I have a reservation and they told me to wait for 3 hours to get a car. I waited for 90 mins and got a car!

I reserved an automobile at the thrifty Rent-A-Car at BWI airport via the southwest airline app taking advantage of extra points by doing it this way. However, upon arrival on Friday, May 1, 2026 at my appointment time, I found that thrifty had no cars available for me. I had to quickly run to the Avis car rental where I was able to secure a car, thankfully,. I am told that when you reserve a car through Thrifty as well as other car rental places through the Southwest app that they do not reserve cars for you. You are better off, serving your cars directly through the car companies and pre-paying and that way they were holding a car for you. Do not reserve cars through the Southwest Airlines app!! read more

We rented a vehicle last year and we get here and there's absolutely no vehicles whatsoever that are available. Even the Hertz also had no vehicles. This place is a joke, stay clear. This is the third time this has happened with this location. Every employee is clueless as well. They have no idea let alone any information to give of why they do not have any vehicles. read more

I made a one-day reservation at Thrifty BWI for their "Manager's Special" rate. The entire point of that reservation category is that I get a slightly lower price and Thrifty gets the flexibility to assign whatever car they want. I did not care what car I received. I only needed to drive a limited amount, so I was perfectly happy to take whatever vehicle they had available. Given the terrible reviews for this location, I actually thought choosing the Manager's Special might help avoid the usual problem people report here: waiting hours for a car despite having a reservation. I figured that if Thrifty could assign me anything on the lot, there should be no issue. Instead, I arrived at BWI tired, around 9 PM, and Thrifty had sent me a text asking me to "pick" my car. To my surprise, every car I could select involved an additional charge of at least $20 per day. So the deal was apparently this: I reserved a car where the "manager" was supposed to assign me whatever car they wanted, but when I arrived late in the evening, the only practical way to leave with a car was to pay more money. The alternative appeared to be the same ridiculous multi-hour wait that other reviewers have described. At that point, tired and just trying to get on my way, I paid the extra money. That is exactly the kind of situation companies count on: the customer is at the airport, late, tired, and has somewhere to be. This did not feel like a misunderstanding or a normal upsell. It felt like a bait-and-switch. And honestly, it was not even a clever one. It felt less like a polished corporate ripoff and more like a street hustle: advertise the cheaper rate, get the customer to the counter, then squeeze them for more money when they have no good practical option. A reservation should mean something. A "Manager's Special" should not mean "pay extra when you arrive or wait around indefinitely." Based on my experience, I would strongly recommend avoiding Thrifty at BWI. Whatever small amount you think you are saving upfront is not worth the aggravation, the uncertainty, or the feeling that you were set up to pay more once you were already trapped at the airport. read more

Thrifty Rent A Car - Manager's Special reservation - Car Rental Near Me - BALTIMORE AP, Maryland

Get Rent Rented a basic car thru Southwest.com using points(!!) and booked it for a week. Arrived at the car rental shuttle and was checked in by Michael who was very friendly and was able to upgrade me to a hybrid Toyota Rav4 for $19/day--which I jumped on. He did try and give me the upsell on the insurance, but he didn't press too much. The whole transaction went super smooth and the car was immaculate. We were very worried seeing the 1.5* avg, but we took a chance and it paid off. Good job, Thrifty. read more

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How do I hate thee, let me count the ways! I needed a car rental on Thanksgiving Day to get from BWI to Bel Air, Maryland with my disabled husband. I booked a PRE-PAID car through Priceline with Thrifty Rent A Car in mid-September. The day of our flight I received a confirmation text from Thrifty saying my reservation was confirmed. When we got to the Thrifty counter, the attendant said they had no cars. NO CARS! I stressed that it was a PRE-PAID RESERVATION. I thought that meant it would be waiting for me. The attendant just looked at me with cold eyes and repeated they had no cars. No explanation. No apologies. She said I needed to contact Priceline, the third-party vendor. So there we were, stranded at BWI airport, an hour from Bel Air, at 8:30 PM on Thanksgiving Day in freezing weather. Thank goodness for Uber! read more

