Rental cars at Queenstown airport
 

What rental car agencies do people usually use at Queenstown airport and where do you go to book them?

I used Apex. Booked online with zero excess. A shuttle picks you up at the airport (but you need to call) or you can walk the 5 minutes to the off-site location (which I did instead).

The major brands & some 2nd tier brands are at the airport. Off airport you will the second tier local brands:- apex, omega and others. Airport to the town is not far.
https://www.queenstownairport.co.nz/
https://www.queenstownairport.co.nz/...rt/rental-cars

Book on line. Google is your friend
https://www.vroomvroomvroom.co.nz/locations/queenstown/
https://www.skyscanner.com.au/car-hi...n-airport.html

For a low cost one way relocation look at https://www.transfercar.co.nz/

Be careful with insurance and the t&c's [roads you cannot drive on , sealed vs gravel roads and more]
Tourists have a high accident rate in the Queenstown area.
Have you driven a right hand drive car before?

https://www.flyertalk.com/forum/rent...w-zealand.html
https://www.flyertalk.com/forum/ocea...ing-fines.html

Thanks guys.

I have driven in Rotorua, New Zealand before.

We booked with Hertz online and had a pleasant experience overall - new car, very clean, didn't have any issues during our 7 day trip. All the rental cars in the Hertz fleet are automatic, so if this is a concern, you are guaranteed to get an automatic car if you book with Hertz. They have a maximum coverage option which brings down the excess to zero, and as well as other options for reduced excess.

There is a kiosk at the airport and you'll walk about 10 minutes to get the car. For drop off, there are no attendants in the drop off area, so we decided to stop by the kiosk at the airport to drop off our keys. A little inconvenient if you're pressed for time.

What is "excess" and what else do I need to know? Thank you in advance!

What you pay in cash after an accident even if the car/you has insurance. (~non deductible?)
Insurance jargon and what words/clauses mean (in local law) is not the same around the world.

Correct, excess = deductible in the US. So "zero excess" is essentially "zero deductible," i.e. if you have zero excess and get in an accident, you pay no deductible for your rental damage and whatever property you damage. In addition (and someone, please correct me if I'm wrong), but for personal injuries that occur during a car accident, because of NZ's healthcare scheme, the at-fault party cannot be sued for medical coverage (this is generally a big concern in the US when a car accident occurs).

Does all this mean that all rentals in NZ come with insurance but the deductible/excess varies?

Does credit card coverage from our US credit cards even apply here? Meaning we could pick a large deductible/excess and let the credit card pay it in case of an accident?

Yes, all car rentals in NZ come with a standard amount of excess and you can reduce it to zero. For example, all Apex car rentals have a $2000 excess that comes standard and you can reduce it to $0 by paying more (something like $15-20 USD/day).

Check with your credit card provider (in writing). Been discussed on FT before for NZ. US credit cards do not always provide insurance coverage out of USA.

Excess is the term they use in NZ for deductible.