We went through Costco travel, so I did not see the poor reviews until after we rented our car. Avis also represents budget at this location. We found out the hard way that if you're flying into Reagan airport, you don't just hop on the car rental shuttles roaming around, you actually have to catch the Avis shuttle not the car rental shuttle, otherwise you'll be whisked off to the wrong location. Once we figured that problem out, we had a pretty easy check in and received our Buick crossover and were on our way. We had it for five days for $387. We probably drove it less than 100 miles during that time since we were staying downtown DC where most things are within walking distance. Returning the vehicle took less than five minutes and we were already on the shuttle back to the airport in no time. Just be sure to return your car with a full gas tank and look through those 30 pages of terms. Apparently not everybody here has had as good a story as our experience, but things went well for us. And just as an added note, if you plan on staying at a hotel in DC, it is best not to rent a car if you're staying at a hotel because parking could cost you at least $60 a day or More, not to mention the high cost of parking garages in the area. It's best to Uber or get a taxi to your hotel and spare yourself the expense. Informative photos included. read more

See all

Avoid this place. Do not rent avis cars from this place. No preferred service. They make you wait in line for hours. Worst AVIS I have experienced in 25 years. There are other AVIS rental shop supporting the DCA airport. You have been warned. read more

Stay away!!!! Rented a car for a week that was supposed to have toll transponder. Guess what, it didn't. And I found out too late as I was going into the toll. A week after I returned the car I received an email saying I would be charged $450 for excess garbage. I called the 1-800 number and was forwarded a photo of the car showing 3 water bottles, a plastic bag, and a couple of receipts/hotel parking placard. The person I spoke with agreed that it did not warrant an excess cleaning fees. read more

This is the second time I've used this Avis in 3 months. The first experience was bad, this time it was freaking terrible!! Avis, if you read this, please close down this location. I've been to hundreds of rental car locations across the country this is by far the worst and most ratchet one in the US First the people- no one understands customers service or even just decent professionalism. They are all wearing AirPods and cursing at each other while giving their customers attitude. Not to mentioned they are slow as hell and there was literally a line out the door and I had to wait over an hour to get to the front of the line. Next the cars- they don't do an assigned ahead option and there is no preferred lot to pick from. Even though I'm presidents club, last time I got a small Hyandai coupe with cloth seats, 40k miles and it smelled like an ash tray. This time the car I got was not even washed, there was mud skid marks on both sides and again this one SMELLED LIKE AN ASH TRAY. I had to drive with the windows down in the cold rain just so my work clothes would not smell like an ash tray. Also, while I was in line waiting for over an hour to get this disgusting car, TWO PEOPLE who got their keys walked back in to return them because their cars smelled like cigarette smoke. Do NOT use this place to get a rental. read more

No preferred counter at the Avis DCA location. Everyone must wait in line. 45 minutes in a packed little lobby to get my car. Car was not thoroughly vacuumed. When we moved the second row seats there was food and garbage. This Avis location is not like any other I have been to. Step it up or close it down. read more

I learned the hard way that all of the negative reviews are 100% accurate. DO NOT, I repeat, DO NOT, rent from this Avis location. After confirming with them several times that they would wait for me to get to the rental car location (which is off site) after a delayed flight, they left me stranded at the airport with no way to contact them, and no car. No shuttle came to pick me up, and of course no one picks up the phone. Even their own emergency services was shocked at how badly they dropped the ball on this one. Avis has lost my trust and my business (and I have the highest loyalty status with them possible). read more

Waiting time is 30-45 mins.. slow service. Customers lining up in scorching heat. No tent whatsoever. Staff very slow.. doesn't seem to care. read more

See all

Run more than one shuttle to and from the airport. Or arrange a walk thru gate so people can arrive and depart via uber to and from McDonald's. Having only one small passenger vehicle running is nonsense. Avis is typically one of the best in class - we understand real estate issues. It is recommended you make it very clear to people with DCA- based reservations that there is a separate shuttle from the normal airport site rental car shuttle AND to plan an extra hour on top of normal return time to account for lack of transportation to and from the remote site. AND consider a walk thru gate so people can arrive and depart this location separate from relying on the singular shuttle. AND establish a system of loading the shuttles. People who are unaware cut in line of folks who had been waiting for more than 30 mins Friendly courteous people overall. Management needs to manage the situation better. read more