If I could give ZERO stars, I would. I made a car reservation with Thrifty, and when I arrived to pick up the vehicle, the line was extremely long and not moving at all. There were only two customers being helped, while the employees stood around doing nothing. One employee repeatedly picked up her cellphone, made a call, and then put it back down, accomplishing nothing. After about 45 minutes without the line moving, one of the customers who was speaking with a service representative turned around and told everyone in line that they had run out of cars. Yes, it took that long and a customer, not an employee, to inform the rest of us that they had overbooked and that we were all out of luck. I did not have time to waste, so I went to AVIS instead. Their service representative was professional, efficient, and extremely helpful. They got me into a vehicle quickly and even upgraded me at no extra charge. To make matters worse, once I was in my AVIS rental, I called Thrifty customer service to cancel my reservation and request a refund. They refused, claiming I had to deal with the third-party service I booked through. So let me get this straight. You overbooked, took my money for vehicles you did not have, and now you are telling me I need to chase someone else to get my refund? The representative said yes. Enjoy keeping my money, because you have permanently lost me as a customer. DO NOT rent from Thrifty if you want to save yourself time, frustration, and money. read more

Absolutely horrible ! Run the other way, we are still currently standing in a huge line. One trainee , and the other attendant just walked out and left. When I asked how long she told me, I'm not sure in the rudest way possible. No customer services skills at all ! Use any other service but this one. read more

Made a reservation for a midsize SUV arrived on time for my reservation and they don't have any vehicles to provide. I'm being told an hour wait at minimum. To top it off the m being force into an EV which I didn't request nor do I have the ability to charge it. Why is this not a concern for their staff that they don't have vehicles and it doesn't matter what you reserved your taking what you get or paying more. They offered to put me in a gas vehicle for an additional $85. Not happy at all. read more

Thrifty Rent A Car - Dollar & Thrifty Rental car at BWI. No staff for Dollar. - Car Rental Near Me - BALTIMORE AP, Maryland

I booked a car online and when I arrived at the airport on time me and a half a dozen other people with reservations were all told there will be no cars available for four hours and we could wait at the airport to see if any cars become available. No further assistance was offered by any of the associates at the counter. Many of us went to the enterprise counter and were able to quickly get vehicles. read more

I WISH I had looked at the reviews sooner! I can't believe the whole " waiting 3 hours for the next car even though you have a reservation" thing is so common with them!! What a greedy company to make all these reservations with nothing to give. I walked right over to Enterprise and they had me in a car with 5 minutes read more

Do not reserve a car with this horrible company!! I booked, reserved and paid for a rental car with Thrifty and when I arrived I was told by the woman at the counter (who smirked..yes actually smirked) as she told me there were no cars available. She said (while smirking) that there would be a minimum of 3 hours wait. She told me they do not give refunds. The most disgusting excuse for a business I have ever encountered. Headed over to NextCar who had a car immediately available and perfect customer service. read more

I would give a zero if I could!!! Dishonest, Disorganized, and Disrespectful, Avoid Thrifty at All Costs I had a terrible experience with Thrifty Car Rental that left me without a car and out of pocket, despite doing everything right on my end. I booked a rental car through Expedia, with a valid U.S. driver's license and an international credit card. When I arrived on time to pick up the car, Thrifty's system refused to accept my international card, showing only an "error" message. After two frustrating hours at the airport, I left without the car I had paid for in full. Despite multiple calls and filing a complaint (as instructed), I was promised a response within 15 minutes and received nothing for days. When Expedia finally got back to me, they shockingly said I wasn't eligible for a refund, citing vague policy language about international renters needing valid documentation. Although all the needed documentation was present!!! What's outrageous is that I met all the stated requirements: Valid U.S. driver's license International credit card in my name I was present at the pickup location on time Even Thrifty's own official policy (see image) says that customers with a license issued in the U.S. or Canada only need a valid photo ID license at the time of rental. My license is from the U.S., yet they still refused to rent me the car and kept my money. This was not a case of no-show or documentation failure. It was a technical failure in Thrifty's system, and they are refusing to take responsibility. Expedia added insult to injury by copying and pasting a generic response, completely ignoring Thrifty's published policy. A clear mismatch between their explanation and the official terms in the attached image. This is blatant dishonesty and terrible customer service on both ends. I was denied the service I paid for, offered no real help, and treated as if it were somehow my fault. This will be the first and last time I book anything through Thrifty or Expedia. Avoid this company at all costs, especially if you're an international traveler. They are not prepared to support you, and they will keep your money without delivering a thing. Beware!!! read more

