gylf

Picked up a Nissan 370Z from the ES aisle yesterday around noon.
That and a Chevy Malibu were the only two cars on the entire EA/ES lot and since we managed to cram the luggage into the Nissan, we went with that.

sgtsteve007

any updates for Emerald Executive?

peteropny

Picked up today at 4:30 pm on ES reservation, ES had 370Z ( interesting but didn't feel like a sports car, Camaro, Mustang, Challenger, Jeep Patriot, Ford Escape. EA had a couple of Sonatas and the Fusion I took. There were quite a few Camaro and Mustang convertibles and small SUVs that I could have gotten I think. But the 300 was being held for somebody.

iherebyresign

Just had the 370Z for a few days from ES. Enjoyed it! Other choices were a Challenger, Maxima, Altima, 300 and a Hyundai SUV

chasewalker

I am executive and they had several 2 door and 4 door Wranglers, convertible camaros, and some other sedans. We took the 4 door Wrangler. $117 for 4 days.

john516

My flight gets in to LIH at 9:40 and the location closes at 10:45. Do they stay open if a flight is delayed?

controller1

This was an Executive Area fail.

Arrived 2/19 for a 7-day reservation. The Executive Area and Emerald Aisle had no employees present. The "best" vehicle in both areas was a Chevy Malibu. Very disappointed. Additionally, this car did not have a back-up camera which is a safety feature to which I've become accustomed. Not a good experience at LIH.

Another strange thing is the receipt indicated the vehicle was an Impala. NOT.

ivan89

We are traveling to Kauai in July, and our flight arrives to LIH on Saturday at 1pm. Could anyone comment on what cars are likely to be available at that time in the Emerald Aisle?

PDX-RDM-AVL-TPA

My experience at LIH is getting a little dated because we got a second car here on Kauai a year ago, so I no longer rent cars for relatives who come to visit. So I can't speak specifically to what cars are available these days, but I can say that 1 PM is neither the best nor the worst time to come in for EA or ES. As I've mentioned before, there is a string of mainland flights that arrive between 11:30 and 2 PM. The lot is small, so by 2 PM there typically isn't a whole lot to choose from. A 1 PM arrival is midway through the string of flights so you might have a few choices. But the EA selection is likely to be midsize to full size sedans, possibly a small SUV. You may want to take the shuttle to get your car before you get your bags, if you can leave family members or others to grab the bags, so you at least beat the others on your flight.

PDX-RDM-AVL-TPA

To add to my last post, but also as a more general response to anyone renting at LIH:
By far the best time to pick up a car at LIH is late at night, around 10 PM. There are always lots of cars on the lot, since they are restocking for the next day. In my experience as Executive, I've been able to take whatever is on the lot at that time. I suspect that even basic Emerald Club members would have a fair amount of success with various options.

I have only swapped cars at LIH once, but if I was a visitor who picked up a not-so-great car when my flight came in, I wouldn't hesitate to come back later in the trip to swap out the car, late in the evening. Obviously, depending on where you are staying it may not be convenient, but just arrange to come through Lihue some evening when returning to your lodging.

You can also easily do a drive by at any time and see what is on the lot. Just drive around back on Aukele Street (where you drove OUT when you picked up your car). And you'll be able to see if there is much selection from the street. And then you can just park on the street and walk back through the gate to ask the gate attendant if they will let you swap out. You'll need to drive back around to the front to actually swap out though.

ivan89

Thanks a lot! I don't think it will be possible for me to take the shuttle before I get my bags, because I will be traveling with my wife and 1-year-old son, so we'll have too much stuff for her to handle it alone. But I am definitely thinking about leaving them in the airport and then picking them up once I grab the car.

If I am not happy with the car I get, I will politely ask them about swapping it later. We will be staying in Poipu, which is not too close but not too far either, so swapping a car might be a reasonable thing to do.

Thanks again, I really appreciate your help. This will be our first trip to Hawaii and first time renting a car from National, so your advice is very helpful!

dandelpino

Picture of the lot on 6/3/15 around 10am:



There was a lone Cherokee that the guy behind me took. I had an FRAR res, the lot attendant pulled out a 2016 Yukon SLT with 6,000 miles on the clock for me. Was a bit muddy on the outside.

qs933

I don't have much to add other than: if the highlight of your trip to Hawaii is getting a great car off the aisle at National, something's wrong.

ivan89

No, not really Though I am a big car fan and like reading about cars, I'm not that picky when it comes to driving them, and I'll be perfectly fine with an Altima or a Malibu. I'd consider swapping only if we get a small mid-size car that does not have enough room for our (quite big) child seat in the back. However, given that it fits fine in our Honda Civic, I don't think it will be a problem.

So I was asking about selection out of curiosity and to know what to expect, rather than to come up with a plan to grab something like a Chevy Tahoe or whatever you consider a great car

qs933

I've only been to Lihue once in the last several years (and it was with a minivan reservation, so I had my choice of a Grand Caravan in white or silver) but they had a relatively small lot, so selection/variety will likely be limited.

Even if you end up in a base Altima, I'm sure you'll find Kauai enjoyable.