Needless to say I never did get my reserved rent-a-car from Alamo rent-a-car at the Kona, Hawaii Airport.
I’m writing this true story tonight because I feel very bad for all of those unlucky tourist who are still sitting around the dark Alamo parking lot at the Kona airport wondering if and when they will ever get their rent-a-car.
I arrived in Kona late at 9:00 p.m. tonight just wanting to get to my hotel room and go to bed.
I’m here reporting on the Ironman World Championships for our sister blog EverymanTRI.com.
I jumped on the Alamo rent-a-car shuttle, made my way to to Alamo rent-a-car counter and waited in line for my turn to pick-up my reserved Alamo rent-a-car.
$259.00 for 5 days in Hawaii seemed like a fair deal for an economy car during what must be one of the most busy weeks of the big Island year.
The friendly agent at the counter took my reservation, swiped my credit card. All seemed normal except I was a little curious why so many dejected people were milling about the Alamo rent-a-car parking lot.
The Alamo rent-a-car agent told me to walk outside where a greeter would take me to my rental car. Strange, I’ve never been escorted to a rental by a greeter, I thought; nor was I told what model of car was waiting for me.
So it came as a bit of surprise that instead of a greeter (or reserved rental car) I was standing in another line waiting for a shuttle bus with many other very tired and curious Alamo rent-a-car customers. When I finally made it to the front of the line I found out the reason for the delay. I was informed that Alamo rent-a-car was out of cars and I would be driven (at some point) to my hotel in a shuttle. When would I get my car, I asked the Alamo rent-a-car manager? She replied that she did not know. Could be tomorrow or it could be never with the race being help on Saturday and more people arriving on the island I thought to myself.
Of course in this day of computerized everything it is pretty odd to run out of cars for people who have long-standing reservations. But it in another thing indeed to not inform those customers that they are SOL, swipe their credit cards, send them out the door to another line and eventually shuttle them to their hotels with no firm car rental commitment.
I have a busy day tomorrow so the idea of being stranded at my hotel with no way to get to my meetings was unacceptable. I simple walked down the very dark rent-a-row and asked if anyone had cars. Of course the agent at Alamo informed me that no one did, but as it turned out Avis had cars for rent.
After renting a car from Avis I returned to Alamo tired but now with a car for $389.00 USD for the 5 days. A long line of new arrivals were waiting in line to not rent a car. I requested my money back and the rental contract was cancelled.
As I was driving to my hotel I began to ponder why Alamo simple did not inform me that they didn’t have my reserved car on the airport shuttle bus or at the office counter. Why did they swipe my credit card, why did they tell me the greeter would take me to my car only to make me wait in another long and frustrating line for a shuttle ride to a hotel over 40 minutes away from the airport?
Why would Alamo take more reservations than available cars? Is this a common Alamo business practice to not honor reservations, not inform the customer, and yet to still process the credit card? Would Alamo deliver a car to my hotel the next day, the following day, or never and still charge me for a 5 day rental?
I asked some of these questions but all I was told was to get on a shuttle.
These are the same questions that I’m sure are running through the minds of the dozens of other stranded Alamo customers right now are still waiting at the dark Alamo parking lot with little to no choice but to start their big island Hawaiian holiday (or Ironman race week) captive of what to many might look, smell and feel like a deceptive business practice.
