Algarve car hire is in high demand and there is often a shortage of cars available, especially in the peak summer months. The lack of rental cars is normal in times of high demand like festive seasons and summer but it got worse after the pandemic.
If you are planning to visit the Algarve and need to rent a car, here are some tips to help you overcome the car rental shortage.
1. Firstly, make a reservation ahead of time. This will guarantee a lower price and allow you to choose your preferred vehicle group.
2. Secondly, try to pick up your car from Faro Airport if possible. This will save you time and hassle.
3. Thirdly, if you need to guarantee availability, reserve your car in advance.
4. Finally, be aware that car hire prices. Rental cars, like any other limited-stock commodity, tend to get more expensive as they become scarcer. So if you wait until the last minute to book your rental car in the Algarve you will get a higher price or possibly get a "not available" or "full booked" response.
5. There is also a fifth very important and relevant reason for those customers who prefer to have their rental car delivered to the hotel or villa where they are staying on their holidays. As with the cars, the staff is also scarce and in times of greater affluence, the schedules for delivering cars to the customers' homes run out very quickly. For bookings made very close to high seasons, delivery schedules outside the airport may even be impossible to carry out.
By following these tips, you will be able to find a good rental car from a reliable and responsible faro car hire company in Algarve, like You Drive, avoid the Algarve car hire shortage and plus not surcharge your bank account.
Understanding the Algarve car hire shortage
In 2022, after two years of almost complete closure of travel due to the pandemic, the market opened up and millions of tourists wanting to travel and enjoy their holidays were faced with a huge lack of cars for rent and higher prices. And this happened all over the world, not just in Portugal and the Algarve.
Car rental prices doubled, however Portugal remains one of the cheapest holidays hotspots to rent a car.
What is the reason for this unusual event?
Many people accuse car rental companies of practicing speculative prices in Portugal, but the phenomenon is worldwide.
In order to survive two years of almost zero activity, with no income but with costs and financial commitments to meet, car rental companies had to adjust their vehicle stocks and sell some or many of them so as not to default. Thus, the rental car fleets were reduced over two years of almost inactivity.
In 2022, with the resumption of world traffic and the sudden increase in demand for rental cars, car rental companies tried to return to the market to buy new cars and be able to rebuild their fleets to satisfy the demand again.
It was here that they encountered a new setback: the lack of new cars on the market due to a shortage of semiconductors and other components because the car component factories themselves had been practically closed for about two years.
So the scarce cars to sell on the market were more expensive.
Added to this is the general increase in prices (inflation), the increase in fuel, insurance, maintenance, in short, the inflationary spiral that always ends up overloading the final consumer's wallet.
In 2023 the problem is not solved, although it is somewhat attenuated, because the manufacturing lines are not yet producing at the levels prior to 2019 and because inflation has not yet been resolved.
What to do to overcome car hire shortage
That's why it's up to each one to try to take the necessary particular actions in order to avoid major disruptions to their well-deserved holidays in the Algarve.
Make your rental car reservations in the Algarve well in advance to avoid unpleasant surprises and guarantee availability of a rental car at Faro airport or any location in the Algarve for your holidays.
As an incentive to the practice of booking a rental car in advance, You Drive Car Hire Algarve has been offering discounts for various seasons and for different groups of rental cars so that customers can make their reservations in advance at a lower price. cheaper.
Enjoy peace of mind and stress-free holidays in Algarve by booking your Faro airport car hire in advance.