Im going to be very honest. I booked here and I was worried about the reviews given they are so low. Basically they are true. This place really sucks with there cars. I recommend if you have to - book it since they get their cars from Hertz. Hertz will charge you $$$ for a car while thirty or dollar would be $. Horrible company. I would go to sixt car rental instead. The only reason they are getting a 5 star is because they have the most wonderful employee named Ms. Joyce, she was so wonderful and honestly made me feel so welcomed in this state. She gave me so many recommendations and even worked so hard to help me get into a car that met my budget. Thrifty if you see this. Please give that woman a raise. She is so knowledgeable. If you lose her, this location would go down. Ms. Joyce went above and beyond with my reservation and though I would probably never book again with this company I'd go to Sixt Car rental instead. But I will definitely stop by Thrifty to check in with Ms. Joyce. She's the sweetest person there and will fulfill your needs. Thank you Joyce. You are most amazing. I wish you the best of luck with this horrible company. I hope you get a raise to compensate for your phenomenal service. read more

Where is the 0 star rating? I see I am not alone in wanting this. Wish I had read all these reviews earlier. Apparently it's the policy here to rent cars they don't have. Reservation as for 11. 2 hours to get to counter to be told right before getting to counter that there is a 3+ hour wait for cars. I'm here for the weekend. I am literally spending 1/3 of my daytime hours at a rental car place. Shame on you Thrifty. I am permanent putting your company on my do not rent list. Your better prices come at a cost of time. TOO much time read more

Thrifty Rent A Car - The line to get to the counter to wait 3 HOURS! - Car Rental Near Me - BALTIMORE AP, Maryland

Made a reservation ahead, Drove 45 mins to get there on time and apparently they don't clean cars until people need them and have to go get them so there's a 2 hour wait..Choose wisely read more

Awful experience, they make you check in early only at home only to then have to wait in a two hour line and have to provide all your information again. 15 people waiting in line and only one employee. Awful read more

I arrived at the desk at 930 am and was told there were no cars. I could only think of the old Seinfeld episode about how they can "take" the reservation but not "hold" the reservation. When asked what they could do, I was told to go to a different rental service. As seen in previous posts, the lady behind the counter smirked about it as well. read more

Horrible check in process. Even if you have reserved a car in advance, you need to wait nearly an hour or more in line. The QR code at the front that says you can check in doesn't work if you've pre booked. So it's worthless. Would not book here again. read more

I made reservations with Dollar for a 9:30 am pick up. Arrived at 10 am and Dollar was closed. Had to meet with Thrifty because do partnership. No cars were available. Was told it was a 2 hour wait. 3 hours later, I was given a old dirty 2018 Isuzu Forester. Wife had white pants that were stained from dirty seats. I will never use Dollar or Thrifty. read more

