Rental cars
Everything about rental cars - Canada
Basically, the same applies to booking a rental car in Canada that applies to the USA. Here we have summarized our experience with it.
Rental car booking in Montreal in autumn 2021
Due to the Corona pandemic, rental car prices for North America exploded. Compared to previous years, prices were more than two to three times as high. This was also the case when we booked a car for Canada in the fall of 2021. We found the cheapest price via ADAC through Hertz. When picking up the car at the airport in Montreal, a standard SUV for 23 days would cost a little over 1500€. Other SUVs were not offered. Alamo and the other rental companies were more than twice as expensive in comparison.
By the tip of a friend we then became aware that the prices at the stations in the city are often much cheaper than at the airport. This we had never considered for practical reasons, because it is quite convenient to walk straight from the plane to the rental car and drive off immediately. When looking for the stations of Hertz in the city, we quickly found that the prices were much cheaper. For example, a midsize SUV for 23 days cost only 750€. This is not a real bargain compared to previous years, but still an acceptable price. The small disadvantage is actually only that you have to somehow get to the station in the city. However, even a cab ride is worth it if the price difference is as great as in our case.
At the station in Montreal where we picked up the car there was no Choiceline. We were assigned the car. Since all cars in the parking lot were already rented, we would not have been able to exchange the car. In the end we got a Kia Sorento which is a standard SUV. We were very happy with it.
Rental car booking in Totonto in autumn 2025
We made our first rental car booking for fall 2025 back in December 2024. The price for the midsize SUV was just over €60/day. Considering the general rise in prices, this price is fairly good. However, since it is difficult to predict how prices will develop, especially after the pandemic, we made a backup reservation in December 2024. The ADAC usually offers the best value for money, and this was also the case this time. Until we set off on our trip at the end of September, we canceled and rebooked the car several times. In the end, we ended up with a pickup truck because Gerd really wanted to drive one. The price for this was €50/day in August 2025. The price for the midsize SUV dropped to €39/day over the course of the year. So it's worth checking the price regularly.
In Toronto, the rental car stations are located directly at the airport. You don't have to take a shuttle bus to an off-site location. Alamo in Toronto generally offers a skip-the-counter option, but this didn't work for our booking. We don't know if this was due to the pickup we booked, so we had to go to a counter first and check in there. However, it wasn't very busy, so the whole process only took a few extra minutes. There wasn't really much for us to do in the parking garage either, as there was only one pickup there. It was a silver, practically brand-new F150 XLT.
The car was huge, which had the advantage that you could fold down two seats in the back to create a large “trunk” for all your luggage. However, it took a few minutes to get used to its sheer size. After driving a few kilometers, it was clear that we really liked the car, and after four weeks of vacation, we were very sad to leave it behind. It may be a little bulky for the city, but for a road trip through the vast landscapes of Canada, it was the ideal car for us.
Car Rental Reservation in Halifax in May 2026
We made our first rental car reservation for early summer 2026 back in August 2025. The price for the midsize SUV was just over 78€ per day. This price is actually still much too high, but on the one hand, we wanted to secure our reservation, and on the other hand, car rental prices from Halifax are often significantly higher than in western Canada. For us, the ADAC usually offers the best value for the money. That was the case this time as well. Before we set off on our trip at the end of May 2026, we canceled and rebooked the car several times. As a result, the price for the midsize SUV briefly dropped to €41 per day in October 2025. So it’s definitely worth checking the price regularly.
In Halifax, the car rental counters are located right at the airport. You don’t have to take a shuttle bus to an off-site location. You simply walk out of the terminal into the parking garage across the street, where you’ll find the counters for all the car rental companies. It wasn’t very busy, and we were served very quickly. We don’t have any status with Hertz, so they assigned us a car. We had two cars to choose from and decided on the Ford Bronco Sport – Outer Banks, which we’d always wanted to drive anyway.
We really liked the car right from the start. It’s basically the perfect vehicle for our road trips. The interior was very spacious and had plenty of room for all our stuff. What I liked best was the glove box, because compared to almost all the rental cars we’ve had so far, this one had so much space that it could actually hold all my stuff. Even more important was that the car performed really well and with an average fuel consumption of just under 8 l/100 km, it was definitely within reasonable limits. We can definitely highly recommend the Bronco for a road trip.
