Any info on the Emerald Aisle in MIA (Int'l Airport Location)? Looking to rent an SUV (Trailblazer) but heard once that the Emerald Aisle in MIA is either small, doesn't have SUVs or something like that.
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The last two times I've been in MIA I was able to get my favorite rental car, the Volvo S40 on the Executive Aisle. I seem to remember a very good selection, and there was pretty much every type of car you would want, and there were SUVs there also.
The airport location is off premise, sort of a back road off a back road. First time it was a bit difficult for me to find where to return the car, but the second time it was a piece of cake.
No - two different areas. Usually located right next to each other, and on some days, hard to see a difference in car selection between the two. But in general Executive members (which is one tier above Emerald) get a slightly better selection of cars on the Executive Aisle (marked with Silver signage) vs. the regular Emerald Aisle (marked with green signage). Only place in the past year I have seen a lot of SUVs on the regular Emerald Isle is San Jose, CA.
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Quote:
Originally Posted by sjfarrell
It is not clear from National's website - are Emerald Aisle and Executive Aisle the same thing?
No. You'll want to have a look at the perks of Emerald Aisle (cars arranged by size class, but an expanded selection of midsize cars typically) unless you qualify for Executive Selection (which is more typically full size special but can be all over the map).
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I rent from the MIA Emerald frequently and I've never seen an SUV. Best I've gotten is Dodge Avenger (with 39 miles on the odometer). As always, YMMV, but if you must have an SUV, I would recommend reserving one.
As for returning, make sure you take SR 836 from I-95 (the first airport exit coming from the south). If you take SR 112 (the second exit) you'll have a lot of trouble finding the lot.
The Emerald Aisle is basically a collection of excess/surplus cars at that location of all classes (although usually not premium or large SUVs). Pretty much anyone can join EA for free. Emerald Executive Selection is a frequent renter program, you need a certain number of rentals to qualify. At MIA, the Executive Selection is along the side of the building, the Emerald Aisle is along the fence to your left.
I just went to National at MIA on Christmas Day, the Emerald Aisle was pitiful with 4 Impalas and a couple of mid-sized Chryslers. I found the manager who was on the lot, I complained about the lack of cars, and he let me get an SUV from the Executive Selection (a Chevy Equinox). Also if you ask an employee and wait around, sometimes they will refresh the Emerald Aisle with better cars. Also, be careful, veterans of National will spot and jump on a car they want. You can take the keys of a car you want and hang out for a better car.
MIA had one of the worst Emerald Aisle's I have seen, but this is a smaller National location than many I have seen also.
A Trailblazer is a pretty large SUV, you might be better off reserving if you must have this size of car (a large 3 row SUV). If you can live with a smaller SUV and risk ending up with a sedan or station wagon, you will save a lot of money at MIA by reserving a midsize car from the Emerald Aisle and getting the best vehicle you can find.
Hope this helps.
Last edited by TiredParentof2; Jan 3, 08 at 8:26 pm..
Reason: spelling errors, grammar, lacked details
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Picked up Fri at midnight (very late) - ES had lots of cars but awful choices - all Impalas with 2 Camrys and 1 Malibu - took an Impala with leather & XM.
I've rented 4 times from MIA in the past few weeks. I had a Pontiac G6 twice, a Chrysler Sebring, and a Toyota Prius that smelled bad. The G6 isnt bad, but it was sure interesting driving the Prius (once I got used to the smell)
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Quote:
Originally Posted by peteropny
Picked up Fri at midnight (very late) - ES had lots of cars but awful choices - all Impalas with 2 Camrys and 1 Malibu - took an Impala with leather & XM.
I picked up three times at MIA in 4Q '08 and new-ish Impala with leather and XM was best of the worst every time. Last year I scored a Volvo. I've never seen an SUV, but there are minivans from time to time.
Was there just after noon today (Mon) and the ES had mostly Malibus and Impalas with 1 smallish SUVish/Crossover (Nissan, maybe?) it kinda looked nice, if you like that sort of thing...which I don't
I saw a guy in Emerald Green Polo shirt coming from the lot towards the office and I asked him if I could get something else.
He said..."What did you want a Luxury Car? SUV?..."
I said "No..can I have a convertible?"
He said "Sure"..."Just take what you want"
There were only Sebrings so I took the one with the lowest mileage (@5500 mi) and the least amount of birdsh*t on it.
Everything was fine til I got to the booth.
The young girl asked where I got the car from? I explained what happened. Then she started quizzing me as to who exactly told me that. I described the guy as much as i could (hair color), confirmed it wasn't the security guy or the shuttle driver and that all I knew was that he said it was OK and walked back into the office.
She didn't appear satisfied with my answer but in the end, opened the gate.
