Roadboy Visits The Denver Botanical Gardens

Home of Colorful Blooms, Buzzing Bees and Lots of Dead Bodies
And (Until October 2) Thirteen Wonderful Sculptures from the Walker Art Center

This week I had few free hours to spend in Denver before my scheduled flight back to Phoenix. Confident in knowing that United Airlines would try to extract a ridiculous fee for me to stand-by for an earlier flight I opted instead to spend an afternoon at the Denver Botanic Gardens (DBG) in Cheesman Park. 

What a treasure.

The 24 acre garden is divided into various themed sections representing geographic and climatic zones.  The gardens of the west include gardens inspired by native Americans along with various low (and no) water gardens.

 From the Garden's of The West

The International gardens include Asian inspired gardens, tropical gardens and a South African Plaza.

 A Tsukubai (Water Basin) in The Japanese Gardens

There are ornamental gardens that feature an orangery, lilacs, herbs, water, fragrances, roses, romance and scripture.

Roses

Junge Frau (Young Woman) 1926

Georg Kolbe (1877-1947)

(Located in the sacred earth section, my favorite of the Walker sculptures)

 The Boy and a Frog 1898

Elsie Ward Hering 

(In the herb garden this piece is part of the garden's permanent collection)

 The Romantic Gardens

There are shady gardens featuring oaks, pollinators and low light woodlands.

 A Busy Bumble 

(It was Pollinator's Week!)

 Hare on Bell 1983

Barry Flanagan (1941-2009)

There are also two water gardens.

 Clouds Reflected in The Monet Pool

 Summer Blooms Everywhere

Strangely, when I visited the DBG website it offers zero "History of the Gardens".  I found that sort of odd. So I looked up the history of the park in which it resides (Cheesman Park). What I found is a perfect old west tale; gruesome, full of illegality and wrapped in money.

It turns out Cheesman Park was built on top of a very large graveyard. To be specific, it was the Mt. Prospect (or Prospect Hill) Cemetery opened in 1858 (the same year Denver became a city) by William Larimer.

The cemetery's first graves were destined for murdered gambler Jack O'Neal and his murderer John Stoefel. The cemetery filled quickly with the victims of typhoid and other diseases expected in an overcrowded boom town.

After about fourteen years the US Government realized the cemetery was actually located on federal land. The Feds then offered the land to Denver "as is" for $200.

So, in 1873, Mt. Prospect cemetery became the Denver City Cemetery. The City let it fall into neglect and it became an eyesore. However, the neighborhood surrounding it had become highly desired. So local developers and realtors determined if they could get the City to pick up the tab to convert the cemetery into a park they could make an even bigger killing developing the land that adjoined it.

So, in 1890, when the City announced it would build a park on the site it informed the unfortunate families with loved ones buried there, that they had ninety days to move them.  Most families did nothing. So ninety days turned into three years and by 1893 there were still about 5,000 graves left.

Denver then offered a contract to an undertaker to relocate the remaining bodies. The terms of the contract required that bodies be exhumed, placed in a new coffin and be reburied elsewhere. He would receive $1.90 per coffin. The undertaker then maximized profits by using cheaper child sized coffins. And since he was being paid by the coffin, not the body, he exhumed bodies, hacked them up, and put 1/3 of each body into three separate coffins. Newspapers soon reported the macabre larceny and Denver halted grave relocations.  Nothing else happened until in 1894 the City just started to build the new park over whatever/whomever was still left there. 

So, to this day, new DBG projects and construction in the park still "finds" more pioneer remains.


Roadboy's Travel © 2016

Bye Bye AAmerican Pie

American Digs The Knife in and Twists It

(Rant Alert)

Thirty five years ago American Airlines hit upon an amazing marketing plan. It created a frequent flier program and called it American AAdvantage. The program was a way to recognize and reward the airline's most loyal customers.

The wildly successful program eventually enrolled over 60,000,000 members and went on to add various tie-ins such as an AAdvantage credit card.

But members soon came to realize that points earned today were simply devalued tomorrow by an airline that constantly increased its award levels. Road warriors all know that cashing in points requires skill, patience (and maybe a Ouija board?)

This morning, however, I knew something was afoot. 

