Travel Deal of the Day (May 8, 2009)

If you are looking to save money on a rental car, be sure to check the "Last Minute Specials" section of a car rental company website when booking a car. Recently, I have seen some incredible rates for car rentals via this section of car rental company websites. The rates in this section are often quite a bit cheaper than rates you would otherwise find if you booked via the main part of the car rental company website. These last minute specials usually are announced a few weeks in advance - so, when you re-check car rental rates for an upcoming car rental reservation, be sure to check this section of the website to verify if there are great last minute deals.

How:
Here are a few examples of such deals for various car rental companies:
(1) National Car Rental
(2) Thrifty
(3) Alamo

The Inside Scoop:
I have found that these last minute special rates may beat or exceed deals available on websites such as Priceline, so be sure to check these rates before booking a pre-paid, non refundable rate via a website such as Priceline.