Daily Getaway June 12: Avis Deals
Update: Some offers mentioned below are no longer available. View the current offers here.
American Express and the US Travel Association (a non-profit organization dedicated to promoting US travel) have partnered to offer discounts and deals with various travel brands and loyalty programs during the next month, including hotel packages, points/miles purchase promos, rental car discounts and more. These deals are called the Daily Getaways.
Each day we’ll hash out the details of that day’s deal to see whether it’s worth taking advantage of.
Today’s deal goes live at 1 pm EDT, and you can sign up for alerts if you’d like to be notified when the deals go live.
All of these promotions have the added benefit that you can save an additional 10% by purchasing with an Amex card, like the Platinum and Premier Rewards Gold, or even co-branded cards like Gold Delta SkyMiles Credit Card from American Express and the Starwood Preferred Guest Credit Card from American Express.
Thursday June 12, 2014: Avis Deals
- One day car rental for $33, 650 available (maximum purchase quantity per person is seven)
- One Avis Chairman’s Club Membership, arranged via e-mail for $1,115, 15 available (maximum purchase quantity per person is one)
The one day car rental certificate is usable in almost all US locations for cars up to Premium (Group G). As an example, a compact car rental for a Saturday in July in Chicago costs as little as $19 per day, or a one week rental in Phoenix comes out to $26 per day in July for a compact rental. Even with the Amex discount, you'd still be paying more at about $30 per day if you chose to purchase the Daily Getaway. If you normally go the economy car route, this deal does little for you. This could be useful if you typically rent Premium class vehicles; however, the terms and conditions state that Holidays and other blackout periods may apply, but don’t specify what those blackout periods are. It could be all summer (high season) for all we know.
Furthermore, a 24 hour advance reservation is required, so you can’t just saunter up to the rental counter and plunk down your certificate. Unless you have a frequent need for one-day rentals, this deal sounds like a hassle waiting to happen. I never advise booking discounts if blackout dates are unspecified. I won't be hopping on this train.
The second offer, the Chairman’s Club Membership, includes benefits like guaranteed car availability and complimentary upgrades (subject to availability), as well as rental delivery anywhere within 25 miles of participating Avis locations. I have heard that the Chairman’s Club is the “crème de la crème”, the absolute tip-top service for VIP customers, but I don’t rent cars that often, so for me paying such an amount for exclusive car rental services doesn’t make sense. I also think that you should get more benefits for over $1,000; it doesn't seem worth the price.
However, this deal managed to pique my interest because I haven't heard much about Chairman’s Club, and there is scant info online. After a few phone calls, Avis customer reps explained to me that individuals can’t get this status on their own. Chairman’s Club has to be sponsored by your company, and the service is almost always reserved for higher-ups like a chairman or CEO. So, if you crave this status and your company isn’t willing to sponsor you, the Daily Getaway deal is the only way you can obtain this on a personal (non-corporate) level.
There aren’t many available, so if your lifelong dream includes being a Chairman’s Club Member, get ready to click at 1 pm. Any readers out there have experience with the Chairman’s Club? If so, please share your thoughts in the comments below.