As a 2 Million Miler with Lifetime Platinum status I periodically get e-mails from American. They are never good. I call them "spin" grams because they always arrive just before they announce some new way they plan to crap on their passengers. Today's message announced major changes to the AAdvantage program. The changes focus on abandoning everyone except their "Best" customers. After three decades of rewarding all of their loyal passengers, American will now switch pretty much to rewarding passengers who spend the most money. To the new American Money = "Best".

The spin gram also announced the addition of a new elite status level. Which (for me) was another slap. You see, for a brief moment a few months back, I found myself flattered to learn that my 30 years of loyalty was being recognized by lifetime Platinum status. Platinum is a very good place to be.

Soon however Platinum will become the new "Gold" level with the addition of a "Platinum Pro" level. "Platinum Pro", doesn't that sound more like the brand name for a condom than an airline elite status level?

After so many years of this declining service I had a premonition this was coming and back in October  / November I decided I'd quit automatically shopping for flights on American's website and would begin exploring my other options.

Happily I am finding there are some good ones!

I now begin each flight search using a macro site like Orbitz or Fly.com. I begin by unchecking Spirit, Frontier and Allegiant (they are too awful to consider at any price) and then I see what turns up.

For my most recent Trans-Pacific flight (after reading negative SeatGuru.com reports) I opted against American and United and chose Singapore Airlines (in their new Premium Economy class). What a great airline!

For my Trans-Atlantic flights I now opt for Emirates (another truly amazing airline). I am also a big fan of Air France, Virgin and La Compagnie (that little airline flying 757's entirely configured with value priced business class). Air Berlin is pretty darned good as is British Air, Lufthansa and SAS.

Need a last minute (i.e. high priced) domestic flight? Check Delta. I've been finding Delta frequently offers last minute first class fares for less than coach on American or United.

For west coast travel I now always try to fly Alaska (they fly consistently beautifully maintained / clean aircraft, offer friendly staff and still have a great frequent flier program).

I'd use JetBlue more if they just offered some real flight options from Phoenix.

My experiment has also disclosed some serious roadkill. My old friend Southwest? I've found it to have serious on time issues. It seems to be evolving into mediocrity in khaki. Of my last seven consecutive flights on SWA, 6 have resulted in delays and 1 in a cancellation. No more SWA for me.

Media reports inform that "Satisfaction' levels among the traveling public have steadily risen. I remain unconvinced. 

I believe passengers have simply become so desensitized that they just accept poor service, long TSA lines and endless fees, knowing that government consumer protections have largely vanished due to airline lobbying. Unless a traveler does a lot of homework, they have little real recourse. Big airlines in the US now just operate using computer models that precisely calibrate the sweet spot where profits are maximized through the delivery of as little as possible.

Today's e-mail from American is proof. So I'm responding the only way the airlines understand, I'm flying pretty much everyone else.

Hey American!

Ba-Bye!

Roadboy's Travels © 2016

Roadboy Visits the Cowboy Hall of Fame

The National Cowboy & Western Heritage Museum

When I was maybe 9 or 10 my family passed through Oklahoma City one summer on our way to visit some of my father's relatives. While there we stopped for a visit to (what was then called) the National Cowboy Hall of Fame.  

The End of The Trail

On that first visit I was dazzled by the larger than life "End of the Trail" sculpture perfectly showcased in a striking building composed of dramatic intersecting concrete folded plate roofs.

I enjoyed listening to my father revel in the chance to explain the nuances of "Rodeo!" to his city kid son. I was also pretty impressed to find out we were related to a few of those rodeo stars.

 Rodeo!

 Canyon Princess

 Detail Canyon Princess

Now, some 50 years later, I had another chance to return and visit (what is now) the National Cowboy & Western Heritage Museum.  I am delighted to report it is bigger and better than ever.

There are now large (and very well curated) sections of western themed art (featuring works by Frederic Remington and Charles M Russell, mixed in with some idyllic dreamlike paintings depicting the western expansion by artists like Bierstadt).

I found myself completely delighted by the exhibit hall dedicated to exquisite Native American arts and crafts.