Booked a car for 10am. Turns out there wasn't a car available, Avis never reached out to notify me of that fact. Had to call the location five times before someone picked up, was told to "call back with a better attitude" and hung up on. When I arrived at the location to try to get a car more than two hours after it was supposed to be delivered to me, the guy who hung up on me told me there *still* wasn't a car available. When I asked for his name the employee said "you don't need to know that" so I've included a photo below. read more

Avis Car Rental - Employee who told me to "call back when I have a better attitude" and that I "didn't need to know" his name. - Car Rental Near Me - Arlington, Virginia

Scheduled a rental of a premium vehicle and was given an intermediate SUV and charged the price of the premium vehicle. Clerks made no mention of it or any attempt to correct. I had to ask at the return location and was given the Avis number to call and request it myself. An absolute scam. Most people wouldn't notice and just think that the employees would have the integrity to change the charges and inform the customer. Not this place. read more

Took 30m to get our car. No express lane and very understaffed/unhelful. Not sure how Avis allows locations to operate like this.

The first clue was that the Avis app wouldn't let me pick a car. The second was that the line at the office at the pickup location was out the door, by a lot. Likely over an hour wait just to pick up keys. I rented from the same Avis DCA location many months ago. It had just been remodeled so they didn't have Preferred pickup working. They still don't. I took the shuttle back to the airport and rented from a competitor. I'll do that at DCA from now on, and save the back and forth shuttle rides. The employees walking around the Avis DCA lot were nice. They just weren't able to get my keys. This is 2025, and a recently remodeled location. It should be closed until it's ready to be in the rental car business. read more

I wish I'd seen other reviews before I chose this location and company. This is by far the worst Avis location I've ever encountered. Having a tiny office with a tiny lot at the one of the busiest airports is insane. The wait today for a car was over an hour because there is no preferred counter, the line were spilling out the doors and this location is very disorganized. I cancelled my rental and went elsewhere. All of the other rental companies are within the airport terminal and lot less hectic. Will never rent from this Avis again. read more

Terrible. I don't see this location being in business much longer. Very understaffed, shuttles are mismanaged, and it takes a long time to pick up your car. Some staffers are extremely rude. They seem oblivious and apathetic to the myriad issues with this location. read more

Avis Car Rental - Car Rental Near Me - Arlington, Virginia

Very frustrating it's not in the airport even know online it says it is. Took 30 minutes for the shuttle to pick me up for a mile ride. Long wait line, limited cars. I got an older Honda CRV which is fine but it wasn't taken care of, wipers were probably the factory wipers and didn't do anything, warning light were on, needed an oil change, etc. car was also dirty. read more

I've been renting cars from Avis at DCA for years and always have a pretty good experience. They're no longer located within the DCA parking garage which is very annoying but the staff always makes up for it. The last two times I've picked up a car from the offsite location, they've been so kind to accommodate special requests and make sure I have a car to satisfy my needs. Quality of cars and in person customer service is always so great! Only reason for the 4 stars and not 5: - the new offsite location is no fun. Hoping they can figure out how to get back in the main garage - when trying to call this particular location for anything, it is VERY difficult (and no fault to this particular franchise...I think the Avis brand makes it super difficult to speak with anyone) Other than that, I can always get Pretty good cars and never have any issues with pick up or drop offs. read more

Long waits for the shuttle which are supposed to come every 20 minutes. Under staffed counter. Should be closed.

I was scared by the bad ratings for this branch but the experience was seamless. Good shuttle, tho maybe a bit hard to find. Small but serviceable office, helpful staff. No preferred section that I could see but I didn't care since he wait was short, I'm sure if I'd announced loudly "I'm preferred!" (which I am) they would've put me in a car licketly-split. read more

I had an amazing experience! Seble and staff were very helpful and provided exceptional service and expedient service. When the initial vehicle I rented had a tire pressure warning, they immediately replaced my vehicle and I did not have to wait for the replacement. The Avis Crystal City site has become my favorite place to rent a vehicle for my business needs! KUDOS! read more

