Thanks to all who post here. I am wondering if there is any savings in reserving a car ahead of time or just wait til we arrive on the island.

Thanks

Depends on what time of the year you want the car/truck. A lot of people rent transpertation on Bonaire.

Marcolva Maria Henriquez (Poppy)
Telerin Car Rental
P.O.Box 347
Cell: 599-9-5163001 (24 Hrs)
Tel: 599-717-4108 ( office)
e-mail: marcolva@hotmail.com

Check out this lady! She will meet you at the airport with your rental! No waiting in line, and no walking to the other rental offices... Ron

Yes, I read a lot of posts and have sent off emails. Poppy's was the most expensive, unfortunately. We will be there mid-May.

The only concern I would have about waiting would be that demand might exceed supply and there would be nothing available. Maybe that's not an issue in Bonaire. We've always reserved ahead of time. I tend to overplan though and hate leaving stuff up in the air.

I would say reserve a car/truck in advance. Better safe than sorry.

Wow, when we rented from Poppy in May of last year, she was the cheapest ... with awesome personalized service. Sorry to hear she won't work out for you.

We just rented from AB car rental and they were very great to work with, we had a problem with one truck and we had another in about 5 minutes!!

Do not rent from Island Car Rental- we nearly missed our early (0730 AM flight on Continental 1899) due to the Island Car rental agent's insistence that the flight always left at 0830. Fortunately, I am not a trusting soul, so I insisted that my husband drop me and all our dive gear at the airport at 0600. We paid our departure tax and got ticketed, and he made a mad dash back to the rental agency at the Plaza to drop off the vehicle. They were nonchalant about their misinformation, but it caused a lot of stress and panic for us. He was the last person through security that morning (02/21). I think what really bugged us was their insistence the airlines was wrong, and they were right-go figure. There were plenty of issues with the two vehicles we rented as well. Rent from someone else-until they can get things straightened out there....

Indeed, very unpleasant for you guys.
I have always rented from Voyager Events. I think that they are the cheapest (got the info from serving on the net) and the service was great. I had a small problem with a pick up truck once, but they fixed it in no time......

My personal approach is to reserve a car in advance. They can run out (more likely during certain times of the year).

My approach: Take a taxi to your hotel when you arrive. You are tired and just got off of a long plane ride -- do you really want to wait in a long line? Besides, the taxi knows where your hotel is and they can help load the bags.

Either later that day, or the next day, I pick up the rental. As I have it pre-reserved, they meet me at my hotel at a certain time. I am a bit more rested. And, the best part, if you are staying in whole week increments, I often avoid the cost of an extra day -- thus paying for the taxi ride and then some.

One other tip: Be sure to compare apples to apples on prices. Extra driver fees vary place to place. Insurance varies place to place (both in coverage and in cost). Plus there are taxes. Somebody that quotes an all-in rate may seem expensive but may end up being cheaper than another quote that left out some of these items. Your CC car rental insurance may or may not cover you -- check in advance. While it can save you money, you need to understand the limitations on locations, vehicle type and coverage.

PROBLEM - I DID rent a car from VOYAVER EVENTS CAR RENTALS & TOURS and was troubled when the man told me the $565 US refundable deposit would stay on my credit card for a month. It is over a month, the charge is still on my bill and I am now fighting with my credit card company to have the charge removed. An email to VOYAGER has gone unanswered. .