National Car Rental has what I believe is the strongest promotion in the market each year, “One Two Free.”
You earn a free rental day for every two qualifying rentals (mid-size or larger for 2 days or longer). And when they run the promotion, they do so for long periods of time. The most current offer is for a five month stretch which concludes at the end of January.
I’ve been renting regularly from National for the past couple of years. The unique selling proposition to me isn’t the rewards, though I’ve earned plenty of free rental days. It’s the ‘Emerald Aisle’ where being a member of their Emerald Club program means you walk out to the lot, take your choice of cars from the designated row(s), and just get in and drive to the exit.
Sometimes I’ll take whatever is closest, other times an SUV when I want something larger, and occasionally I’ll get in a bunch of cars to look for the one with lowest miles and features I want. National calls it “speed, choice, and control.” I call it not having to go asking for something other than a Taurus.
As the current One Two Free promotion wraps up, National offered me the chance to interview one of their frequent renters and also give away status and gift cards. I jumped at the chance.
- To be clear, I’m not taking anything from National for doing this — all of the prizes and benefits go to you, my readers.
- I thought if they could put me in touch with someone to interview who rents much more frequently than I do, a minimum of 100 days a year, they could offer a really interesting perspective.
So here’s the giveaway:
- (5) $200 gift cards
- (5) National Emerald Club Executive Elite status upgrades.
There will be (5) prize winners, each to receive a $200 gift card and Executive Elite status. Not only do Executive Elites get to pick from the Executive aisle of higher category cars (as National Executive status allows) but they earn free rental days faster and in my experience are able to redeem those free rental days for premium vehicles.
- Worth noting that WorldElite MasterCard cardholders and American Express Platinum cardholders are entitled to National’s Executive status, which also gets access to the Executive aisle. That’s worth signing up for.
All you need to do to enter is leave a comment on this post answering the question: what is the one thing that can make your car rental experience better?
Please enter only one time. This contest will run through January 19 at noon Eastern, and I will draw the winners with the assistance of random.org. All of my decisions are final.
Here’s the interview, so you can learn about car rentals from someone who rents more than I do
I had a great discussion with Bruce McNeal who rents well over a hundred times a year, and thought I’d ask how he thinks about his rentals and since he more or less lives in a car how he approaches making it as comfortable and easy as possible.
How often are you on the road, and what leads you to travel so much?
- I am on the road sometimes for 15 days a month. I am part of the store support team on a national retailer. I have locations in ten states.
Are you renting from the same locations over and over, or different locations?
- I fly to 4 or 5 airports and try to know the staff on the Aisle or at the rental counter at the airports. The rest of my rentals come from the great staff at the National located in Naperville, IL. I park my car at that location and drive to areas where I can visit 3 or 4 stores at a time.
How many of your rental days are through National?
- All my rentals are with National, when the Markham location was closed, I tried Hertz local and the cars were inconsistent. I also had an issue with the I Pass ( toll road auto pay)system that they had.
Why do you choose National as your primary rental company?
- Our corporation uses National as a primary car rental company, the special treatment as an Emerald Aisle member and other perks keep me coming back.
How do you book – do you have an assistant, do you book yourself, and if so online/phone/mobile app? Why?
- I book thru a corp. travel site, as required by my company. I used to book on`line and take advantage of the great discounts sent out from National. I do not have anyone assisting me.
When taking cars from the Emerald Aisle what do you look for in making your choice – specific vehicle type? Do you get in multiple cars and select based on features or look at mileage? In other words, do you take the first car to get out quickly or do you use the Aisle to be picky?
- The first thing is a personal matter; I have several family members that either are retired from American car manufactures or are currently working for one; I take great pride in “Buy American” whenever I can. I enjoy SUV’s in the winter when roads can become hazardous. Then I like the great looking cars( in my opinion) like the Chrysler 300. Currently I am crazy about the Ford Explorer especially when it is fully loaded and has satellite radio.
Do you take any accessories or optional items? Why or why not?
- When I am in an area that I do not know and not working, I take insurance, I pass on everything else.
How do you refuel – do you prepay, fill up the tank yourself, or just return the car without a fillup? Why?
- I always refill, the National in Naperville is part of an Enterprise location, so I return with the same amount of gas. The main reason why is that it is our policy not to prepay gas.
How do you use your free rental days? Business or leisure? How do you decide whether to pay out of pocket or use a free rental day?
- More often than not I attach the extra days to a rental when I intend to enjoy a weekend in or near a city that I am working in that week. There have been several times that I let my wife drive my car and use a rental car if her auto in in the shop for several days. I will pay for the rental instead of using free days, if there are great weekend rates in the discount coupons that National sends out. Why use a free day for a nineteen dollar rental?
