Harok

I want to go to Alaska in the summer (July). However, car rental is obscenely expensive from what I see. Ideally I want 3 weeks of rental, but could do 2 if it saves a lot of money.

I cannot find much for under £450/week (~$700).

Cheapest car for 2 weeks is Group C = £870
Cheapest vehicle for 2 weeks is Group O6 truck = £490 <- good price, but I'll be driving a long way, so can't see this working out!

Cheapest car for 3 weeks is Group C = £1250


Is there much chance of getting anything cheaper than this? I'm struggling to make this work with these costs.


Thanks

CalItalian

Nope. ANC in the summer is outrageously expensive. Your rates are low compared to what they will get closer to rental dates.

AutoSlash

Agree with CalItalian. If you are planning to go, we recommend booking ASAP. Rates in summer will continue to rise in the coming months. You can use the links below to get a quote, but don't expect any miracles since many AK rental companies block most coupons and a fair amount of discount codes. Being a AAA, USAA, AARP, etc. member may help a bit though. Sometimes Dollar/Thrifty have some good discounted rates available.

Harok

Would a small group O6 truck actually be ok? Or would it be awful with driving long distances? I'll be on my own, so don't need lots of space.

The truck isn't available now.

However, the downtown location is so much cheaper it seems. The Group C car is £400!

I assume it's easy to get here from the airport?

AutoSlash

Yes, it's about $20 with tip to downtown. You might also want to price out a one-way from downtown to the airport so avoid having to take a taxi on the return.

jackal

There's Uber and Lyft, too, but no reason to spend that much when bus #40 will take you directly from the airport to about 3 blocks from Hertz for $2:

Route Maps and Bus Stop Lists (click the route #40 icon for a schedule)

Buses leave every 15 minutes during the day and every 30 minutes in the late evening with the last bus departing the terminal at 1:29am on weekdays (earlier on weekends).

The last stop of route #40 is the 6th & H transit center. From there, walk one block up to 5th Ave and then two blocks over to K st (there's no J St, for some reason). Hertz is one of the storefronts across from the west entrance to the Captain Cook hotel; the cars are in the garage immediately behind the Hertz.

FWIW, PeopleMover route #40 also passes the off-airport locations for Budget and Dollar/Thrifty, in case they also come up as cheap options. If an off-airport Enterprise comes up, the midtown one will pick you up from anywhere along Spenard (maybe get off at the Millennium Hotel? or just take the Millennium's own shuttle?), and the downtown one will gladly come get you from the 6th & H transit center (or walk the block over to the Marriott for a nicer place to wait). Avis's downtown office at 5th and B is a 7-block (0.5 mile) walk in the opposite direction from Hertz.

It's your personal preference whether you will enjoy driving a truck. Some people like sitting up higher. Others hate the weight and driving feel. One thing I'll say is that if you do rent a truck, you'll fit right in with the locals. While SUVs and trucks are popular all over the country, they make up about 75% of vehicles in Alaska. That said, I lived there for 17 years and drove nothing but a front-wheel-drive car and was perfectly fine. In the summer, you'll have no reason to need anything larger than a regular car. A car will get double the gas mileage of a truck, too, for what it's worth.

Harok

Gas consumption is one thing I don't care about in the US. I'm from the UK and the equivalent cost of a gallon is $6.70! I'm fairly sure this makes Alaska prices at least half.

jackal

Prices seem the same now as it was when I was up there last month: https://www.gasbuddy.com/GasPrices/Alaska/Anchorage

That said, you'll likely be putting far more miles on a car in Alaska than you would in the UK. A simple circle trip from ANC to FAI and back is like driving from Land's End to John o'Groats.

beckoa

This is very true. Most tourists don't rent a truck, but it could be ok. Just nowhere for your luggage if it starts precipitating. Hence for rentals I prefer something closed.

Fuzzytoo

Agree, downtown Hertz is cheaper, but the selection seems limited, and seems to change without warning -- at least has happened to me twice. After not getting what I expected, and a billing snaffu on another occasion, I just paid the outrageous price at the airport last year. Also, even as Gold 5 Star, I have ended up with only two choices, even at the airport, when arriving late in the evening. It's a tourist destination, so summer prices rack up accordingly. I have to be back there a couple of times this year, but don't know when at this point, so usually get stuck with the "rack rates," although AAA "discount" helps a little bit.

Harok

Unfortunately the airport prices are insanely expensive. I am going with Group L. The price is 3x as expensive at the airport. How does that even happen?

AutoSlash

It happens because people are willing to pay it. Tons of tourists to beautiful Alaska in the summertime. The rental companies make 90% of their profits in the months of July and August. Now you know why.