Cars at YYC
Mar 20, 2009, 6:52 am
#1
Original Poster
Join Date: Oct 2008
Location: YYJ
Programs: Aeroplan, Priority Club, National Exec Elite, Hertz #1 Gold, Avis First, Thrifty Bluechip
Posts: 1,924
Cars at YYC
YYC is an Emerald Reserve location. Anybody have any experience there recently? I know they throw upgrades out now and again and I'm wondering about my chances of getting an SUV or minivan in the fullsize section.
May 1, 2009, 12:51 am
#2
Original Poster
Join Date: Oct 2008
Location: YYJ
Programs: Aeroplan, Priority Club, National Exec Elite, Hertz #1 Gold, Avis First, Thrifty Bluechip
Posts: 1,924
First Report
So I was at YYC this morning (30th) around 9:30 am. Here's what I saw...
There was a PT Cruiser in one of the two compact stalls.
Midsize had an assortment including:
Chrysler PT Cruiser
Chrysler Sebring
Dodge Avenger
Kia Rondo
Kia Spectra
Fullsize was Sonatas and a couple Altimas, plus a Grand Caravan which I grabbed (actually had an SUV booking).
Minivan section also had a lone Grand Caravan.
No Premium, Luxury, or SUV's to speak of! The stalls appeared to be an extension of the regular ER rows, as there were more Spectras, Rondos, and PTs in them (who knew a PT doubled as an SUV). I guess with so few bookings for them they just pulled them up as needed, as the roaming agent was prepared to do for me until I took the minivan instead (needed more room).
There was a Chrysler 300 Touring sitting near the end and I saw the keys on the board in the exit booth on a LCAR hook. So I guess it was there as an upgrade.
So yeah, nothing too exotic or exciting at this location. One more item worthy of note: It's advisable to take the prepaid fuel option at YYC to avoid pulling your hair out on return. There's only one station near the airport and it's a doozy to get into. You have to make a left-hand turn to enter and exit (right turn entry is forbidden and right turn exit takes you away from the airport with no turn-around). Both left turns are nearly impossible due to traffic.
If you must refuel yourself, don't take the Airport Trail exit off of the Deerfoot, but rather take Country Hills Blvd. You'll find an assortment of stations about a mile from the freeway if you turn away from the airport signs, then follow Country Hills back to the terminal.
There was a PT Cruiser in one of the two compact stalls.
Midsize had an assortment including:
Chrysler PT Cruiser
Chrysler Sebring
Dodge Avenger
Kia Rondo
Kia Spectra
Fullsize was Sonatas and a couple Altimas, plus a Grand Caravan which I grabbed (actually had an SUV booking).
Minivan section also had a lone Grand Caravan.
No Premium, Luxury, or SUV's to speak of! The stalls appeared to be an extension of the regular ER rows, as there were more Spectras, Rondos, and PTs in them (who knew a PT doubled as an SUV). I guess with so few bookings for them they just pulled them up as needed, as the roaming agent was prepared to do for me until I took the minivan instead (needed more room).
There was a Chrysler 300 Touring sitting near the end and I saw the keys on the board in the exit booth on a LCAR hook. So I guess it was there as an upgrade.
So yeah, nothing too exotic or exciting at this location. One more item worthy of note: It's advisable to take the prepaid fuel option at YYC to avoid pulling your hair out on return. There's only one station near the airport and it's a doozy to get into. You have to make a left-hand turn to enter and exit (right turn entry is forbidden and right turn exit takes you away from the airport with no turn-around). Both left turns are nearly impossible due to traffic.
If you must refuel yourself, don't take the Airport Trail exit off of the Deerfoot, but rather take Country Hills Blvd. You'll find an assortment of stations about a mile from the freeway if you turn away from the airport signs, then follow Country Hills back to the terminal.
May 1, 2009, 1:21 am
#3
Join Date: Jan 2005
Location: SoCal
Programs: AA EP, OZ Diamond, WS Plat, Avis CHM, Hertz PC, Hilton Diamond, Marriott Gold, Hyatt Explorist
Posts: 910
The Nationals in YYC (the entire city) have never been all too inspiring. As an Avis guy (Chairman) I rarely rent from National, but the times I have they've been no bigger than the odd trailblazer and the Chrysler 300. How can the 300 qualify as an LCAR anyway??
To add to the refueling thing ...