Terribible experience and first time having to rental a car at his particular location as our company dicated Avis as the agency we have to use. For starters this place is small and not modern ( there is no electronic board for Preferred Memembers to just hop in the car and go. There is no separate queue inside just for Preferred members. Was told that this location is only 2 years old having been at another location previously. Coming from the West Coast on a non stop, one always arrives in the early evening and although my flight landed 15 minutes early and I was able to do an OJ Simpson ( for those old enough to remember the Avs commercials in the 70s) and caught the rental car bus without having to catch my breath, my story goes down hill. Waited 30 minutes before a car was available even though it had already been reserved. Other folks had to wait between 20-30 mins. Upon getting into my car that had just gone through the automated car wash, I traveled a block and tried to use the windshield wipers with the liquid and guess what...no liquid. There were hard water spots that had already formed previously and to make matters worse around 5:30 pm (the day after daylight savings time had started) it was dark as hell. I ended up rolling down both windows and getting into commute traffic before reaching my sestination in Bowie, MD. In summary, this facility is really ghetto (lacking in everything compared to the more modern Avis Airport locations). read more

Line so long that people are queueing outside. One person working the counter. This is a pretty bad showing for their brand.

Update April 30. Now that Avis has moved off airport could it have gotten worse? Today returning a car it was raining and they had customers stand under a 10 x 10 covering in 2 inches of rain while waiting 10 minutes for the next Mini bus(holds 10 people) to go to the airport. What a mess. Avis preferred board didn't work in December and still doesn't work on Jan 23. You have to stand outside in the cold and wait in line to get your car. At least a dozen people in front of me. What a shit show! read more

do not rent from here they will scam you $125 cleaning fee even if you return the car perfectly

Had to drive 16 hours from Miami to Reagan National Airport due to Hurricane Debby related flight cancelations. Planned to gey in after 11:00 PM. Avis is now an off site car rental company when we showed up, all gates were had chain link fence accross them and cars parked behind them like they were defending a fort in Iraq. Seems the location is thevonly airport location in the country that does not have a way to drop off cars during all hours of airport operation and flights were still landing. Avis only alows you to do business with them from 7:00 AM till 11:00 PM. A business model that is out of date by 40 years. Had to come back the next day, a business day. Broke away from work at lunch. Staff was uncommunicative, aloof, and generaly didnt care. Despite my not being able to leave the car because of thier arbitrary hours, thier lack of a process to accept return cars after hours, and thier neglecting to inform me at time of rental that rhey could not recieve rhe return st the scheduled time, they still charged me for a full extra day of rental. I feel that for the above mentioned reasons that the $250 that they charged me for the extra day was money stolen from me. They may have gotten one over on me this time, but tgey will definitely loose much more in future business as i take all car rental business elsewhere. Never again Avis. Never again. read more

I'd give 0 stars if it was an option. Worst custerms service area. My wife was picking up a rental and they do not have temporary parking. Three every rude employees came and told me I'd to leave and she'd need to get her bags on a side street somewhere. There are other options in the area. Not sure if it would have been anybetter but it could get worse. My wife just took a travel job and will be getting rental cars on a regular basis. Will not be coming back to this location. It was so bad that I don't think we'll even use Avis again. read more

One of my Worst customer service experiences ever at a rental facility and I rent regularly and am an Avis Preferred member. Was treated very poorly and even passive aggressively. Will not rent from here again. I'd rather pay a higher rate where I will feel respected. read more

First of all, we are Avis Preferred. There is no Axis Preferred counter. Be prepared to wait. Second, the operations are very substandard. Cars are not ready to go even though they have a plethora of employees looking busy. The prices are lower and the service reflects it. Not up to Avis standards at almost every other location. Suggest a visit from corporate to get this business on the right track. read more

The inside customer service is very good. They are nice and helpful. The cars are another story. No one is really checking them. The first Mazda 3 I had, had the gas cap ripped off and had a low battery warning. Nobody saw any of these problems and they are loaning these vehicles out. I went back to the preferred counter and explained and asked for a new car. This time a Nissan Sentra. It had low tire pressure so I go back to the line and asked for somone to put air in the tires. They had the machine right behind the counter. All of these mishaps makes me really wonder what serious problems they are overlooking and letting people drive away on. Also the cars are dirty. The customer service outside with some reps isn't the best. When I asked about the maintenance (a fair question since the cars have warning lights on) I was given an unprofessional answer from behind the booth. Too many mishaps for the premium prices they charge. read more

