxor in no time.

Return (approx. 9:30 pm on a Thurs) was somewhat more complicated, couldn't find a gas station at first (the facility seems to be new enough that gas stations haven't sprung up all around) and it took a little time to return the car. Also had to scrounge for a cart at the facility. Again, though, no wait for a shuttle, driver was very helpful, was back at the terminal in no time.

Return (approx. 9:30 pm on a Thurs) was somewhat more complicated, couldn't find a gas station at first (the facility seems to be new enough that gas stations haven't sprung up all around) and it took a little time to return the car. Also had to scrounge for a cart at the facility. Again, though, no wait for a shuttle, driver was very helpful, was back at the terminal in no time.

There is a gas station on Las Vegas Blvd. a block or two north of Gilespie, the east-west cross street on which the new parking facilty is located.

There is a gas station on Las Vegas Blvd. a block or two north of Gilespie, the east-west cross street on which the new parking facilty is located.


I found one around the corner as well - and it looks like they're building a third one nearby.

Warning, the brochure in #49 is 15 MB ... for a 2 page pdf containing little useful info
What, do you pay by the kb?

The brochure has a layout of the facility's vendors, a map, and return directions, which is exactly what I was looking for after I ran across this thread.

I just checked Alamo for my July and December trip to Vegas and the rates have dropped almost $100 for a 4 day trip. Originally it was going to cost about $240 even with every coupon code I could find. Today a four day trip to las vegas using a coupon from the entertainment book ID # 7012170 and coupon code AD27 my rental is $129. If you have a rental, go to Alamo and recheck and see if your rates have gone down. I booked a car for both trips! Hope this helps someone!

Used the facility last week and it was completely hassle-free, plenty of transfer buses waiting at 7pm, 2min wait at 4:30am, helpful driver, no problems at all (except for the long queue at Avis in the evening, but that is not the car rental facility's fault)

Return (approx. 9:30 pm on a Thurs) was somewhat more complicated, couldn't find a gas station at first (the facility seems to be new enough that gas stations haven't sprung up all around) and it took a little time to return the car.

There are 2 gas stations east on Warm Springs Road (which crosses Gilespie Street at the next crossing south of the rental car facility, ca. 50 yds away) in the direction of I-215, one of these just one block away

We used the new facility over the Holiday weekend, and it was relatively empty and everything went smoothly.

Depending on which route that you take to return the car, I found it easier to follow the posted signs from the tunnel. This is the same route that the bus takes from the airport, rather than following the printed directions in the pdf.@:-)

Used the facility last week and it was completely hassle-free, plenty of transfer buses waiting at 7pm, 2min wait at 4:30am, helpful driver, no problems at all (except for the long queue at Avis in the evening, but that is not the car rental facility's fault)

Sign up for Avis Preferred. It's free, and it will allow you to go straight to your car (and/or use the Avis Preferred "cut" line at many locations).

Sign up for Avis Preferred. It's free, and it will allow you to go straight to your car (and/or use the Avis Preferred "cut" line at many locations).

Thanks for this - I will sign up and try this next time

Wasn't too bad. The signage from I-15 to the return location was straightforward and easy to find.

Just completed a rental with National and all went smoothly. About 15 minutes from car return to drop-off at the terminal.

Facility also easy to find from the south end of the strip.

Can anyone tell me how much time to allow for dropping my wife at terminal 1 , returning my rental car to the rental facility and then taking the bus back to the terminal?
I'll be doing all of this Sunday July 8th in the morning.
My wife wants to visit a couple of the stores in the airport and I would rather she get a head start on this and then I'll meet her inside the terminal.
Thank you in advance for your help.

Can anyone tell me how much time to allow for dropping my wife at terminal 1 , returning my rental car to the rental facility and then taking the bus back to the terminal?
I'll be doing all of this Sunday July 8th in the morning.
My wife wants to visit a couple of the stores in the airport and I would rather she get a head start on this and then I'll meet her inside the terminal.
Thank you in advance for your help.

I would suggest 45 minutes, but it all depends on how many people are returning at that time, waiting for the bus. If only a few, they might wait for more passengers. I don't know if the busses are on a definite time schedule. If there is a line, you might have to wait for bus #2 or #3.

