$470 is actually pretty good for that timespan. Check out OneTravel.com - it's what Travelaxe uses for car rentals. They show you a neat table with all the rates from all the majors, and I've yet to find lower rates.

Anyway, their best rate is $495, and that represents $169/week for 2 weeks plus $29/day for 2 days (they really sock it to you on extra days), plus tax. Pretty cheap.

Just for fun, I tried Rent a Wreck in Brighton, it was much higher. I also looked at monthly rates from Budget, over $600.

Thsnks for the speedy reply! Is it cheaper to get it for just 2 weeks and eliminate any extra days? Maybe I can do that...

Thanks again

Budget shows 2 weeks of a compact (Ford Escort or similar) at $167.99/week for $335.98 plus $81.50 taxes & fees = $417.48 total. Hyundai Accent or similar (economy) for $412.62 for the same period. Pickup and dropoff at Logan Airport. Best I've seen, though specials may open up as the time gets closer.

Sorry, that's a Ford Focus, not Escort.

If you are comfortable with public transportation and you're staying in or near Boston, I would seriously consider relying on the T as your main mode of transportation and maybe get a car for a couple of days. Driving in Boston can be a real headache as well as parking. Assuming you can find a parking spot, you will also need to consider the cost of parking in your expenses. If you do decide you need to rent a car, the rates you mentioned seemed very typical for Boston. This is a very expensive city to rent a car for some reason.

Another unique option is Zipcar (http://www.zipcar.com/). This company rents cars by the hour. I've never used it personally, but I know it is very popular in Boston for people who only need a car occasionally.

Enjoy your trip!

thanks for both of your replies I'm emailing from Amsterdam, Holland so I feel far away from being able to figure out how to do car rentals!

I don' t think I can take off those two days. How much extra were those two days with tax? And do I go on the regular budget web site to get that price you quoted?

We are going to take trips around Boston go to the cape etc. I will be with a couple in thier late 60's from Holland who have never been in the US. When we go downtown we'll definetly go by the T.

Thanks for all your help!

You can get the rate direct from Budget's website, www.budget.com, from Priceline.com, from OneTravel.com, from Sidestep.com. All of them show exactly the same rate.

Adding two days beyond the weekly rates will add almost $80 to the total bill, $29.99/day plus taxes & fees.

BTW, since I now know there are 4 of you, I strongly recommend you go with AT LEAST the compact size (Ford Focus). The smaller economy size can probably fit the four of you (not very comfortably) but not your luggage. Even the compact may be difficult. Moving up two sizes to full-size (Ford Taurus or similar) would cost $522 (taxes included) for the two weeks.

Also, if you choose a two week period, Hotwire is showing $18/day for mid-size. This goes up to $26/day if you rent all 16 days. At $18, this is only about $325 after taxes and fees!!!!! Most of the time you can get Priceline for 10-20% less than Hotwire.

Hi Thanks again for all your thoughtful research!! I went on Priceline and looked up budget then I looked up the name your own price. I took your advice and I'm looking in to getting the mid-size car because in Holland all the cars are tiny and I think they would be thrilled to drive around in a 'big' car!!

On name your own price it was for 16 days on a mid-size only only 363.40!!! I haven't booked it because I thought there might be a catch I don't know about. They say they don't cover insurance but is that normal for all rentals??

Thanks again