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DO NOT RENT FROM THEM or HERTZ! THEY WILL FRADULENTLY CHARGE YOUR CARD AFTER RETURN! If I could leave 0 stars I would. I rented a vehicle from them on 5/29/24. The process was hellish as other reviews have indicated. They tried to put me in an EV, which I didn't want. I was told it would be $25/day to "upgrade" to gas. Fine. I paid it. Was told to go to stall 143 (148?) to pick up a Ford Edge. Got out to the stall, and there was no vehicle there. Found an employee wandering around the lot, told him what happened, he found another Ford Edge, told me they'd swap at checkout. Returned the vehicle after 8 days, on time, with no incidents. Full tank. The person who checked me in just said to leave the keys and I was all set. Two days later, I was back home and paying my bills. I noticed a $6,200.00 charge from Thrifty. I checked email and found a receipt from the day I returned the vehicle charging me that amount for an "upgrade". I already paid the upgrade fee on the 29th! Who in their right minds would pay almost $7,000 all told for a rental car - and a Ford Edge no less? I immediately called Thrifty - they do not having ANY billing agents with whom you can speak. I spent another hour on the phone with the parent company, Hertz, to be told they can't do anything about it over the phone, but they would open an electronic ticket for me and I would receive a copy in email. Yeah, that never happened. I reversed the charge through American Express, sent them all three receipts, and a detailed explanation of what happened, and they are rebilling. Said I need to go through the local counter. Really? How? There's no local phone number. I will continue to fight this. How can they get away with charging an upgrade fee twice? Additionally, AMEX sent me the information they got from Thrifty/Hertz justifying their decision. Thrifty/Hertz only sent the final upgrade receipt - not the original one from 5/29. They didn't even send complete information! Liars! read more

Made a reservation over a month ago for a car at Thrifty at Baltimore airport. Got here and they have no cars! It's like a Seinfeld episode! All the other rental car places here have signs that say they have cars! read more

Thrifty Rent A Car - No Rental Cars Available at Thrifty Car Rental! - Car Rental Near Me - BALTIMORE AP, Maryland

Do not waste your time renting from Thrifty. Reserved a car on April 2, 2025 ,to pick up on April 15, 2025. I had flown in from Tennessee for a doctors appointment at Johns Hopkins. When I arrived at the rental facility, I went to Thrifty to check in and get my rental car. They informed me that they had no car that it would be three hours before I could get one. Which is very frustrating because I had a limited amount of time to get to the doctor's appointment. I ask if any other companies had anything available and I was told "No"they were also out.( Hertz, Budget, Thrifty and a few others are together)I checked with National. They told me they were also out as well the other rental companies ( Avis, Enterprise and a few others are together).I decided to check with Sixt they had an 8 passenger van or a luxury car at $175. Which was 2 1/2 times the charge of my rental with Thrifty. I ended up getting an Uber to the hospital and back to the airport. It was actually cheaper to get the Uber which was nice, but it shouldn't have been so much aggravation from Thrifty I feel like this rental facility is a rip off. This happened another time and it's very convenient that all of the companies located here have no cars available and if they do you are paying a much higher amount. The least Thrifty could have done was let me know they didn't have a car then I could have been prepared to go another route, but they did not tell me anything. They sent me an email telling me it was time to pick my car out for faster service, which is a joke. How can you pick a car out when they don't have one? If you look at some of the other reviews, this happens quite often . The reservation desk,could not refund what I had already paid so I had to call the company this morning to get the issue handled. Just be aware of the way they do business! read more

Would rate zero stars if possible. The ordeal started out with an EXTREMELY long line at the counter, with insufficient staff to handle volume. It took 25-30 minutes to reach the counter, where I was told that the car FOR WHICH I HAD A RESERVATION was not available. In fact, NO CARS were available at all, although one should be available in about TWO HOURS. The clerk acted as if this was perfectly normal, routine, and completely reasonable. When I asked if that meant I would get a pro-rated refund for those two hours, I was told no, with a laugh at my "funny joke." When I asked if getting my car two hours late meant I could also therefore return it two hours late, I was also told no. I spent the next hour attempting to reach a human being, ANY human being, via their "customer service" line in order to complain, only to finally realize it was 100% impossible. They have designed their automated phone system so as to make it impossible to do anything but respond to pre-programmed choices by a robot. NO option will connect you with a person. When the vehicle finally became available about an hour and fifteen minutes later, I was anxious to finally be on my way with my vacation, only to find that I had to wait in ANOTHER line when attempting to leave the facility, which took approximately 20-25 minutes. There were only two cars in front of me in the line. The person checking people out seemed to have no earthly idea what they were doing. They obviously hold their customers in utter contempt and apparently feel they are entitled to your money without providing any kind of service at all. Although the value is good, it isn't worth it the trouble. Gone for good. Bye. read more