On my last bus, we went to the international terminal first to unload and pick up, and that was an extra few minutes.

Your wife will already be through security, but by the time that you get to security, there could be a longer line being that much closer to the flight time.

On the way home from LAS as I write this... When I arrived in LAS, getting on the bus to the rental facility was easy... no problems... When I got there today it was pretty busy... glad I had plenty of time because from the time I dropped off the car to the time I made it to the ticketing area it as 30 minutes.

Whose bright idea was it to have the line for the busses out in the 100+ degree heat? Holy cow was it hot out there and the line was pretty long... not the greatest idea in the world... That's my major complaint.

Car rental at the new facility was a breeze. Although there were about thirty people in line at Alamo, no one was in line at the quicksilver counter. I had signed up for quicksilver when making this reservation so I walked up handed over the rental contract that they mailed me and was out to the parking garage within 2 minutes. Even got my car upgraded because all the midsize cars were gone. Directions to the car rental facility were easy to follow. We were on the bus and to the airport very quick. Hope our trip next month to LAS is as easy as this one.

HI,

I was wondering how long it will take me to get from the Hertz Dropoff to the CO checkin at McCarran.

My flight leaves at 9.30am on a friday.

I'm on a bit of a tight schedule, so any tips would be appreciated.

Many Thanks

5-10 minutes, ime.

we are dropping car off at national then heading to the strip hotel.... how far is the new place?

we will then pick another up 2 days later,

In Kansas City the new consolidated facility will be closer and easier to access than any of the current facilities, plus they too will have it so the buses only serve one terminal, not multiple terminals. (I'm pretty sure you're also going to be able to board the buses, which will probably be painted green or some other color besides red and blue (which are existing bus colors for KCI), at the inside curb instead of having to go to the outer curb as you do now for rental car buses).

I used the consolidated rental car facility at MCI for the first time two weeks ago. Don't think the new facility is really "closer (to the terminal?) and easier to access", tho, as isn't it located same exit off airport access road where old individual agency locations were, but simply on the opposite side? Maybe I'm wrong, as I've always rented off-airport from Thrifty. Was still picked up by the bus on the outer island, so no change there, but having a dedicated bus serving UA's terminal A was nice.

This time still rented from Thirfty, which used to be located one mile south of the airport. But honestly, using this agency, not sure the new facility saves much time, if at all. A little longer walk from bus to the counter and from counter to car, must drive all the way around the new central facility to drop off the car, then is a fair walk to the return bus.

we are dropping car off at national then heading to the strip hotel.... how far is the new place?

we will then pick another up 2 days later,

There is a map on the McCarran.com website. I would recommend taking the Warm Springs bus to Las Vegas Blvd then boarding the Deuce to your hotel. See www.rtcsouthernnevada.com for CAT bus information.

Anyone notice that the escalators and elevators at the Las Vegas Airport Rental Car Terminal are ALWAYS under construction? I have been traveling through there for about 6 months, and it never fails that one of the conveyances is off line for repair. Amazing that they can not seem to get them all running at once.

Anyone notice that the escalators and elevators at the Las Vegas Airport Rental Car Terminal are ALWAYS under construction? I have been traveling through there for about 6 months, and it never fails that one of the conveyances is off line for repair. Amazing that they can not seem to get them all running at once.

I'm seeing this more often all over Las Vegas. The escalators at the Pedestrian overpasses, particularly at Trop Ave seem to be down all the time. It's really getting annoying!:mad:

Anyone notice that the escalators and elevators at the Las Vegas Airport Rental Car Terminal are ALWAYS under construction? I have been traveling through there for about 6 months, and it never fails that one of the conveyances is off line for repair. Amazing that they can not seem to get them all running at once.

Yes, getting used to lugging the carryon up the stairs. Although it thunks quite nicely going down. :)

Amazing that they can not seem to get them all running at once.

Especially considering the airport authority taxes us $3 per car per day (plus whatever the car rental companies are charged in rent) specifically to finance the building?

On the plus side, there is plentiful work for elevator installers (http://www.bls.gov/oco/ocos189.htm), and wages are highest in the nation.

