Western USA: From San Francisco, Los Angeles, Highway 1, Palm Springs, Las Vegas, Salt Lake City, Gr

Initially, they gave me a car larger than the one I booked (I reserved a 7-seater SUV). I was about to accept it, but it felt too big to drive comfortably. I went back to explain my concerns, and the staff was very nice and accommodating. They persisted and eventually found the model I wanted.

I had prepaid the full amount and arrived at the store at around 12:30 am, only to be told there were no cars available in the reserved category. They insisted I pay an additional $100 per day to upgrade, or else I could only get a 12-seater van. Unacceptable! I tried contacting the rental company, but their phone line was always busy. Online customer service said the rental company needed to provide proof of no available cars, which the AVIS staff refused to issue. They kept trying to convince me to pay the $100 upgrade. After much argument and a dying phone battery, I left the counter to charge my phone at a nearby table. Only then did the staff call me back, saying they had a returned car available. It took an hour of wrangling to finally get the car at 1 am. Shame on AVIS!

I compared for a long time before choosing Avis, attracted by the international brand. They didn't disappoint us. The San Francisco airport has a light rail directly to the car rental center with all major rental companies. The big companies have queues, but the speed was acceptable. There was no aggressive push for insurance. After handling the paperwork, they just told us the car slot number, and we went to the parking lot with our voucher to pick up the car. We originally booked a Chrysler but ended up with a Kia. Initially, we were a bit disappointed, but it turned out to drive very well, great acceleration and handling, overall a fantastic driving experience. Returning the car was also very convenient; we just filled up the gas and drove to the parking lot, they checked it quickly and processed our return. Since we returned the car two days earlier, we even got a refund for those two days.

Very simple process

The cars from Avis in San Francisco are not very new. When I went to pick up the car, they informed me that the reserved model was not available and gave me a very old Ford instead, claiming it was the only similar model available. If I wanted to change cars, I had to pay extra. I saw many similar models at the pickup point, but after checking and returning to the counter, they still insisted it wasn't the same type and that I had to pay extra. The attendant was Chinese and tried to overcharge me just the same. I thought a big company like Avis wouldn’t have such issues. Finally, after arguing with the manager, they gave me another car, which they claimed was an upgraded Ford Explorer.