Still no option for zero stars! Listen to me people, DON'T EVEN BOTHER BOOKING WITH THRIFTY, YOU WONT GET A CAR! I so wish I had read the reviews before booking with Thrifty at this location. They are beyond horrible with their customer service. I was informed of at least a two hour wait for a car that I had reserved 3 months in advance. The waiting area was full of people waiting on cars and anger was running rampant. Do yourself a favor and book with Alamo. I reserved a car with COSTCO Travel and was at my upgraded rental in under15 minutes. Choose Alamo. read more

I have a reservation but there are no cars available. Avis has cars but I'll get a penalty if I can cancel with Thrifty. So, I sit in the rental facility waiting for the nice lady at the counter to call my name. It's not her fault there is a lack of cars. I was told it could be 2 hours or more before my name is called. Not sure what is happening behind the scenes but customer service isn't one of them. Go with Avis, Hertz, Alamo or National if you are looking at renting a car at BWI. read more

Sad to say this is the second time in three weeks that we have had a car reservation and it doesn't matter. No cars!!!! First in ATL 4/30/22 and now AT BWI. Are the car companies selling off their fleet because the resale price of used cars are sky high?!?!?!? Consumer beware!!!! RESERVATIONS MEAN NOTHING. read more

Thrifty Rent A Car - Thrifty car rental at BWI - Car Rental Near Me - BALTIMORE AP, Maryland

Arrived for prepaid rental After flying cross country Said wait was up to 4 hrs Also told if I left rental center. I would lose prepaid reservation read more

If I could leave 0 stars I would. We've flown across the country assuming our PAID RESERVATION was enough to ensure we would receive a car upon arrival. We were told there were NO CARS available, and that there was a 3 HOUR WAIT! Additionally, if we left the facility (we were starving) and our car became available with out us being here, it would be given to someone else (whose reservation didn't mean shit no doubt) and our wait time would begin again. Please don't put yourself through it. Also, the coffee that we paid $2 for while waiting is pictured below. read more

Thrifty Rent A Car - Car Rental Near Me - BALTIMORE AP, Maryland

We've been here for 30 min and no one is working counter. Sign up says go to hertz counter and the line has 10 people with one teller.... said it'll be at least 30 min to counter..... thanks for costing me money! Ridiculous read more

Thrifty Rent A Car - The line I'm in for thrifty ..... apparently hertz is new partner? - Car Rental Near Me - BALTIMORE AP, Maryland

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Wow. What a debacle. Booked and paid for a car four months in advance. Flew in from TX and now have to wait three hours because they do not have any cars. They had four months to have a car there waiting for me. NEVER AGAIN. Avoid Thrifty...unless you don't have to be on time. read more

