Kacee

Executive. I don't think anyone at HNL cares. Demand is high and supply is low.
Full size. So both the Forrester and the Blazer were technically upgrades (and I wouldn't have minded the Forrester if it hadn't been smoked out). What I really didn't appreciate was the "this is your car, take it or leave it" attitude.

I've been renting regularly from National at HNL for over a decade, and still remember fondly when they were located open air in the parking lot.

bocastephen

Wow, I am not looking forward to my visit. I have a full size and a midsize electric (Leaf) reserved, not sure which I will take, but even as an Executive Elite with a HI drivers license, it sounds like I am subject to having a set of random keys shoved in my hand and being told to get lost.

Jenny Su

Has anyone been able to get anything bigger than a Full Size at HNL starting April? I have a reservation for June as an EE but cannot find a Van in particular. Did they get rid of all their cars bigger than a Full Size?

Kacee

I'm seeing this on virtually all of my National reservations now - they're not offering reservation for anything beyond full size.

I suspect this is due to the car shortages, i.e., they are having problems due to inability to provide reserved car class.

HNL definitely has larger cars. We got a Blazer last weekend.

berkeleysquirrel

Was at HNL back at the end of April with an FCAR res. Was offered several things to choose from - Mini Cooper Countryman, Honda CRV (base model LX), Honda Accord (base model LX - still don't understand why this is a PCAR with no CarPlay/Android Auto), Nissan Maxima, Jeep Compass, Toyota Camry. Pleasantly surprised with the different choices since I was thinking they'd be out of cars.

aacar

Had an LCAR reservation here last week and was offered a choice between 330i, LR Discovery, or F-Pace (which I took). There seemed to be plenty of inventory available, though it was a weekday afternoon.

mfama417

Does HNL still offer the EE aisle at HNL? Looking to make an booking for October and it does not say anything on the reservation page and HNL is no longer on the participating airports page. Booked a midsize and want to know if ill actually get a midsize or get to stroll the lot.

MCO Flyer

I don't think so but I could be wrong as I rented with Hertz. The new CONRAC Garage isn't fully open yet and car-rental pick up is still in the old unsecured garage and Hertz makes everyone go to the Gold line for your car keys (which were pre-assigned) because you just drive right out of the garage once you have your car keys (no exit booths).

Kacee

Yes, but they used to tell you what was available and let you pick, or encourage you to take a look and let them know what you wanted. Now they preassign a vehicle and hand you the keys - no choice offered.

MCO Flyer

Hopefully it will get better once the new CONRAC is fully open. Right now the CONRAC garage is only open for rental returns while all pick ups and counters are still located in the old unsecured garage. When the new Maui CONRAC opened 2 years ago, I know that Hertz added Ultimate Choice to the location so hopefully National will get better at HNL when the new garage facility fully opens later this year.

Kacee

And it looks like a huge upgrade. As it should be . . . been under construction for nearly five years now.

MCO Flyer

Right now, they already have the rental return lanes in the completed section of the new CONRAC Garage and it's definitely an improvement over the old tight garage and lots used for returns. They also have brand new restrooms located next to the new elevators/escalators that take you down to the Terminal 2 walkway which was nice as I was dying to use the RR when I got to the rental car drop off and was hoping I didn't have to wait until the Terminal. It's confusing to find the rental car return entrance right now due to the road configuration, but I assume that this is temporary and will be smoother once the garage and construction is fully complete.

roadman3313

For a data point - was in HNL this past week. Picked up on Tuesday at 2pm and Dropped off on Thursday at 1130am.

Pickup was straight forward and I seemed to be the only one around. Counter had a sign that said go straight up to the booth on the 4th (I think) level of the garage. Went up to the both and the lady inside was very friendly. She asked for ID and to see the safe travels page to verify the green check marks were there. Mentioned I came interisland so she looked at my previous arrival in Maui from earlier in the week with no issue (No Interisland testing needed going to Oahu). She then asked if I wanted a car or an SUV. I mentioned they gave me an SUV on Maui so she suggested a few options. She mentioned they had a new VW Tiguan with 4Motion and asked if I would like to try it out. I figured why not so she offered me the keys and directed me to the stall number. That was that.

Looking at the vehicle selection, they had around 40 vehicles parked in stalls. There were a variety of sedans, SUV's, and Convertibles. Also had a few premium and luxury vehicles as well. When I booked the only options were Economy through Full Size so I just booked the Full Size option. My fears of a shortage were put at ease between my experience here and at OGG. Granted I did ask her how things were going and she mentioned that this past week was a much needed break for them as they were able to reclaim much of their inventory between the post-Memorial Day travel returns and the start of the summer rush. It was the most inventory she had seen in a while.

I will also second MCO Flyer's comment above. I practically ran to the Restrooms when returning but they certainly were nice. It was a zig zag to try to find the CONRAC Garage, however they did add some additional signage (I was told) to make it a bit easier to find. Walk to Terminal 2 was simple. All and all can't complain and it looks to only get better when the CONRAC opens in the future.

Auto Enthusiast

Was there any indication of having a choice between a regular car and an SUV because of lower demand for gas guzzlers, as oil prices keep rising?

OutofToiletPaper

Just picked up a car last night on arrival. I was the only one picking up and they had two rows of full cars. They had an Exec Aisle to choose from which was filled with Altima’s, Rogues, and Subarus. The nice agent, who seemed new, initially told me to pick anything available in the aisle, then the manager stepped in and asked what I was looking for and offered me to take a Q50 they were saving for the next day. No higher end SUVs were given as an option as he said he has to save those for the weekend.