Rental cars in the USA normally come equipped with automatic transmissions, air conditioning and a radio-cassette player. If you request a standard transmission, the rental company will probably have none available when you arrive as they are extremely uncommon. If you are travelling with children under 2-years of age make sure you have a child's car restraint seat or request one from the rental agency. It is illegal to carry small children in a car without safety restraint seats in most states.

An international driver's license is not required in the US. You can usually rent a car and drive with a valid driver's license from your home country. An international license may be helpful in convincing the car rental agent that you really have a valid license when they cannot recognize or understand your license. Some rental agencies will not rent cars to anyone less than 25 years old. Other agencies will rent to young people but will charge a higher fee. Some agencies will not rent to anyone over 71 years old. Be sure to check on these restrictions if you are in these age categories.

Car rental prices are very competitive in most states and no single agency has the best prices every time. Prices change frequently and every agency offers many special promotions and competitive priced deals. If you spend some time shopping for the best price, you can often save money. Here are some tips on how to find the best prices and how to save money.

Car rental prices are most competitive in major tourist destinations like California and Florida. You can find some real bargain prices if you shop for the best deal. Some travel agencies offer special package deals that include airfare plus car rental or hotels plus car rental. You can now compare those deals against the best rates offered by all of the US car rental agencies through TravelNow.

Car rental agencies always offer collision damage waiver insurance (CDW) and theft insurance at exorbitant prices that can significantly increase the price of a car rental. You should not risk driving without insurance, but you can usually get such insurance at a much lower price. Check your automobile insurance at home to see if it will cover driving in the US, or use a credit card that provides free insurance when you rent a car. The American Express Dollar Card and some bank charge cards provide such insurance for free when you use them to rent a car. Check with the credit card issuer to be sure it provides such coverage for USA rentals. The American Express Company and some other travel agents offer special travel insurance that provides CDW coverage at a much lower price than the rental agencies.