Originally Posted by cyccommute
I've used one-way rental car for going to and returning from tours. It works well and is very convenient. A word of caution however: not all car rental agencies will do one ways. Budget works for one-way rentals (you can do it from their website) but Budget has a weird system. It has corporate owned outlets and franchise outlets. You can't rent a car at a corporate outlet and drop it at a franchise. So, for instance, renting a car from Denver to South Dakota, I couldn't get a rental to Rapid City, even though they have an outlet there. I had to go to Souix Falls.
National does one-ways also but they have more outlets you can use. I'm going to try them next time.
Be aware that there is an extra charge for taking a car from the west to the east (across the Mississsippi). Even if it's only a few miles there is still a charge.
Stuart Black
Right, and that charge varies from outlet to outlet. If you happen to rent from a place near an airport, the charge is higher than if you rent from a place downtown. Smaller towns will also often charge more. Occasionally, with some companies, you can luck out and get a reduced rate for moving a vehicle one way because something has happened and the company needs to get this vehicle to the next town ... so if you happen to come along at the right time ...
Sometimes also, the rates listed on the internet will be quite different from what the individual outlets will charge you.
But he needs to check the internet, and pick up a phone and start making calls ... find out how much each of the possible methods will cost, and how far he can get with them (planes, busses, and trains may not take you to the exact city you want). Also don't forget to ask about how much the various methods of transportation will charge for the bicycle, and how they would like the bicycle packaged, and if you can buy the appropriate packaging there (you can buy bicycle boxes at airports, but I don't know if that's possible with busses and trains).