 A Woman's Wedding Uniform

Spectacular Native Arts and Crafts

 

Even A Few Depictions Modern Life

Perhaps my favorite exhibit was the one dedicated to Hollywood Westerns. Displays included Robert Redford's jacket from The Electric Horseman (he is kinda short!) along with props from Bonanza, The Big Valley and Gunsmoke. There was a tribute to the music of singing cowboys like Roy Rogers and Gene Autry.

They even had Paladin's gun and holster from the 1957 - 1963 television show "Have Gun Will Travel" (featuring its iconic platinum "Knight" medallion).  I saw the show in re-runs, but loved it. After reading a bit about the show, I was impressed to realize 24 of its 225 episodes were written by Gene Roddenberry.  Episodes of HGWT featured a long list of amazing co-stars including: James Coburn, Jack Lord, June Lockhart, Angie Dickinson, Harve Presnell and George Kennedy.

 Have Gun, Will Travel

Wire Paladin

San Francisco

 Oklahoma's Cowboy Genius

Will Rogers Was Well Profiled

Of course, the museum has a section devoted to Oklahoma's own Will Rogers. Roger's was the master showman who could ride and rope and yet "Never Met A Man He Didn't Like".

He dispensed with humor that made an America, in the midst of the Great Depression, laugh. His humor was honest and timeless. And it cut to the quick. Examples that seem appropriate today might be:  

"A fool and his money are soon elected"  

or 

"Ten men in our country can buy the whole world 
and ten million can't buy enough to eat".

There are also galleries dedicated to American firearms, detailed exhibits showcasing daily cowboy life and all the rodeo memorabilia I remember so well from so long ago.

 

This is Oklahoma's Celebration of The Iconic West

Roadboy's Travels © 2016

                                                                          

Airports With Light Rail / Metro

Roadboy's Multi-Modal Airport Round-Up  


When I arrive in a big city I prefer to travel minus rental cars. And I especially appreciate destinations where I can connect from the airport to my hotel via train, light rail or subway.

Sadly, in many airports there is no rail option and you still have to renta a car, Use a taxi starter or request an Uber.

Here is a list of airports where practical multi-modal (rail) choices exist.

ANC Anchorage
Anchorage's airport has direct in-terminal link to the Alaska Railroad. This allows for seamless connection south to the Kenai and north to Denali National Park (Mt. McKinley) and Fairbanks. The Alaska Railroad is a national treasure that operates year round. It is hard to imagine a more amazing winter adventure than going southbound to ski a few days at Alyeska and then going northbound all the way to Fairbanks. 

BUR Burbank Bob Hope

Burbank's funky airport is undergoing a transformation but does offer a close-by stop for the So Cal Metrolink rail system.

BWI Baltimore 
You have two great options. If your are traveling to Baltimore simply proceed to the end of the terminals and catch the light rail. If you need to go to DC or anywhere accessed from the Washington Metro simply take the shuttle to the MARC / Amtrak Station. Amtrak can take you to any major city on the eastern seaboard. MARC is Maryland's fine rail service. If you take it to Washington DC's Union Station you can transfer to the Metro which serves DC, Northern VA and Maryland. 

CDG Paris
This one requires some maneuvering to get to the famous Paris Metro. You'll need to walk to the CDG's RER (National Rail) train station and then take a train to a station in the city that offers a transfer to the Metro. Personally. I find the train trip to be long, crowded, dirty and unpleasant. So I still prefer a Roissybus (comfortable, inexpensive, safe and clean) express bus to Opera. From Opera you can easily link anywhere via Metro. Watch for Pickpockets at Opera.

DCA Washington National
DC's National (I still can't call it Reagan) has a Metro stop right at the airport making it my favorite airport whenever I travel to the capital. 

DAL Dallas Love Field
Everyone's favorite Dallas airport offers a free "Love Link" connector bus to DART rail's Inwood / Love Field station.

DEN Denver
Denver's airport is miles from Downtown. I joke that the airport is halfway to Kansas. Yet it is a lovely airport and Denver is a vibrant city, so the decision to link the two with rail was a good one. The light rail service however opened April 22, 2016! Like SFO it is expensive ($9). So if you have a big family in tow it might not make sense.

