Which would you do? Rental car

jlw2505

We are going on vacation summer, flying into Boston then driving to RI for a week and ending the trip at a friends in Boston.  We are renting a car for the week.  Our options are:

 A.  Rent a car at a rental place at the airport - we would get a Ford Fusion or a car that size.

 

B. Rent a car from a place off-site which saves us about $200 but will add an hour or 2 onto our trip as we would need to take a shuttle or taxi from the airport to Allston which is where the car rental place is.  With this place, we could rent a Prius which could save us even more money on gas.

 

I should add that the place we are staying is about a 2 hour drive from the airport - not counting the horrible Friday night traffic we will hit.  Our flight lands at 5pm.

I am very torn as $200 is a decent amount of money but the thought of all that extra time after traveling all day is making me second guess the decision.  If it was just DH and I, I wouldn't even think twice about it but the girls are 3 and 5 and while they travel great, that could be a really, really long night even if we do dinner before we start driving, put them into PJ's and hope they fall asleep in the car.  DH really wants to do plan B.

Rebekah1021

If the $200 isn't going to make or break you, I would do A. it just seems like a lot of hassle. Not to mention, your time and less stress might be worth the extra money.

camrude

 We did the offsite car rental last year on a trip (with the kids) and the $135 we saved was not worth the hassle.

 

So, I'm with R if the money is not a deal breaker, go with the airport rental.

DevonPow

Allston isn't that bad in terms of distance, but it will be a PITA to take a taxi on Friday afternoon to get there. I say rent at the airport. Allston isn't worth seeing, LOL. 

jlw2505

Thank you - that is totally my thought but my DH is really into saving every penny.  I just feel like adding all that extra time is too much hassle at that time of the evening - hitting bed time and with all the traffic we are going to hit anyway. 

jlw2505

DevonPow:

Allston isn't that bad in terms of distance, but it will be a PITA to take a taxi on Friday afternoon to get there. I say rent at the airport. Allston isn't worth seeing, LOL. 

  I lived in Allston for a year, Boston for 3 so I know the area well.  I have tried to explain all of this to my DH - the horrible traffic, that we can't take the T due to all the luggage, car seats, etc that we will have.  I am just really dreading the drive out of the city to RI - I have been stuck in that traffic many times and will be happy when that part of the trip is over.  We seriously could not be arriving into town at the worst time.

DevonPow

Oh lord, don't take the T! The B line with little kids, luggae, and car seats??  I have the heebie jeebies just thinking of it.

 Are you going to Newport? It won't be pretty, but may not be that bad...landing at 5 you won't be on the road until 6:30 probably...you could always spend the 1st night in Boston and then head our on Saturday to RI

jlw2505

DevonPow:

Oh lord, don't take the T! The B line with little kids, luggae, and car seats??  I have the heebie jeebies just thinking of it.

 Are you going to Newport? It won't be pretty, but may not be that bad...landing at 5 you won't be on the road until 6:30 probably...you could always spend the 1st night in Boston and then head our on Saturday to RI

  We are going to Narragansett.  I think it is close to Newport as I know we are planning to spend some time in Newport (I love Newport).  I have not really looked at a map a ton to see exactly where we are going - this is a huge family trip and I didn't do any of the planning.  Staying in Boston that 1st night is not really an option.  Everyone is arriving Friday night so we really want to get there that night, even if its late, so the kids can see all their cousins/aunts/uncles/grandparents the next morning.  We are spending time in Boston at the end of the trip with friends of mine from when I lived there. 

ridesbuttons

I'd go for the cheaper rental.  My experience in airport car rentals has not always been swift.  The time difference might not be as large as you imagine.

emiliemadison

I've flown in and out of Boston many times and believe me, renting a car off site isnt going to be worth it for the frustration or hassle.