If you plan to travel to Guam, you may need to rent a car. Well here is a review of my experience.
There are many car rental companies in Guam; maybe twenty to thirty marks. That’s quite a bit of competition for such a small island with a population of about 170,000 (Guam is about 38 miles from top to bottom). Competition is good though, right? Well, there seem to be a few select car rentals out there and the one I selected was one of them that, in the end, was a great choice. Although car rental prices in Guam are a bit higher than in the US, I got a new car for a comparatively lower rate than the other brand name car rental companies.
Their customer service was above average and their office is about 5 minutes from the airport. But they had free airport pick up and from airport so no problem. Later I realized that since they were not inside the terminal they did not charge the 10% airport tax like the car rental companies that had a counter inside the airport. So it’s convenience or price, but it was actually only a few minutes from the airport, so that wasn’t really a question. The agents were kind enough to give me some directions as well as a guide map of Guam, as Guam doesn’t seem to have any road signs (I heard this is from the occasional typhoon sweeping them up).
Driving in Guam is something of an adventure in itself. Guam is situated between Asia and the United States, so let me borrow this analogy and refer to driving styles in Guam. If you have been to some Asian cities like Manila or Taipei, you will know what I mean. It is as if the lines on the road and the lights at intersections are only useful for decoration.
In Guam it is not so extreme. You just have to be careful going through the lighted intersections because the locals tend to keep driving even when the light is between yellow and red! It seems that even some of the military that have been stationed here for a while have started to have the same driving habits. Also, some of the older roads are made of coral reefs, which can become very slippery when driving in the rain. Although one of the advantages of living on a tropical island is that many times, when it rains, it can be sunny at the same time. Kind of a nice effect.
Just like anywhere else, fuel isn’t cheap these days, however you’ll be surprised to find that it’s cheaper than in California, especially when fuel is purchased within Anderson Air Force Base and Base US Navy Guam.
The car rental companies I inquired with had the island mentality that seems evident on most tropical Pacific islands. Since the market is limited, they compete with each other, so I would suggest comparing prices and asking for rates from multiple companies; however, I liked their “customer” service and they gave me one of the lowest rates. So I give my support to them and if you plan to travel to the island of Guam check out this car rental company.