DFW Dallas / Fort Worth 
The DART Orange Line now serves DFW airport from the lower level of Terminal A. It operates from 3:50 AM to 1:19 AM seven days a week. Fare is $2.50. That's a real deal!

The Newark's Liberty Airport AirTrain

EWR Newark Liberty
Newark is my choice of the three "New York" Airports. Since both JFK and La Guardia are horrible to get to. For those just arrange a limo or rent a car and allow a lot of time. 

But at Newark's Liberty, however, you can catch its AirTrain connector to a nearby NJ Rail rail station. There you can choose New Jersey Rail or Amtrak for a quick ride direct to Manhattan's Penn Station. If you are headed for lower Manhattan the best great option is to catch a train and go just one stop from the airport to Newark Penn Station and catch the PATH subway direct to Manhattan. My favorite PATH stop is the one that arrives at the site of the World Trade Center. There is no easier, faster, or cheaper way to get to Wall Street, Battery Park than to use the PATH trains. If you have any questions ask one of the friendly red coated ambassadors at EWR to explain how to get where you need to go.

You Can Arrive at Calatrava's New PATH Station

IAD Washington Dulles
Sadly pretty old Dulles airport still awaits its rail connection (but it is well under construction). In the meantime, it just sits there in the burbs surrounded by traffic choked, confusing and annoying toll roads.
 
GAT London Gatwick
Gatwick has local rail connections but, I find them not as user friendly as those at Heathrow. To travel to/from Gatwick I prefer the Gatwick Express to/from Victoria Station. Once you arrive into Victoria Station the Tube connects you anywhere including the Eurostar trains (departing from St. Pancras). Eurostar affords convenient links to Chunnel trains for high speed rail to Paris, Amsterdam, and Brussels.

LHR London Heathrow 
Heathrow offers great local rail connection straight to London on the "Tube" using the Picadilly line. There is also direct express rail service (the Heathrow Express train to London Paddington). Once you arrive into the center city, Tube connections allow access anywhere including (as noted above at Gatwick) London's Eurostar trains.

LIS Lisbon 
Lisbon has a new link to the Red Metro line making a direct airport connection to the its cheap and cheerful network of subway, rail, tram, elevators, funiculars and buses! Such a cool city! For more about using Lisbon's entire Metro click here.

MAD Madrid Barajas
I love Madrid. It has a direct link to its swift modern and clean subway system. There is a premium for going the extra stops to the airport. But it is very convenient!For more about using Madrid's entire Metro click here.

ORD / MDW Chicago
As one would expect from the nation's rail hub, Chicago's O'Hare and Midway airports both offer superb train connections. Simply look for the "Trains to City" signs and enjoy a ride on the Blue and Orange lines respectively. These trains routinely whisk past clogged freeway traffic, a handy thing to know when you need to get to the airport during rush hour!

NRT Tokyo Narita
Narita airport offers superb connections. Just board a clean, fast, NEX (Narita Express) train to Tokyo station (in the heart of Tokyo). From there you can get anywhere in Tokyo or connect to the Shinkanssen (Bullet) train network to go virtually anywhere in Japan.

PHI Philadelphia 
Philly does offer connection rail to the City Core and its city subways, but the way finding is exceptionally poor for a first time visitor. A trip to an "Info" stand is essential to make it work. Also Philadelphia (although one of my favorite American cities) is a city where visitor safety can vary a lot from one metro stop to another. So know where you are headed and have clear directions if you attempt the trains.  

PHX Phoenix Sky Harbor
Phoenix Sky Harbor offers a free Sky Train rail link from Terminals 3-4 (and can be easily walked to from Terminal 2). Sky train provides a direct connection to Phoenix's light rail system for connections to downtown or east to Tempe (Arizona State University) and Mesa. Word of caution. The light rail station near Sky Harbor airport is in a crap neighborhood so I'd avoid using it as an option late at night.for more information about the SkyTrain click here.

Scottsdale residents opted out of the Phoenix Metro light rail system, so visitors planning to visit NE Valley (i.e. Scottsdale resorts) will need to use cab or rent a car.

PDX Portland
Yep it's perfect. Portland's light rail offers easy and cheap light rail service from the airport to the convention center and downtown.