Any other tips and tricks that my readers should know?
- Being nice goes a long way. There was an airport location, I befriended one of the Aisle attendants; I would call and they would find the best available car for me. Please be pleasant to the people working at the locations, they rent 100’s of cars daily and some things do not always fall together. Lastly a smile means a lot to everybody.
Thanks, Bruce!
Now, leave your comment on this post to enter to win a gift card and status! And take advantage of 1-2 Free while there’s still time!
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I hate waiting for and taking the shuttle. Easier to walk to the location instead
Remember, we are all walking around with camcorders in our pocket – a smart phone. Make sure you do a 15 second walk-around of the vehicle to ensure you’re not blamed for someone else’s damage.
I wish the XM radio subscription was active in EVERY vehicle with an XM radio!
Not having to fill up the car before I return it, and also not having to pay an exorbitant price for them to refill it.
Lowering the gas prices for fill up by the rental company. Or at least have them tell you where the closest gas station is to the return location. Still disappointed that so many refuse to do so.
One thing that would make my car rental experience better is not having to deal with the constant attempt to upsell, even after I have left the rental office and am literally getting into the car.
The one thing that could make my car rental experience better would be to have an option for the rental company to refill the car with just the amount of gas I used (not a full tank) at a fair market rate.
Making sure my care seats fit and getting them installed-not fun in the summer in places like South Carolina with 95% humidity
Having a gas station by the rental car facility is convenient when returning the vehicle.
I would like bypassing the counter when checking in!
The ability to get off a plane and go directly to my car. I don’t want to spend any time at a counter. Request all of the information you need from me ahead of time.
Having a quick pickup and return – being stuck at a rental counter is frustrating!
What would make the experience better would be credit card terminals that work when you arrive at an airport at midnight to rent a car. None of the credit card terminals at the Hertz location at DTW worked, so I had to cancel my reservation and head next door to get a car….
Gas prices for fill up by rental car companies should be lower.
not having to rent a car
Thank you for running the contest.
A quick trip in and out…
I would like to be able to reserve based on actual car model, not class. Why can’t they know in advance what cars should be in the inventory?
Satellite radio. Hands down
Super clean rental cars without the ionizer smell would make my rental car experience exponentially better.
I’d find it helpful if more rental locations offered 24 hour pickup and dropoff. I often need to begin or end a rental at odd hours.
As sad as it may sound, the car rental experience is much better when I’m able to use a computer kiosk versus working with a real person.
Not having to wait in an extremely long line after I get off the airplane. i just want to get my rental car quickly and be on my way.
No lines! Going directly to the car, and dropping it off easily.
Making my experience better would be always getting a low mileage car without damage that I don’t have to note any damage to rental car company before driving off lot.
No exorbitant taxes and fees
Quicker returns and being able to choose your own car.
I just used National for the first time and had a great experience- love getting upgrades!
Like national already have executive status
Choice of car without the need to ask, just as National provides, paired with hassle-free insurance just as American Express provides.
A speedy and painless pickup and dropoff process is the biggest thing to improve on a car rental for me.
Like it for Upgrades !!!
One thing that would make it a better experience would be no additional charges for authorized drivers or having the flexibility to drop of at a different location!
The ability to register all preferences for the transaction via their website (insurance, gas options etc) and simply have them honored with no upsell at the counter would be amazing
Have a cheat sheet in the car to maximize familiarity/use of things like bluetooth, or sat radio, or whatever, for the less technical renter (thinking bout the parents)…
Not being asked to confirm the condition of a car at the rental desk before having a chance to inspect it.
I’ve enjoyed a no-hassle, quick and efficient rental experience with National the last few years but free GPS would definitely be the one thing that can make my car rental experience better.
The one thing that could make my car rental experience better would be a quicker return process.
I’ve been loyal to National for years for the ability to bypass the counter.
It would make my car rental experience better if when I rent a midsize and they take me to the executive aisle, the cars that I can take are an Escalade, Rolls Royce, or pretty much any car that James Bond drives.
Not a big fan of rental car companies despite having to use them…but I’d welcome the status upgrade. Or $200.
More upscale vehicles in the EA
Beyond able to drop the car off without worrying about having a full tank and without paying an exorbitant price per gallon would make my rental experience better!
LOVE free stuff. Gimme gimme gimme!!
I don’t rent very often, but would try National for their “extras”. Thanks for the info.
Shorter wait times
Never rented from National, but they’ve got to be better than Alamo.
What is the one thing that can make your car rental experience better: have more fancy cars,perhaps?
The one thing that always drives me crazy is when you get charged $9 a gallon of gas for them to refill it. It is such a hassle to have to get gas in an area that I am unfamiliar with while I’m rushing to the airport.
I hope I win!