Anyone notice that the escalators and elevators at the Las Vegas Airport Rental Car Terminal are ALWAYS under construction? I have been traveling through there for about 6 months, and it never fails that one of the conveyances is off line for repair. Amazing that they can not seem to get them all running at once.Last time I was there, one was down on one side, and a few days later it was working but the one opposite it was down ... definitely seems to be a problem in my experience too!

Your generalizations about public employees are unwelcome.

On the other hand, that it is unwelcome makes the truth no less applicable, From the standpoint of a long time traveler and former city council member, the hard evidence - the performance of public employees (and not a few of the employees of contracted service providers) encountered in the market place these days - rises from specificity to "generalization" pretty quickly.

On expereience, the "generalization" seems almost as applicable in Southern Nevada as in some large urban jurisdictions. As a friend of mine once claimed:
"Unable to meet the hiring criteria of the TSA or the Casinos, what's left but the local public sector?"

On the other hand, that it is unwelcome makes the truth no less applicable, From the standpoint of a long time traveler and former city council member, the hard evidence - the performance of public employees (and not a few of the employees of contracted service providers) encountered in the market place these days - rises from specificity to "generalization" pretty quickly.

On expereience, the "generalization" seems almost as applicable in Southern Nevada as in some large urban jurisdictions. As a friend of mine once claimed:
"Unable to meet the hiring criteria of the TSA or the Casinos, what's left but the local public sector?"The characterization of the rental car shuttle bus drivers as "surly public-employee-union bus drivers" is completely inaccurate anyway since they're not public employees (and likely not union), the buses for the rental car facility are operated by First Group (http://www.firstgroup.com/).

The characterization of the rental car shuttle bus drivers as "surly public-employee-union bus drivers" is completely inaccurate anyway since they're not public employees (and likely not union), the buses for the rental car facility are operated by First Group (http://www.firstgroup.com/).

On my last ride back to the airport from the rental car return, the driver was so pleasant and cheerful that I handed him a cold bottle of water from my carryon before we even departed the rental center. You would have thought I handed him a $20.

On my last ride back to the airport from the rental car return, the driver was so pleasant and cheerful that I handed him a cold bottle of water from my carryon before we even departed the rental center. You would have thought I handed him a $20.

As one who has ridden the courtesy bus dozens of times, this is the characterization that I have formed of the bus drivers. Unfortunately, they are no longer making PAs like they used to. LAS has instituted a female-HAL recording onboard like PHX has except only slightly less annoying.

As one who has ridden the courtesy bus dozens of times, this is the characterization that I have formed of the bus drivers. Unfortunately, they are no longer making PAs like they used to. LAS has instituted a female-HAL recording onboard like PHX has except only slightly less annoying.

Some of the drivers are really great - the thing that bothered me last week was the line sorting - the greeters were sorting into T1 and T2 lines but the T1 shuttle stopped at T2 anyway (no passengers on or off) . . .

I find these bus drivers significantly more friendly and helpful than your typical shuttle driver.

QL

I handed him a cold bottle of water from my carryon before we even departed the rental center. You would have thought I handed him a $20.

At LAS prices, a bottle of water's probably equivalent to a $4 tip ;)

Anyone notice that the escalators and elevators at the Las Vegas Airport Rental Car Terminal are ALWAYS under construction? I have been traveling through there for about 6 months, and it never fails that one of the conveyances is off line for repair. Amazing that they can not seem to get them all running at once.Thanks to irabk, I found this little blurb (http://www.vegasrex.com/2008/07/24/help-wanted-escalator-mechanics/) about escalators in Las Vegas.

Are any of you fine people able to answer me a question regarding Thrifty car rental in Vegas.

Normally the company I rent from does it's reservations through Dollar, but this time they are offering Thrifty as well and they work out about $50 cheaper for the two weeks I require.

With Dollar you get to pick any car from the row matching your size.
Does Thrifty run the same policy or do they assign you a certain car.

Please note as I am visiting from the UK I need all the insurances etc so while I appreciate you may recommend a different company (Avis, Hertz etc) I am confident that the place I normally rent from is the cheapest for me

With Dollar you get to pick any car from the row matching your size.
Does Thrifty run the same policy or do they assign you a certain car.


Thrifty has a Wild Car option which allows you to pick any car from the lot or select area (depends on the facility). Basically you are paying a midsize rate and you can pick midsize up to SUV if available. Make sure you select the Wild Car option at reservation.