SAN San Diego 
Lindbergh Field offers a quick bus link to its growing light rail system. The light rail system also allows connections for international transit direct to Tijuana.

SEA Seattle SeaTac
Sound Transit's rail link to/from SeaTac takes about 40 minutes to Downtown terminating a the Westlake Mall (easy walk to the Convention Center). For more detailed onformation about Seattle's SeaTac light rail connection click here.

SFO/OAK San Francisco / Oakland
Both airports (finally) offer direct Bay Area Rapid Transit (BART) links to downtown SF and most East Bay destinations. Be aware that the BART fare from SFO is ridiculously expensive (what isn't in SF?). So if you have a big group, Other options may be better. Going down the Penninsula, up to Marin and to Silicon Valley can still be a time consuming challenge.

SIN Singapore Changi
Anyone who has ever flown into Singapore knows it is the best airport in the world. And, (of course) it has a wonderful subway connection into the City. 

Sadly, many international flights (from the US) arrive in the wee hours of the morning and the subway is closed. So plan your arrival accordingly.

STL Saint Louis Lambert
Lambert Field has recently undergone a significant facelift. They now have the ubiquitous airport rockers and overall the terminal is as confusing as when it was the home of TWA, but at least it is clean and sparkly again. Still no free wi-fi (Grrrr!) but (hooray!) STL has a very convenient and direct light rail connection from airport to downtown Saint Louis. 

SLC Salt Lake City
Anyone who has not visited Salt Lake City in the past few years will be amazed at its transformation into one of America's best cities. New transit oriented developments (TOD's), live / work lofts, parks, good shopping, fine restaurants, arts and culture abound. SLC's also operates a light rail line direct to the airport allowing smooth connections from the airport in any weather. 


YYZ Toronto Pearson
Lester B Pearson fInally completed its TTC dental work with the new UP trains from the airport to downtown's Union Station. It is expensive ($12 / ea. way), but it is fast and comfortable.   

The Diss List

Still no convenient link from LAX (but its connection is nearing completion).
Sacramento, Orange County / Santa Ana, Raleigh and Houston, Ugh.

And, the award for worst offender award goes to...  

LAS (Las Vegas). How the most tourist dependent city in America, can go on treating its tourists like such garbage is beyond me. No hotel shuttles are allowed to/from the airport. No monorail connection. It is just an embarrassment. Got to assume the taxi lobbyists bribe very well.  So plan to rent a car or take a cab ( that will try to drive you the longest route possible) to your hotel. 

Roadboy's Travels © 2016

A Rainy Weekend in Chicago

The Most American of Cities

I have always had a soft spot for Chicago. 

This is a brash city that works hard, is not afraid to eat meat and loves its architecture. I'd honestly classify Chicago as the most American of cities.

So, en route to Toronto Monday, I arranged a weekend detour to Chicago. I was hoping for a couple of lovely spring days before the annual arrival of another humidity laden Midwest summer.

What Chicago delivered was a bunch of NFL fans (the NFL draft), spring flowers, a smidgen of sunshine and a lot of rain. 

Friday included stops at the Harold Washington Library, architectural sights in The Loop, a German lunch at the Berghoff all capped off with a walk through Millennium Park.

Since the weatherman only offered a single day of "partly sunny" weather it was spent walking beginning with a quick stop to admire some Mies and Calder.

 

Mies And Calder

Then it was a brief stop at Chicago's magnificent library. The take away this trip was how this library affords access across a wide spectrum of media (including technology labs full of etching machines, 3D Printers and lasers).

The library is hosting an emotional ceiling installation comprised of over 58,000 GI dog tags (representing American casualties in Viet Nam). I had seen a similar version at the LBJ Presidential Library in Austin a few years back. It still delivers a punch.

The Price of War

Poster for an Upcoming Library Photographic Exhibition by David Gremps

Departing the library and the Loop, the next stop was Millennium Park and the pure joy induced by Anish Kapoor's Cloud Gate (which everyone simply calls "The Bean").

 

Chicago Reflections in Cloud Gate 

Spring Blooms in Millennium Park

The Serpentine Bridge

(Viewing from the lake back from Maggie Daley Park to Michigan Ave.) 

