lostfly

There are some horror stories at Tripadvisor, about Budget at Denver airport. Is really that bad?

1st Cav Vet

About two weeks ago I picked up a reserved car at Budget-Denver Airport. Only problem was I asked Budget counter person to add a tank of gas charge, but he did not.

AutoSlash

TBH, IME, DEN is one of the worst locations in the rental industry--across all companies.

We have seen more complaints about DEN than probably any other single airport. Complaints range from running out of cars to extreme waits at counter to poor vehicle condition/cleanliness to sneaky counter agents adding charges to bills and more. And the complaints are with everyone--Hertz, Dollar, Budget, Avis, Alamo, etc. etc.

Not sure what attracts such poor-quality operations managers to the Mile High City but just be prepared, no matter who you choose to rent from. Come with a printout of your reservation straight from the rental company's website (so they can't argue when you challenge them for why the price is higher), book with a rental company loyalty program (so you can skip the line and be first in line if they've run out of cars), take a walk-around video of your car before you leave and point out any damage, and don't forget to fill up with gas before getting close to the airport as the one gas station out at the airport charges a rip-off premium price. (Sapp Bros. off of Quebec usually has the best prices, but check GasBuddy.)

lostfly

Thanks for the replies and for the tips. I never rented from Budget, but in this case, is so much cheaper ...

randix

A number of months ago I booked a compact car at DEN, booked it thru and paid for it with Ultimate Reward points. I didn't know at the time if I did that I could not use my Fastbreak number to avoid the counter. (Ultimate Rewards will not take it and Budget refused to be able to add it). I arrived at the rental center and it was a mess, the line to the counter was LONG, and the only car they said they had left to give me was a minivan. Ugh.

Will never book a car rental through Ultimate Rewards again.

travellingcari

Ugh. I've successfully rented from in town locations in Denver but this will be my first airport rental as I'm not spending any time in the city this trip. Hope I have surprising success

nacho

DEN is worse than IAH? I thought IAH was bad, was there 2 years ago and rented from Hertz - saw reviews from Avis and it was bad. The staff didn't care and bother.

I'll be picking up a car at DEN - booked with preferred, hopefully it won't take that long (flight lands around 11pm).