Thrifty has a Wild Car option which allows you to pick any car from the lot or select area (depends on the facility). Basically you are paying a midsize rate and you can pick midsize up to SUV if available. Make sure you select the Wild Car option at reservation.

Thanks for the reply but that doesn't really help me.

I book through a third party and they issue a prepaid voucher for the company. No option to select a wild car, you just select the size required and the company

Thanks for the reply but that doesn't really help me.

I book through a third party and they issue a prepaid voucher for the company. No option to select a wild car, you just select the size required and the company

first off, be prepaired for a long wait in line. I really don't know if it's the clerks or the customers but it takes an age getting through Thrifty. I am from the U.K. as well and have used Thrifty on a couple of occations. One thing I like is that they let you fill the car up yourself on return instead of having to buy a full tank of fuel from them, and yes, you get to choose a car from the line of whats there. We paid for a full size and really wanted to try out a Charger, when we got to the garage there was a Charger and a Magnum next to each other. My wife really liked the look of the Magnum so we took that. It was in a word the worst car I have ever driven. All looks and no substance.

Thanks Stoneman.

Will give them a go, Dollar are usually the same for waiting.

I normally prepay the fuel and bring the car back empty

Budget and Thrifty traditionally tend to have fairly bad lines in LAS but I was the only person in line at 9:00 p.m. Friday evening for Thrifty. Of course, I then had to wait for them to bring up a car - nothing at all available - after going up the escalator ...

.... One thing I like is that they let you fill the car up yourself on return instead of having to buy a full tank of fuel from them, ....

To my knowledge, none of the major car rental chains represented at the LAS rental car facility require that you buy a full tank of fuel from them. You do have to resist the sales pitch -- I'm usually pretty good at giving the customer service agent my "Don't bother" stare as I tell them that I decline all insurance coverage and will bring the car back full. The fact that I walk up to the counter in the first place handing over my driver's license and credit card probably clues them in on here's a frequent traveler who isn't going to be scare-talked into buying the company's highest profit margin items.

To my knowledge, none of the major car rental chains represented at the LAS rental car facility require that you buy a full tank of fuel from them. You do have to resist the sales pitch -- I'm usually pretty good at giving the customer service agent my "Don't bother" stare as I tell them that I decline all insurance coverage and will bring the car back full. The fact that I walk up to the counter in the first place handing over my driver's license and credit card probably clues them in on here's a frequent traveler who isn't going to be scare-talked into buying the company's highest profit margin items.The rental car companies typically won't bother you with the fuel and insurance sales pitches if you are member of their "fast track" programs (and have your preferences noted in your profile). With Avis Preferred, I typically am able to go straight to my car, avoiding any lines. With Thrifty, they typically have a separate line/booth on the lot for their members.

Just out of curiosity, how long does it take to get to/from the car rental facility, including time waiting for the shuttle? Sorry if it's been mentioned in the thread already, but a quick search didn't get any hits.

Never waited longer than about 2 minutes at the facility. Have waited up to five minutes at the airport for a bus.

The ride between the airport and the facility is between 5 and 10 minutes.

It's probably been mentioned already in the thread, but if you arrive and find a long line for a shuttle, asking a skycap to help you with your luggage will bring you straight to the front of the line.

Just a quick note on refueling. I see a lot of rental car customers refueling at Gillespie and Warm Springs. That place charges at least 20 cents more per gallon than the stations 1/2 miles either way on Warm Springs. Drive 1 minute and save yourself some money.

Just a quick note on refueling. I see a lot of rental car customers refueling at Gillespie and Warm Springs. That place charges at least 20 cents more per gallon than the stations 1/2 miles either way on Warm Springs. Drive 1 minute and save yourself some money.

^ one of the rental car shuttle drivers was offering this advice as well.

Wirelessly posted (FlyerTalk.com/wap is fun : BlackBerry8230/4.6.1.234 Profile/MIDP-2.0 Configuration/CLDC-1.1 VendorID/105)

They are installing slot machines at the crf. Wheel of fortune or collision damage waiver. You decide.

Exceptionally busy today in the morning. Shuttles were few and there were four lines waiting. A couple of people got out of line and took taxis to the terminal.