See all

There is no customer service people to talk to, if you reach a person, they either cannot assist or hang up. Out of over thirty calls I was able to talk to 5 people, two hung up, one said they would send a note to the counter people in dc (didn't happen), one told me to have a tow and I would pay for that and any damage to the car, the last was empathetic but really couldn't help.. Long story short, I rented a car in Norfolk and had to return it at Reagan, which I was told I could do. I had a 520am flight so they said to just leave the keys in it and people would be there at 430am. What they didn't say is that they were NOT at the airport. I arrived to go to my flight and there was no Avis, but once you go in they have tire shredders and I couldn't get out. I called more than 20 times, their 24hr customer service and no one would answer. I went all over the airport trying to find out how to get out, no one could help. I stopped at Avis after I reached my destination and they said there was nothing they could do and they had no way to reach customer service help. I finally called someone I know in DC and they went to the airport to talk to the counter. They said they could go get the car. Now I receive a bill for almost 4000.00 because they charged almost 400 to go the one mile to get the car, they charged additional rental days because no one would answer the phone and they said they didn't know it was there, then they are trying to say I put over 8000 miles on the car (in two days).... What?? I drove from Norfolk Va, to Chantilly Va, to the airport (Reagan international)! That was not 8000 miles. So I again called and a person answered, I started to explain and they hung up. When I called back, literally 2 minutes later, it said they were closed (830pm) and I would have to call back another day. Literally the worst experience ever.. EVER! Update- after days going back and forth with their trouble ticket system, and sending photos and receipts, they have reduced the fees and corrected the odometer reading. Their customer service system and phone system need serious work and I firmly believe had I been able to talk to someone that could assist, this would have been resolved in a couple hours. I upgraded from one star to two because it did eventually get corrected to a more reasonable penalty, the stress and frustration are going to take much longer to get over. read more

Avis experience at DCA was horrible! The off site location looks like a tow yard, as the shuttle pulled into the location I couldn't believe we were in the right place. There were cars randomly parked everywhere, there was one that was being worked on right next to the building and the wooden podium where a was suppose to check in looked like it had been outside and weather beaten for years. My name was in the board to pick up my car in a specified section but there were no sections. Employees were wandering around so I asked one where the section was and he said "stand over there, she needs to check your license". I stood where I was told and eventually a woman helped me. After checking me in she said she'd be back with a car. I watched her she got into a car and proceeded to talk through the window to an employee for several minutes. Once in the car it smelled of smoke covered by freshener, the smell was so strong I had to roll the windows down. The car was in terrible shape, scratches (damage) and dirty. The steering wheel shook when I was driving and made a strange noise. I returned it after a few hours. I'm super disappointed, Avis had always been my go to. I will not be renting from Avis at DCA anymore. read more

I have used Avis several times at this location. Staff and shuttle drivers are 5 stars. Logistics are 2 stars. When flying out of Reagan terminal 1 - you have to walk outside to catch the shuttle. However there are NO visible signs for Avis as you come out the door - there is one - but you have to walk to the third street out and then go waaaayyyyy down to the right and at the end is the smallest Avis sign you've ever seen. And - when returning your car GPS takes you to the back of the Avis lot - you have to keep going around to the front - it would be nice to have a sign directing customers to the right place. I know that does not seem like a big deal - but when it is at night - and you are in a strange city - we need help! Again - the agents and shuttle drivers are great - the cars are great - but it is NOT easy to get from the airport to the off campus lot. Avis used to be at the airport - since they moved off campus - yikes - not easy!!! read more

Avis customer support is non existent. I needed help with a phone I left in a rental..yes I know my bad but things happen at 4am when you are dropping cars off in the dark. I was able to confirm AVIS had my phone by calling it and was told to put in a lost item claim. I did what they told me and have heard a thing back in weeks. I have tried calling the DCA AVIS and the lost and found phone numbers and you never get through to talk to an actual person. I have left messages that have never been returned and I have opened a case with customer service and in almost 3 weeks I have not received a response. Super frustrating that I know they have my phone and can't get a hold of anyone at AVIS DCA. I'll be going with enterprise next time they have been much more helpful in the past. read more

Straight-up awful customer service experience today. I asked a fairly simple question about using my own EZpass vs. using the one installed in the car and she basically shrugged her shoulders and went back to typing on her computer. When I asked for clarification because her explanation wasn't clear she actually got mean and said something about how she didn't know what else to say to me. Fortunately the woman working next to her jumped in and answered my questions. Insane. No reason to talk to people that way. read more