We had a very bad experience with Thrifty at this location. We always rent our cars for personal use through Hotwire.com because we get the best rates. Never have we been charged an additional cost by the rental agency until today. We arrived at the rental car center and went to the Thrifty counter. Since we arrived at almost midnight there weren't a lot of people around. There was no one working at the counter but there was a customer in line. That customer and I heard from others in the Dollar rent a car line next door that there was no one at Thrifty and we should get in the Dollar line. So, we did. There was no sign directing customers to another location and none of the employees at Dollar said anything to us. We feel it is common sense to have a sign or something. The Dollar line had about 5 people waiting in front of us. After people completed their paperwork, the employees were directing customers to the central part of the building where there are chairs instead of directing them to the parking garage. We overheard an employee, Kylie tell a customer that they were waiting for cars. We also heard Kylie talk unprofessionally to another customer when he questioned additional charges by telling him the charges were "legit". When it was finally our turn we were helped by Rebekah who seemed to be more customer focused. While she was pulling up our reservation Kylie was talking about how her feet hurt, and running to McDonald's etc. After completing our paperwork we were told we were being charged an additional $112 underage charge and over $36.75 in 2 additional taxes. We disputed the underage charge and we're told she would have to get her manager to remove that. We also disputed the taxes and showed our receipt from Hotwire that we had already paid $52.98 in taxes. When the manager did arrive and we discussed this with her she explained she was unable to remove the taxes but she would remove the underage charge. In the end she was able to remove the underage charge and part of the taxes. At this point, the only additional cost was $14.31 in taxes. I asked for the contact information for her supervisor which she provided to me. We will be calling to resolve this tax situation. While we waiting for our car, we noticed the sign between the two rental car agencies that said no cars available. I wonder why they take prepaid reservations? The interior of our car was dirty and it did not appear to have been wiped out and the seats were very stained. Overall we were not impressed and will likely reevaluate before renting another car from Thrifty. read more

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Terrible experience. 2 1/2 hours (no exaggeration)to get a car, completely ruined the day, outlay of money to fly, triple that for a car and then the inconvenience of being left there to stand, stare and beg to get a car, . Missed the event I came in for. The poor ladies that work there, feel terrible for them. Worst run, mismanaged business. I have been to in a long time. STAY AWAY! read more

Had a reservation for a full sized car. Arrived at 1pm. No car available. Hour and a half wait. Shuttle to airport is a long wait. 30 to 45 minutes for the entire facility; so allow time to return to airport. read more

Horrible customer service. Doesn't keep enough cars on site and routinely has no cars even for reservations and makes you wait 1-2 hours for your vehicle. Doesn't tell you this until after you ride shuttle to facility that has no food and no way to entertain yourself or kids. Worker had zero personality or pleasantness! read more

2 stars for the friendliness of the service agents....however, upon check in I was told a 30 to 60 min wait, but that I would for certain get a car. I was advised that due to a system glitch, they overbooked by a huge amount of cars and that those who booked the prior evening likely wouldn't get a car. Thank goodness I booked 4 days prior. It would have been nice to have been offered a gift cert or a discount for the inconvenience, but alas... no. The young man behind me in line didn't fair too well. He wasn't getting a car at all and he wasn't offered any comp. I would have called the main office right then if I was him...ijs read more

Thrifty Rent A Car - Counter inside the Rental Car Hub - Car Rental Near Me - BALTIMORE AP, Maryland

Very unhappy with the service at the Baltimore Airport location. One person working the line who seemed untrained and didn't know her job. Reserved this car 3 months ago and they were out of vehicles. Luckily they had one set aside and gave it to me. The Hertz girl had to come over and check me out because the Thrifty employee was so lost. Going to Hertz from now on! read more

Unbelievable bad customer services. The counter clerk would not accept my credit card because my first name is listed as an initial for my first name and did "match' my full name in my reservations. It's the same on all 5 credit cards I showed the counter clerk. I wasted 50 minutes getting a supervisor that never showed up, then had a supervisor in training come in and accept my credit card AFTER review my passport. Are you kidding me? I was late to a funeral at Arlington National Cemetery. I will post this to as many social media and yelp sites that I can find. Such a disgrace of customer service. read more

Arrived on time for our car and were told it would be a 4 hour wait. Last time I tried them they would not take a debit card and there was a problem with my credit card. NEVER AGAIN! read more

Made a reservation well in advance. When I arrived at BWI on a Wednesday they were telling *everyone* who walked up to the counter that there would be a two to two and a half hour wait for our cars --minimum. I waited for TWO hours. Additionally, the woman behind the counter told me that this frequently happens at this location. When I returned a few days later there was no staff at the Thrifty counter at all but customers were directed to the Hertz counter. They sent no notice or email ahead though they must have known. read more