Hertz and Etihad Partner Up for Seamless Travel Experience

In the latest of promising industry developments, Hertz and Etihad have signed a three-year contract to offer a “seamless air to road luxury travel” experience, bringing Etihad customers money-saving deals and benefits. The partnership will integrate Hertz and Etihad’s technology platforms so travellers can conveniently book rental cars through Hertz’s dedicated microsite for Etihad customers, etihad.com as well as Etihad’s call centres and retail outlets.

In terms of perks, Etihad Guest loyalty program members will get access to exclusive offers on etihad.com on top of receiving 500 Guest Miles with each rental. Meanwhile, Etihad’s Pearl Business Class passengers will receive a 15% discount when renting luxury vehicles from the Hertz Prestige Collection, while Diamond First Class guests will receive complimentary access to the top level of Hertz #1 Club, the President’s Circle.

We did a quick check to see the level of discount that may be on offer – a 3-day hire from Melbourne Tullamarine airport showed the following rates:

• Economy Car (Toyota Yaris hatch): Hertz direct A$195.58; Via Etihad A$154.67 = 21% savings
• Standard Car (Toyota Camry sedan): Hertz direct A$217.63; Via Etihad A$189.97 = 12% savings

Not bad.

This is a first in terms of the depth of integration between an airline and car rental company and we’re glad for those who are in the position to take advantage of its effects. Kudos to improving customer experience. Lets hope this motivates more such partnerships to develop so we have more access to better deals.

Introductory Offer: All Etihad customers renting a car with Hertz by April 30, 2011 will have the chance to win a luxurious package of two return Etihad flights to either Europe or Australia, five nights’ 5-star accommodation at Relais & Chateaux, and the use of a Hertz Prestige Collection vehicle for five days to explore the open road.

Links:
Etihad Airways
Hertz (Etihad partner information)

Qantas Frequent Flyer Goes Exclusive With Avis & Budget (Promo codes inside)

Significant changes are on the horizon for Qantas Frequent Flyer members. A new exclusivity agreement means that from 19 November 2010 onwards, members will only get car hire discounts and perks when renting with Avis and Budget. So for anyone that favours Hertz or Thrifty, you’ll still be eligible to collect points for rentals that are completed by 18 November 2010, but after that, no more.

This move is supposed to be beneficial. QFF says it will allow them to offer a higher level of offers from their exclusive partners, thereby maximizing savings for their members. However, the obvious major drawback is that we are now limited to a choice of only two car hire companies instead of four.

As a sign of goodwill perhaps, to kick things off, all Australian car rentals three days or more from Avis or Budget that are picked up by 31 October 2010 will earn you an extra bonus 1,000 points on top of the usual points. Below we’ve listed the promotional codes you’ll have to enter to receive this bonus:

Bonus 1,000 Extra Qantas Frequent Flyer Points

Avis coupon code: MPPA074
Budget coupon number: MPNZ010

Let’s just hope QFF wrings out enough goodies to compensate for our lost options.

If you’re looking for a deal, don’t forget to check our collection of other car hire coupons and discounts from Avis, Budget, Europcar, Hertz and Thrifty.

CONTEST: Drive A Dream Sports Car For A Weekend!

Feeling lucky? We’ve discovered an opportunity for you to drive a sweet sports car for the weekend!

All you’ve got to do is give your most convincing spiel in 300 words on just why your weekend would be tremendously improved with a sports car. So dust off your creative brain and submit your best entry by 10 September 2010.

The top 3 winners will be picked and informed on 20 September 2010 – 1 winner for each of NSW, VIC, and QLD. The NSW winner gets the Audi A5, VIC the BMW coupe, and QLD the Porsche.

Don’t forget to tick the box for “Sign up to receive information from DriveMyCarRentals.com.au and Hotels.com” – that’s the small catch – for your entry to be valid.

This contest is only open to Australian residents.

Enter the competition here

Good luck!

Gold Coast Car Hire: Mouth-watering Specials from Thrifty

Deal coupons from the various car hire companies tend to blur together given how similar they can be. For example, you often have a choice of 3 or more companies at a time offering free upgrades.

BUT when it comes to the Gold Coast, we’ve gotta say, Thrifty’s one up on everyone else. They have some fantastic deals no one else offers. We checked, double checked, and indeed they are the Real McCoys – you can truly save if you intend on going to theme parks or other attractions that require entrance fees. Read more

Car Hire Discounts from Partner Programs

Do you find yourself thinking that you have too many cards in your wallet, too many different loyalty programs and too many point schemes to consider? If so you probably feel you waste hours trying to understand the offers, when you would rather be planning the more enjoyable parts of your holiday.

Car hire is one such area, so we’ve taken a closer look at types of loyalty program tie-ups and point schemes you can find at Australia’s five major car hire providers – Avis, Budget, Europcar, Hertz and Thrifty. Read more

Frequent Renter Programs: Is There A Winner?

Are you driving in circles with your frequent renter program options but failing to get anywhere?

Loyalty programs are offered by all of Australia’s five major car hire companies, but at a glance it can be hard to determine if any are superior. So we set our research team to work to find you the answer. Read more

Snow Snow Snow! Winter 2010 Car Hire Guide is here!

We’ve updated our Winter Car Hire Guide for 2010. All you need to know about who and where to rent from! Have a look see and enjoy tearing up the slopes! Yeehaw!

Time’s a-ticking so pay attention: Europcar’s Earlybird Special offers 10% discount if you place your booking by 11 June 2010!

Car Hire Coupons & Discount Codes Galore

It’s ready! We’ve worked to gather all the car hire coupons, discount codes and deals from Australia’s Big Boys of Avis, Budget, Europcar, Hertz and Thrifty.

Now all you have to do is check our car rental coupons page and presto, everything in one place. No more opening five windows and jumping around, having as much success comparing the specials as a goldfish trying to master trigonometry.

And we’ve even filtered out the duds (trust us, there are duds). We only list the offers that actually give you extra benefits. Often these companies promote so-called specials of “great daily rates” or “waived fees” which are in reality already reflected in the search results of comparison sites without you having to punch in a coupon number i.e. they don’t make any difference at all. But not the ones we’ve handpicked: make a booking with them and you will truly get a deal you would have missed out on otherwise.

And do share with us and help out your fellow hirer if you come across a hot deal we may have missed. In the meantime, we will continue to avidly hunt down any and every worthwhile special.