I wish I could give negative stars. Been here 9 consecutive weeks and never had a car ready and they have more people working the non preferred desk then they do the preferred desk. The organization is a disaster and their excuse they are looking after their government contracts and screwing everybody else. DO NOT USE AVIS AT DCA. IT IS THE WORST TRAVEL EXPERIENCE EVER ..They give you 100 excuses and do not fix the problem preposterous read more

I have never had such a negative rental car experience to date. We arrived after normal business hours to pickup a 12 passenger van. It was a '19 Chevy Express with bench seats. I was very grateful to be able to drive off with it after our flight was delayed to past 1:00am. I got a voicemail and a text with what parking spot it would be in for me to pick it up. I found the vehicle where they told me it was. However, it was wet and quite dirty. It had some wet spots like it had been doused with a hose, but the mirrors were heavily spotted and black dirt was visible around the windows. It looked like it had about a month's worth of dirt on it. The step into the middle of the van had been bent down badly and was next to unusable, leaving no safe place to get in our out without falling...wonder if they ever checked it? But then getting out of the garage took over a half hour. There was absolutely no one around. The only exit was blocked by the guard's vehicles. When I finally noticed him, he was unfriendly and said almost nothing, but motioned that he would move his vehicle to let me out. Then, while picking up the rest of my group at the airport, I personally tripped or stumbled several times trying to install carseats because of the bent step. Then the worst part: I cinched the first carseat in and the entire bench came out on on the driver's side of the van. The hardware to secure the bench to the floor was missing. I checked the other seats and found a second bench with the same issue. By now it was past 2:00am, dark, hot and muggy. I decided to leave the back bench loose and use their hardware on the front benches. The next day, I decided this was ridiculous. Over $2000 to rent this for 12 days. Not worth it. I called during business hours to see if they could switch it out for another with a usable boarding step, but it rang and rang with no answer. Nothing. Serves me right for not reading the reviews first. read more

I had no problems with any of my dealings with Avis during my recent trip to Ronald Regan Airport Avis in D.C. Flew in on a Sunday evening, walked right up to the counter and had my car issued in about 5 minutes. The employee working the counter was very nice and cordial. Since there was an expected freezing -rain storm later in the week, I asked one of the car attendants to provide an ice scraper, and he foraged through several recent returned cars to find me one - took him about 2 minutes. I returned the car on that Wednesday morning at about 4 a.m. - they don't actually open until 7 a.m. so i just parked the car behind the rows of about a dozen other cars (most likely other early morning departing flyers). read more

I never seen so much incompetence at Avis. I returned the car full and apparently told me the machine is trying to charge me for a gallon of gas. Then my original charge of 83 dollars went to 111. They claimed their computer couldn't apply my Costco discount. When I called their service, they claimed to apply my discount in 3 business days but my credit card immediately got charged 34.72 and my charges went up to 150+. Absolute morons. I am going to take up with my credit card company read more

I think this location of Avis is one of the better ones. The staff is always friendly and attentive. I did not have any hidden fees since I did my booking online with pay ahead. They did not try to pressure me to obtain their insurance since I have USAA and it covers everything. We promptly found our car and were on our way. It was a brand new 2017 with very minimal miles. It still had plastic on parts of the car! The return was also easy- we pulled up, emptied out our things and the lady checked it out. She gave us the good to go and our receipt. I will continue to use this rental company. read more

The experience at the airport location was awful. First, there was an insane line to obtain the car. We waited in line TWO hours. Some of it outside, in the heat. Despite there being like 20 check out station, only 5 were open. Second, there was a glitch with my rate and apparently the system booked my car with a corporate rate for a company I had never worked for. The agent refused to honor the rate and wanted to charge me $1200 as opposed to the rate of $450. It wasn't until the manager told her to honor the rate that she did so, but with an attitude and begrudgingly. Finally, the car we received was terrible. It was worn down, had a cracked windshield and smelled like smoke. We had to buy air fresheners just to be able to sit in the car. I would never recommend Avis and will not be usingit again. read more

Beware of Avis associated with National Airport (DCA). They will try to charge you baseless excess fees and hope it hits your debit card or you don't notice so you can't get your money back. Make sure to use a credit card. This Avis baselessly tried to charge us for 125 cleaning fee and we didn't so much as leave a candy wrapper in the car. I asked for photos, which I knew wouldn't exist, and the charge was removed. Gross and scammy. read more