Renting a car can be a hassle with all of the options available. If you carefully plan your trip, and look into getting a great deal on a car rental, you can minimize your frustration and enjoy your trip. When booking your trip, especially when booking online, check into extending or reducing your rental dates by a day or two. Car rental companies often have discounts for weekly rentals or weekend rentals, so try entering your rental period to be a weekend or an entire week instead of one day or four days. You may be able to take advantage of weekend or weekly rentals and save money in the process.

When you decide to rent a car, make sure it's really necessary for you to get a bigger model or a luxury car. If you're a very tall person, the big model might make sense, and if you are trying to impress important business clients, a luxury model might be the right choice. If neither of these situations applies to you, you should consider going with a compact sedan because they are the least expensive to rent and are also great on gas mileage. Some compact cars can be rented for approximately $30 per day, making them a good bargain.

Some car rental companies have two options for renting a car and purchasing gasoline. One option is to pay a slightly higher premium at the time of rental and not have to fill the gas tank before turning the car in. Another is to pay a lower rental fee, but then you have to fill the tank before turning the car in to the company. With the price of gasoline on the rise, it may be wiser to pay the premium price for the rental and not have to worry about filling the tank before turning the car in to the rental agency.

Another way to save money on car rental costs is to take advantage of special promotions and deals that may be offered through travel agencies or travel-related companies. You can often get a great deal by booking your rental car along with your airfare and hotel stay. You can also take advantage of credit card rewards programs or car rental programs offered by third party companies. Looking for such programs may take a bit of time and research, but it will pay off when you save money on your car rental.