CAR RENTAL TIP

if you're going to rent a car at an airport ... do yourself a TREMENDOUS favor and sign up for the rental car company's preferred member program. At Avis it's called "Preferred" ... at Hertz it's called "Gold Member" ... I think it's "Fastlane" at Dollar ... etc. The programs are typically free of charge to join; they simply require a credit card number to hold your reservation. (It's not like a hotel; they don't charge you if you don't cancel a reservation. And you can pay with cash or debit card when you turn the rental car in.)

I flew to San Francisco today; the lines in the rental car building were HUGE. People were waiting upwards of one hour to get the keys to their cars.

However, the "preferred" members got to bypass the line and go straight to their cars. The contracts are electronically printed up and placed in the cars. When one exits the lot, all that has to be shown is the contract and the driver's license. It's that easy! It can be a major time saver; especially when flying in and out of large airports.