With Saturday came the rain and a full day meandering through the Art Institute of Chicago and its new Modern wing.  Happily, it allowed me to experience artwork missed on previous visits.

 Viewing A Rainy Chicago

From the Art Institute

A perfect rainy day introduction to the Art Institute is the Caillebotte's monumental painting of a rainy street scene in Paris in 1877. He was only 29 when he created this painting.   

 Paris Street; Rainy Day

Gustave Caillebotte 1877

In no particular order here are some of my other favorites. First a Picasso painted after a stint working on set and costume designs in Rome for the Ballet Russes.

Mother and Child

Pablo Picasso 1921

Next up was Charles Ray's strangely mannequin like 6' tall figure "Boy". Boy assumes a confrontational pose in clothes one critic described as somewhere between "Baby and Hitler Youth". Ray is the same Los Angeles artist that created the stark white "Boy With Frog" sculpture showcased at Venice's 53rd Biennale and later (currently) displayed the Getty Center.

Boy

Charles Ray 1992

I found a series of photographs by Cindy Sherman to be both engaging and unsettling. The pose in this particular photo conjures up what the other side of Christina would look like in Andrew Wyeth's 1948 masterwork "Christina's World".

Untitled #92 Photograph

Cindy Sherman 1981

During my teens, when art was abstract, pop and op, the world worshipped Warhol. 

So Alan Katz' colorful and realistic painting "Vincent and Tony" stands out.  I found myself completely drawn to the seemingly distracted, vacant and confused faces Katz painted of his son and his son's best friend in 1969. 

In 1969 I was about their age and I think I felt the same way.

 Vincent and Tony

 Alan Katz 1969

In my previous visits to the Art Institute I specifically went to see Edward Hopper's strangely lonely, iconic and ambiguous New York scene "Nighthawks". However, it was on loan somewhere else in the world. So it was especially nice to be able to see it on this visit.

 

Nighthawks

Edward Hopper 1942

Enlarged Detail - Nighthawks

Arguably the most recognizable piece in the museum is Grant Woods "American Gothic". This painting is etched in our popular culture and it draws crowds trying to discern the story behind the spare an unhappy father and, his daughter and that pitchfork. 

Woods recruited his sister Nan as the woman. He modeled the farmer on his dentist Dr. Bryan McKeeby from Cedar Rapids Iowa.

American Gothic

Grant Woods 1930

Next up is Andy Warhol's portrait of Elizabeth Taylor. While not personally a big Warhol fan. This piece is sought out and adored by throngs of museum visitors. The fact that various "Elizabeth's" have fetched $20-$30,000,000 each at auction recently is also pretty breathtaking.

Elizabeth Taylor

 Andy Warhol 1963

I found Gerhard Richter's "Hunting Party" to be intriguing. Richter transferred an image from a photograph then ran a dry paint brush across the photos wet pigment to create this image.

 Hunting Party

Gerhard Richter 1966

While certainly not his best portrait I loved seeing John Singer Sargent's portrait of Chicago native Charles Deering after a recent visit to his brother (James) Deering's Miami estate Vizcaya. Sargent was a friend of James and likely painted this while a guest at James Deering's Florida Estate (for more information Click here for Roadboy's Vizcaya).

Charles Deering 
(Brother of James Deering / Heir to Deering Harvester)

James Singer Sargent 1917

The Institute understands that artistic expression may be exemplified through furniture, jewelry and other functional items such as this spectacular silver decanter by Thomas Muir. 

Cycladic Figure With Hair in a Roller

Thomas Muir 1985

Another favorite museum stop for me are the Thorne Miniatures. The Art Instititute collection of these meticulously crafted miniature rooms is the largest anywhere.

Mrs. Thorne (an heir to the Montgomery Ward department store chain) created the miniatures as a mainly personal interest. In doing so she hired a crew of underemployed craftsmen during the depression. The miniatures were displayed at two World's Fairs. 

About 100 were produced. Chicago has 68, Phoenix 20 and Knoxville 9. The rest were auctioned for charities.

The level of detail belies their tiny size.

The Actual Size of a Typical Miniature

(In this case the interior of an 1893 Pullman Rail Car)

A View Into the Pullman Miniature

As the galleries began to close, we viewed the mesmerizing windows Marc Chagall created for the Institute. After a recent restored they just glow.