For those out of town, the best place to refuel is still at the station at the edge of the airport, even with uturns (just overshoot into the employee parking lot, then uturn), and then uturn at the Park n' Fly parking lot on your way back to the terminal. At most you're adding 1-2 minutes including light-wait. If you know your way around, tuneman's directions are good from the north. If you're coming from the South on Hwy 2 (Deerfoot Tr), there is a station at the 64th Ave exit, or if you're coming up via Barlow Tr, then a few dotted on McKnight/19th Street, Barlow/32 Ave, etc.
To add to the refueling thing ...
For those out of town, the best place to refuel is still at the station at the edge of the airport, even with uturns (just overshoot into the employee parking lot, then uturn), and then uturn at the Park n' Fly parking lot on your way back to the terminal. At most you're adding 1-2 minutes including light-wait. If you know your way around, tuneman's directions are good from the north. If you're coming from the South on Hwy 2 (Deerfoot Tr), there is a station at the 64th Ave exit, or if you're coming up via Barlow Tr, then a few dotted on McKnight/19th Street, Barlow/32 Ave, etc.
May 1, 2009, 8:58 am
#5
Original Poster
Join Date: Oct 2008
Location: YYJ
Programs: Aeroplan, Priority Club, National Exec Elite, Hertz #1 Gold, Avis First, Thrifty Bluechip
Posts: 1,924
Had one this past weekend and it was great for errand running.
May 1, 2009, 1:29 pm
#6
Join Date: Mar 2006
Programs: Avis First, Hertz Gold, National EE
Posts: 178
Mar 23, 2010, 9:33 am
#7
Join Date: May 2009
Location: Canada's worst airport....YYJ
Programs: AC: E75K, Marriott :Titanium, National: EXEC ELITE
Posts: 595
Did a swap on a local rental at YYC yesterday. Exec. Selection had 4 Chrysler 300's (woo-hoo), Emerald Aisle was a couple of Grand Caravans, 2 Altimas and 3 Chargers. Full Size was Altimas and Chargers. Mid-Size was a mix of Kia Rondos, Nissan Sentras, and the ever-loathsome PT Cruiser.
I generally rent from the DT location, but all they had yesterday was a Sonata (which I refuse to drive, as I have to drive my wife's crappy Hyundai on a regular basis) or Charger (which is the worst s*#tbox on the road). So I downgraded to a Mazda 3, only to find it didn't have cruise and I have a bunch of highway travel this week. So I stopped at the airport and pulled the swap, and I took an Altima from the Aisle (far better than any Chrysler product).
I agree that National generally doesn't have an inspired line-up in Calgary, but recently they received a Volvo C30 and S40. Had the S40 last time, nice ride. Just don't sit in the back seat...
I generally rent from the DT location, but all they had yesterday was a Sonata (which I refuse to drive, as I have to drive my wife's crappy Hyundai on a regular basis) or Charger (which is the worst s*#tbox on the road). So I downgraded to a Mazda 3, only to find it didn't have cruise and I have a bunch of highway travel this week. So I stopped at the airport and pulled the swap, and I took an Altima from the Aisle (far better than any Chrysler product).
I agree that National generally doesn't have an inspired line-up in Calgary, but recently they received a Volvo C30 and S40. Had the S40 last time, nice ride. Just don't sit in the back seat...
Mar 23, 2010, 8:47 pm
#9
Join Date: Mar 2005
Location: YVR
Programs: AC SE, HH Gold, Marriott Titanium, National EE, Sixt Platinum, Hertz PC, AVIS PC
Posts: 1,908
From the latest Emerald Email:
Emerald Club convenience comes to Canada.
Good news. We've just streamlined your travels in Canada by adding clearly marked Emerald Club Aisle and Executive Selection service on the Calgary, Montreal and Vancouver lots. Just bypass the counter and follow the signs to the Emerald Aisle/Executive Selection areas to choose your rental car. Even finding us is easy:
• Calgary: proceed to the parkade in the Rental Car Center
• Montreal: located in the parkade on the arrivals level
• Vancouver: located in the parkade on the ground level
No Toronto.. go figure. One of the worst locations, period.
Ron.
Emerald Club convenience comes to Canada.
Good news. We've just streamlined your travels in Canada by adding clearly marked Emerald Club Aisle and Executive Selection service on the Calgary, Montreal and Vancouver lots. Just bypass the counter and follow the signs to the Emerald Aisle/Executive Selection areas to choose your rental car. Even finding us is easy:
• Calgary: proceed to the parkade in the Rental Car Center
• Montreal: located in the parkade on the arrivals level
• Vancouver: located in the parkade on the ground level
No Toronto.. go figure. One of the worst locations, period.
