I get queries about car and van rentals, either self-drive or with a driver very often. It wasn’t many tears ago that this sort of information was really hard to find. It still is, a bit, today but the Internet is really opening up business. Here, in no particular order are car rental agencies I will post as I come across them. Unless I say differently these are not people I recommend or don’t recommend, just a resource to help my readers with some of their most frequent questions.
Here are a previous car rental post for reference Car Rentals It’s Not Like Home and a few sites I found i8n Saturday’s paper. A year ago one never even saw web sites for car rental companies, now I saw 4 on one page:
I liked this company the best of the four I looked at closely, mainly because they seem quite innovative. Like many Philippine businesses that seek to copy their US counterparts a lot of local offerings here are, well, boring. They sell the same things you are used to and often with more restrictions or less customer service. CarLines goes a little farther dozen the road of innovation and I applaud them for it. As an example they have Coaster (small Toyota bus) rentals which would be just the thing when some family celebration turns into a huge undertaking and you can’t figure out how all the relatives are going to get to the same place at the same time. They also have a very cute "Wedding Car" package … a lot of people reading sites about the Philippines are planning a wedding … or a renewal of vows … here someday and this would be a lovely addition. Worth a look at any rate.
RedWheels has a pretty comprehensive web site and a good selection of vehicles. Their site is certainly worth a look if you are in the market. They are only in the Manila area and I found that their identification requirements are among the most onerous. As Americans we are so used to walking up to a counter at the airport, showing a driver’s license and a credit card and getting a set of keys in seconds. I doesn’t happen that way in the Philippines. Most places expect several days notice for a reservation and you had better be prepared to bring a lot of identity documents and a wad of cash (few agencies rent on credit cards). This is one of the things about the Philippines that is either good or bad, but which you must prepare for. Many people don’t bother to find out the differences before they come and as a result they begin their own "horror stories" about their trip before they even get underway. Some things here just … well … "are".
CitiWheels has some good features but I don’t see much difference in any of these guys’s rates. I wouldn’t want to say that price-fixing is alive and well, but the market apparently sets its own level pretty accurately and the differentiations between any of these guys is much more likely to be service and responsiveness rather than price.
These folks, ToyCo Rent a Car, seem to have the most comprehensive program. They have offices in many major cities, direct US reservation numbers and are the only ones I notice who offer trip packages and allow their cars to travel via the Philippines RoRo (Roll On, Roll Off) ferry system, so you can drive from Northern Luzon all the way to Southern Mindanao.
Popularity: 9% [?]
Hi again, Another source of rental vehicles with drivers are the resorts themselves. And sometimes even hotels and apartments. I know the two times I have been to the Philippines, an apartment in Manila pickled us up at the airport for free and had daily, hourly and trip rates. Another resort in Buang that we stayed at also had a van and driver for hire. Also, when leaving Luzon one time, my friend talked a local into driving us back to Manila. Of course he brought along all his family too! Why not? I was paxing for the ride.
@John in Austria: Hi John. Indeed the hotel you are in is leable to be the best choice. Or, a local source whom you won’t find on the ‘Net. Example, there’s aguy at the end of my street with a nice Toyota van who rents out whenerever .. with driver. I don’t know his current rates but they are reasonable. My sister-in-law around the corner has used aguy with a big Mercedes van several times for trips to Baguio .. again I’d have to ask for a current update but this guy’s rates were way less than most commercially quoted rates. And across the street from ‘mom and dad’ is an old family friend, Alvin, he has an older Adventure like mne and is out with cleints 5 or 6 times a week … he charges onder 2000 php, gas and tolls included for an airport pickup or drop off and knows ‘short cut’ streets I haven’t even discovered yet.
MECA-J Rent A Car provides excellent and low-priced car rental service in Bacolod City and in the island of Negros. Our office is conveniently situated in front of the old Bacolod City Airport. Our goal is client satisfaction that is why we provide you with latest car models at very reasonable prices.
In MECA-J Rent A Car, we go the extra mile to serve your needs. Our service includes delivery of the rented car to your desired location, pick-up of the rented car from your desired location, emergency roadside assistance, and many others.
http://www.bacolodtransports.bravehost.com/
Telephone No.: (034) 4336954
Cellphone No.: (+63)9189282560
Email: mecaj.bacolod@gmail.com
Proprietor: Jessie S. Jimenez
@Jessie Jimenez: I noticed you left a comment on my PhilFAQS blog. I welcome the chnace to notify my readers but I feel that any advertising which doesn’t list your rates is just a headache to me … are your rates sectret, or are they set differently for each customer? Please consider adding your rates to your website and just saying hello and dropping off the link to your site, I feel that would be much more effective.
Hi Philly,
Thank you very much for the advice. We’re kinda new with this internet thing so we’re still trying to learn the ropes. Our price is negotiable depending on the length of rental. I will surely post rates on my website once it’s all set.
Thank you very much again Sir.
Hi Jessie, thanks for reading and for commenting. I’m mystified though as to what advice I gave … the article you are commenting on is several years old. If you are part of the rental car industry in the Philippines, do write back and tell us more … it’s something my readers want to know about and finding current information is almost like pulling teeth … there _are_ rental car companies here, but mostly they seem to be embarrassed to talk about who they are, what they offer and how one gets in contact with them from overseas.
have used Toyo several times in Davao. They are good people.
Thanks Rich, for that update, and for dropping by and commenting