 America Windows

Marc Chagall / Charles Marq 1975-77

Ferris Buehler Visiting the Windows 

on His "Day Off"

An inspiring day in an inspiring place.

Saturday evening also delivered an inspiring dinner! That came at a wonderful restaurant named Beatrix. There was a carmelized Pork Shank over Yukon gold mash and roasted Michigan peaches and an entree of organic chicken crusted in parmesan with roasted asparagus. Then came a generous rectangle of blueberry slab pie.

OMG. Very highly recommended!


Roadboy's Travels © 2016

Renting Cars Without Getting Fleeced

And Silvercar too!

Everyone thinks they know how to rent a car.  But, judging from what I've observed most people just reserve a car online and then proceed to get royally screwed.

I've rented a car almost every week for 30 years. So here are a few basic Roadboy tips on how to get a fair rate and minimize wasted time in line.

Lets start with the basics. Are you 25 with a valid credit card? If yes to both questions, you are probably good to go. If no to either or both questions, plan on making special arrangements.

First the ground rules.

Rental car companies make much of their profit by selling you extras. Rental counter agents get commissions for getting you to buy stuff. So expect to be pressured into buying upgrades, additional insurance, a GPS device and toll tags.

• Upgrades

Normally the first up sell will be for an upgrade. It might go something like "Oh I see you are tall, is that little car going to be big enough for you? I can put you in a larger car for only $XX."

First off, the $XX quoted is daily and will be in addition to the rate you reserved.  Upgrading at the counter is almost always a bad idea.

Upgrades are also frequently pitched when the lot is out of the car class you reserved. If you are dealing with a reputable rental agency they'll readily admit it and go on to offer you an upgrade for the same  rate. You should never tolerate an extended wait for a car in the class you reserved.

• Insurance 

This one requires 15 minutes of homework before you rent a car.

1. Contact your auto insurance company and verify that you are fully insured when you rent a car for business and/or leisure.

2. Check with your credit card company to determine if it covers you for a car rental. Many credit cards do only IF you decline all rental car company offers of supplemental insurance. However, even credit cards that offer car rental coverage, frequently limit this coverage to domestic use, so don't rely on them for an international rental.

Expect the agent to try to subtle intimidation with comments like "You do understand you are responsible for the full value of the car?"

• Prepaid Fuel

The next question you will be asked is: "Would you like to pre-pay a tank of gas at (enter cheap per gallon rate here) and return the car empty?"

This sounds good, but the rental car company realizes that most customers return their cars with quite a bit of gas in the tank. So, getting you to pay for a whole tank, despite the discount per gallon rate, is almost always a bad deal for you.

• Emergency Road Service and Other Up Charges

Before you leave the rental counter scan the summary of charges on the contract they hand you. You will likely be amazed at the array of charges added to your bill. In some cities (Seattle is a good example) the added taxes and charges frequently exceed the daily rental rate for the car.  Sorry, but you are stuck with most of those fees. But one fee added in that is usually optional is emergency road service. 

So if any charge or fee seems vague ask. It never hurts. Thrifty in Salt Lake City always used to add an expensive daily "Emergency Road Service" fee. I missed seeing this fee a couple of times and got stuck paying for something I really didn't need.

Consider becoming a basic member of AAA. Here's why. Once rented a car and a few hours later I locked the car keys inside. First I called local locksmiths and was told "We don't do auto lockouts" anymore. I then called the rental car company and was told the "emergency road service" I bought was limited to mechanical break downs, not a lock out.

So my only two options were to hire a taxi to / from the airport (to pick up a spare key) or break a window. So faced with a $200 cab fare or the expense of replacing a broken window, I thought I'd check AAA. They unlocked my car in 20 minutes at no charge. I almost always save more than my annual AAA fee each year just in hotel rate savings.

• Paying for the Last Guy's Sins

Never simply get in a rental car and drive off.

Even if the lot is dark use your cell phone flashlight and examine the body, windshield, headlights and the tires. Take cell phone photos of anything you see and get the gate agent to initial your updated damage form.

