BUDGET CAR RENTAL REVIEWS IN SPAIN

Acceptable

Very dissatisfied. I booked a BMW 3 Series, but they insisted on giving me a Japanese car. If I didn't want it, there was no other option. In the end, I had to settle for a BMW 5 Series at over 200 euros a day. Initially, they said it would be an extra 60 euros a day, but at checkout, it became an additional 120 euros a day. They said the 60 euros was a booking fee. So why mention 60 euros at all? There was only one staff member, and a long queue behind me, all urging me to hurry. I had no choice but to accept it! I ended up spending nearly 150 euros more per day!

Quick return process

There was no one to guide us to the car in Madrid, possibly because we arrived late.

Since I needed to drive 100 kilometers to another city and return to Madrid on the same day, I was worried about wasting time by going to the wrong store. Therefore, I took my order to the Budget car rental at Madrid Atocha Central Station a day in advance to confirm if this was the correct pickup location. (When booking online, I specifically chose a car rental near the city center station. The website only provided an address but no specific store name, and based on the online pickup instructions, I assumed it was this location.) The staff looked at my order and confirmed that this was indeed the correct place. However, when I went to pick up the car the next day, the same female staff member took my order, driver's license, and passport to start the process but then suddenly told me it was not here but another store, four metro stops away and a 15-minute walk. When I arrived at that store, the staff looked at my order and had a long discussion in Spanish, seemingly about some issue but did not inform me. Finally, they directed me to the basement to pick up the car. I found the car model did not match what I had reserved; I had booked a 4-door Fiat because we were two adults, a child, two large suitcases, and one small suitcase, so I didn't choose a microcar. But the car I received was a 2-door micro Fiat. Attempts to negotiate with the rental company were unsuccessful—they said it was the only vehicle available. Due to time constraints to head to Segovia, I had no choice but to take the car. The next day, when we were leaving Madrid for another city, we needed to carry all our luggage, but since the car only had one door, we couldn't load the luggage. The tiny trunk could barely fit one piece of luggage, and we couldn't close the rear door. Ultimately, we had to put the small suitcase on the back seat and leave the other one at a friend's place in Madrid. We drove for several days with the rear door not closing properly. At restaurants and tourist spots, we didn't dare to park because the door wouldn't close. This was a terrible experience.

The customer service was very friendly on the second floor of Atocha Station. I purchased full insurance from them and received excellent coverage. Picking up the car was very convenient in the parking lot across from the station.

Quick

This was my first time renting from Budget. Later I found out that Budget and Avis are the same company. Back in 2012, I rented from Avis in the U.S. and had a terrible experience, so I never booked with Avis again. This time, Budget was in downtown Barcelona, and the process was satisfactory. There were no other customers at the time, so it was quick. The staff spoke good English and were very attentive. I had booked a Golf but got a new red C4 instead, which was also nice. Returning the car was even simpler; they almost didn't check it. Oh, it seems they did glance at the fuel level. Overall, it was a pleasant car rental experience.

Renting a car is quite convenient.

A very pleasant car rental experience. I booked a Volkswagen GOLF, but they gave me a BMW 1 Series with only 3200 kilometers on it, essentially a new car. The staff at the store were very friendly. They checked my driver's license, notarized documents, passport, and I prepaid the deposit with a credit card. All the procedures were completed in less than 5 minutes. When returning the car on Sunday, the store was closed. I just parked the car in the designated parking lot and put the keys in the box at the door. Very convenient.

The service attitude was excellent, no pressure to add extra insurance, the process was quick, and all questions were explained clearly.

Great company! My husband and I traveled together, and we could pick up the car right after leaving the airport. We just needed to get the key and drive. Returning the car was also very convenient; we simply dropped the key off. However, we encountered some additional charges that were not explained.

Very convenient, great service! They upgraded our vehicle.

Various upsells and extra charges. Price details were not disclosed in advance. They arbitrarily changed the vehicle type, which is outright deception. I've rented cars abroad many times and have never encountered such service. The staff has a terrible attitude. I recommend everyone to avoid renting from this company!!!

They will recommend insurance when picking up the car, and they share the same office as Avis.

Like: everything professional
Dislike: none

They share a counter with other companies. The car model booked didn't match what was available at the store. Changing cars could incur higher costs, which wasted a lot of time. Changing cars, confirming the model, checking prices, waiting for the car to be cleaned, it was all very frustrating. With the driving license provided by the rental service, you basically don't need your actual driving license.

They share a counter with other companies, but the car model we confirmed on the website wasn't available when we got to the counter. It took a lot of time to switch cars, confirm the model, check prices, and wait for the car to be cleaned, which was very frustrating. With the driving license certification provided by the rental company, we hardly needed to use our actual driving license.

Seems like they're pushing you to buy extra insurance

Very serious attitude