Avis Rent-A-Car

So here's the thing about Avis-it's been around since 1946, which means they've had plenty of time to figure out what works and what doesn't in the car rental game. And honestly? They kind of invented the whole airport rental thing. Avis was the first car rental business to be located at an airport, which is pretty wild when you think about how ubiquitous that is now.

The company operates under this massive umbrella called Avis Budget Group, and they're not messing around with their reach. With 5,500+ car hire locations worldwide across 170 countries, you're basically never too far from an Avis counter. They've got everything from compact cars for solo travelers to full-size SUVs for family road trips, plus they're pushing into the electric and hybrid vehicle space, which feels very now.

But let's talk about what really sets them apart-or at least what they want you to think sets them apart. The Avis corporate motto of "We Try Harder" was adopted in 1962, and they used that slogan for 50 years before switching things up. It was basically their way of saying "yeah, we're number two, but that means we work harder for you." Smart marketing, honestly.

The Avis Preferred program is where things get interesting. Skip the counter, grab your keys, and go-that's the pitch. And if you're a frequent renter, you can rack up points that actually convert to free rentals and upgrades without blackout dates. No jumping through hoops, no "sorry, not available during holidays" nonsense. Plus, they have approximately 24,500 employees working across 10,250 rental locations in over 180 countries, so there's a pretty solid infrastructure backing all this up.

Now, the company's been through some changes. They split from Cendant Corporation back in 2006 and became their own thing, and in 2011 they acquired Avis Europe, which had been operating separately. So they've consolidated their global presence pretty significantly. The fleet itself is diverse-lots of GM vehicles historically, but you'll also find Fords, Toyotas, and increasingly, electric options.

One thing that's kind of cool: they were early adopters of tech. Back in 1972, they launched Wizard, which was the first computer-based reservation system in the U.S. car rental business. That might not sound like much now, but it was revolutionary at the time and set the standard for how the industry operates today.

The airport locations tend to be open 24/7 or have extended hours to accommodate flight schedules, which is clutch if you're landing at odd times. And they've got this whole ecosystem of add-ons-GPS, child seats, additional drivers, insurance options-basically everything you might need to customize your rental experience.