Alamo in Albuquerque once rented me a car once with a tiny windshield crack. I blew it off. But when I returned it I was told they "cannot rent a car with even a tiny crack" and proceeded to charge me for a full windshield replacement.

Just this week I noticed my rental car steering wheel was just a little off after I had left Silvercar in Denver.

Admittedly, It seemed odd for an otherwise nice car. Since there was no shimmy or pulling, I ignored it.

But an hour after returning the car I got a call accusing me of hitting a curb and told I may be subjected to paying for damages to the tire and/or suspension etc. Although the roads were dry for my rental Denver experienced a big late spring storm the week before. So I'm betting the last renter slid into a curb. So examine tires and NEVER drive a car with a steering wheel that is not 100% dead level.

• Road Tolls

If you will be in an area with toll roads check into the various rental cars toll policy. Many charge excessive daily charges for toll tags. This is a real pain when you have a 5 day rental and only a small part of your trip will include a toll road.

I recently had one rental car company issue me a toll tag, then charge me $8 per toll gate (where the cash charge for the actual toll was only 80 cents).

So Here is Roadboy's Tips:

1. Shop
Research prices for your car on a site like CarRentals.com. That allows you to scan rates for the dates and market you need from lots of agencies at once. Be careful to avoid pre-paid rentals unless you are totally sure of your travel plans.  If yur a willing to pay a pre-paid rental check Hotwire and Priceline. But rmeember Hotwire adds a service charge. The key is to  always compare the total rental charge, not the daily rate.

If the car you want is under $69 / day then go to the actual rental car site to rent that car.

Please, before you male the reservation spend 5 minutes to become a member of the car rental agencies frequent rental club. Then log in and reserve the car. Now, when you arrive you'll get access to the expedited lane and eliminate much (if not all) of the car rental counter up sell hell experience.

2.  Timing

If you can, shop for a car 45 days before your trip. Advance rates are usually (but not always) lower than prices will be just before you travel.

But, I try to also check back 7-14 days before I travel. Sometimes I'll find rates have gone down. When that happens, I reserve a new rental and go back and cancel the old one.

3. Buy Your Own Gas

If you have the time, plan to buy your own gas. Otherwise many rental car companies will charge an exorbitant price to refill.

4. Smile - Never Argue

No matter how awful the experience is try hard not to argue or get mad. If a conflict arises be firm, but reasonable.

Yelling almost never benefits you. Conversely, being the nice guy who comes up ot the counter after an agent has just served a string of upset customers, frequently results in making the agent more inclined to treat you well.

5. Check Silvercar

If the rental rate for the dates / locale exceed $69 / day then check if your destination is served by Silvercar.  Silvercar delivers a wonderful premium rental car experience. It only rents newish Audi A4's. ANd every car has both satellite radio and WiFi. They have a fair toll and refuel policy too. You'll first need to add their app to your smart phone. Then upon arrival you simply use your smart phone to check the car out (no rental counter lines, no high pressure up selling, no BS).

6. Car Sharing

And for you Millennial's (with car sharing accounts), see if you can ride a light rail to your hotel and use your ride sharing account. This allows you to bag the whole hassle of renting a car!

Roadboy's Travels © 2016

75,000!

Thank You!
From An Architect on The Road
 

I just happened to notice that my blog's stats checker recently passed 75,000 hits. 

I've really enjoy creating these posts and sharing the highlights and sometimes obscure or hidden stories associated with the places I've been lucky enough to visit over the years.  Here are some highlights looking back.....

 Holiday Shop Windows New York City

 Storms  Over Nashville

 Sky Shark

 The Magic of Piazza St. Marco Venice

 Sunset Over The Pacific From Santa Monica

 Summer Fun in Lisbon

 Shop Window in Barcelona

 Mugging At Parc Guel Barcelona

The City Museum St. Louis

Looking ahead....

Between work, a speaking engagement and fun my calendar for the next eight months is filling up. It has me visiting Denver, Montana, Seattle, Chicago, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, Toronto, Virginia, San Diego and Hawaii. Plus I'll take a bicycle journey in the late fall through Spain's Costa Brava.

So stay tuned for more posts and, to the 75,000 plus folks that have visited here over the years, well Roadboy offers a big thank you!

Roadboy's Travels © 2016