Ron.
Mar 25, 2010, 3:13 am
#10
Original Poster
Join Date: Oct 2008
Location: YYJ
Programs: Aeroplan, Priority Club, National Exec Elite, Hertz #1 Gold, Avis First, Thrifty Bluechip
Posts: 1,924
From the latest Emerald Email:
Emerald Club convenience comes to Canada.
Good news. We've just streamlined your travels in Canada by adding clearly marked Emerald Club Aisle and Executive Selection service on the Calgary, Montreal and Vancouver lots. Just bypass the counter and follow the signs to the Emerald Aisle/Executive Selection areas to choose your rental car. Even finding us is easy:
• Calgary: proceed to the parkade in the Rental Car Center
• Montreal: located in the parkade on the arrivals level
• Vancouver: located in the parkade on the ground level
No Toronto.. go figure. One of the worst locations, period.
Ron.
Emerald Club convenience comes to Canada.
Good news. We've just streamlined your travels in Canada by adding clearly marked Emerald Club Aisle and Executive Selection service on the Calgary, Montreal and Vancouver lots. Just bypass the counter and follow the signs to the Emerald Aisle/Executive Selection areas to choose your rental car. Even finding us is easy:
• Calgary: proceed to the parkade in the Rental Car Center
• Montreal: located in the parkade on the arrivals level
• Vancouver: located in the parkade on the ground level
No Toronto.. go figure. One of the worst locations, period.
Ron.
Mar 25, 2010, 7:31 am
#11
Join Date: Aug 2006
Location: Somewhere cold - preferably up a mountain
Programs: AC Subhuman (*A silver), NW Barely Alive
Posts: 842
As some advice to the earlier post - be very careful making u-turns in Alberta. They're 'illegal' unless marked otherwise. (and trust me, the police in YYC are very good at stopping traffic violations - it seems they get a bonus for speed trap and traffic violation stops)
As for National, I rent fairly regularly from the downtown location, and I think I had the same Mazda 3 that VoodooYYC got; was interesting since a) no cruise, and b) was the first car I had rented in years that had no remote door unlock! And, this was an "upgrade" to midsize? Yikes.
I didn't think much of it since it was on a $10 ($11.40 with tax) promotion and they didn't have any "compacts". I wonder what I would have had on a compact rental? The DT location is quite convenient if you're heading downtown, but I have yet to be able to find a one-way DT to YYC pickup ever available there. The website always says "no vehicles available" but there are plenty if you return DT.
As for National, I rent fairly regularly from the downtown location, and I think I had the same Mazda 3 that VoodooYYC got; was interesting since a) no cruise, and b) was the first car I had rented in years that had no remote door unlock! And, this was an "upgrade" to midsize? Yikes.
I didn't think much of it since it was on a $10 ($11.40 with tax) promotion and they didn't have any "compacts". I wonder what I would have had on a compact rental? The DT location is quite convenient if you're heading downtown, but I have yet to be able to find a one-way DT to YYC pickup ever available there. The website always says "no vehicles available" but there are plenty if you return DT.
Mar 25, 2010, 1:13 pm
#12
Join Date: May 2009
Location: Canada's worst airport....YYJ
Programs: AC: E75K, Marriott :Titanium, National: EXEC ELITE
Posts: 595
That's the one Billybob! I had to think for a second about how to get into the car without a keyfob...
Interesting about the one-way. I used to rent from them DT and return to the airport when I lived around there, but that was a while ago. But I still would have thought the locations were interchangable for return...
Interesting about the one-way. I used to rent from them DT and return to the airport when I lived around there, but that was a while ago. But I still would have thought the locations were interchangable for return...
Mar 15, 2011, 12:50 pm
#15
Join Date: Aug 2010
Location: CLT
Programs: Work from home now, no more status for me
Posts: 33
Was there Sunday around 3p. ES and EA had Nissan Altima's with looked like standard equipment. EA also had a Dodge Dakota 4x4 pickup. ES in addition to the Altima's had a couple Impala's and one 300 which I grabbed. This is the first 300 I have seen with cloth interior and no satellite radio.
They do hand you a pre-filled out report on dings on the car to sign and you can add additional items to the list. Will be back again next week, hoping for something diferent.
They do hand you a pre-filled out report on dings on the car to sign and you can add additional items to the list. Will be back again next week, hoping for something diferent.