How to rent a car in Seattle under 25

Seattle is a dynamic urban enclave with an outstanding waterfront location. The homeland of grunge music, artisan espresso, and technology companies like Microsoft and Amazon, Seattle has plenty of youth-friendly attractions to enjoy. If you want to get out and visit remote locations like the gorgeous mountains or Whidbey Island, you will want to hire a car. You can cover a lot more ground more easily with the rental car saving time and getting essential comfort. Find out everything you need to rent a car under 25 in Seattle.

General requirements for under 25 rental

You should be at least 19 years old to hire a vehicle in Seattle. In addition to meeting the age requirements, you must provide a valid driver’s license without suspension for the last year. Drivers under 25 will also be asked to present a valid debit or credit card with the tenant’s name on it, as well as the ability to pay a Young Renter Fee. This underage charge is set by each rental agency individually and applied to your rental in addition to the standard rental car rate. Please note that most companies impose restrictions on the types of vehicles for car rental in Seattle under 25. So, you can’t drive the rental luxury and premium cars as well as pickups. Instead, you can choose from compact, Standard, and SUVs.

Girls sitting in the car

Minimum age and underage fee

Check out the list of agencies that permit renting a car for tenants under 25. Each supplier charges a certain underage fee, which averages $20-36 per day.

Car rental agency Minimum age Underage fee
Thrifty 20 $29 per day
Alamo 21 $25 per day
AVIS 21 $27 per day
Budget 21 $20 per day
Dollar 20 $20-25 per day
Enterprise 21 $25 per day
Fox 19 $20-25 per day
Hertz 20 $19 per day
National 21 $25 per day
SIXT 21 $23.99-35.99 per day

Clear instructions on how to rent a car in Seattle under 25

Plan your trip to Seattle in advance to fully enjoy your vacation, avoid unnecessary costs, and save time. Below you can find a step-by-step guide on how to hire a car in Seattle under 25:

  • Follow the link to go to the page with Seattle car rental under 25 
  • Enter the supposed date of the car rental and your age in the search form 
  • Choose one of the car models among the best vendors and best car rental deals in the city 
  • Read attentively the requirements of the vendor before booking
  • Print booking confirmation, just in case
  • Go to the car rental office which you have chosen while booking to pick up a car. 

A red car

What to do in Seattle if you are under 25 years old

Seattle is a great destination spot for young people as there are tons of amazing things to see and do. 

  • Start with the Pike Place Market to plunge into the atmosphere of the city. More than 200 artisans selling their wares, music-playing street performers, and a stunning view of Elliott Bay are waiting for you. 
  • Explore streets with the Seattle Center Monorail and visit the Chihuly Garden and Glass to see an outstanding art collection. 
  • Rent a car to get to Woodland Park Zoo just 6 miles from downtown or the Summit ski resort at Snoqualmie only 54 miles from the heart of Seattle. The drive is all on a modern multi-lane expressway, so you will reach it rapidly and easily.
  • Order a guided tour of Lake Union and Portage Bay by kayak or get experience with indoor skydiving. 

If you are interested in an under 25 car rental in Seattle, take a look at the most suitable options for Seattle parking. Don’t forget to purchase CityPASS to save more than 50% off the ticket price of the top city attractions. 

3 Tips for car rental under 25 in Seattle 

  1. If you are thinking about the most suitable location for picking up your rental vehicle, consider the Seattle–Tacoma International Airport. You can rapidly reach the city center from the airport, the path takes only 20 minutes of driving. Upon arrival at SEA, finding the car rental office is a walk in the park. You can use the 24-hour shuttle buses or go to the passenger pick-up areas in the main terminal to look for car rental at Seattle Airport under 25. You can also rent a car Downtown. Check out available locations for Seattle downtown car rental under 25.
  2. Young drivers need to be aware of lively streets and one-way Seattle roads. When driving on residential streets, note that two-lane roads often merge into one. Be attentive when passing crosswalks as pedestrians often expect you to stop for them. 
  3. Seattle has traffic cameras placed around the roads, thus young drivers can be aware of traffic conditions to easily find the freeway. If you have enough time to explore Seattle, you better avoid driving around the city on Fridays and busier weekend afternoons.

Seattle view

The best way to rent a car in Seattle

If you are under 25 and looking for the easiest and cheapest way to hire a car in Seattle, you can find it on Rental24H.com. A comfortable car at an affordable price is often a lacking part of the formula for a successful road trip. Find out the best deals from highly trusted vendors, fill out the form and pick up the desired car at your preferred place and time. Follow Seattle car rental under 25, hiring a vehicle has never been so easy!  

Find The Best SeaTac Or Seattle Parking Option!

Updated 12/16/2023

Seattle is an ultra-modern and high-tech city in the state of Washington. Space Needle, Columbia Center, Boeing Everett Factory – the list of its unique places is impressive. Also, the city is full of iconic historical sights, which makes it an incredibly popular destination among travelers. Convenient road system and reasonable prices for gasoline contribute to the fact that many visitors to the city use car rental instead of public transport. This is a very suitable way of transportation allowing every tourist feel free to choose where to go and what to see. 

However, due to the fact that there are a lot of cars in the city, searching for Seattle parking can cause a headache and complicate your journey.

Table of contents:

Parking in Seattle

When using a rental car, probably many auto-travelers will face the problem of leaving a vehicle in the city or a disaster of SeaTac Airport parking. This is not surprising, because it’s very difficult to easily navigate the place where you have never been before, especially if you are a foreigner.

The good news is that you can avoid many problems if you prepare their solution in advance. Therefore, by following some guidelines from this article, you will find the most suitable slot even without a Seattle parking map!

Before heading to the place where you want o stay overnight, you will be able to choose among the next options:

  • Street metered parking;
  • Parking lots and garages;
  • Hotel parking.

As in any city, the cost of parking is a value that directly depends on the specific place and time of day. As for the largest city of Washington, Seattle center parking fee during the busiest hours is about $5 per hour, while on the outskirts of the city the price drops to $0.5-$1 per hour.

The most peak hours to leave your car are usually between 11a.m. and 5p.m.. If you need overnight parking in SeaTac or city area, then you will be happy to know that it’s free from 6-8 p.m. till 8a.m.. Also, parking is not paid on Sundays and some national holidays. Unfortunately, it will be hard to find such spaces in the high-demand areas.

Another tool for a hassle-free parking in Seattle downtown is a special permit. The only drawback is that it requires actual confirmation of the residence, which means it’s available for locals only.

Seattle street parking: what is important?

parking seattle, seattle parking

You know how convenient it’s to leave the car close to the required place in order to have quick access to your personal transport later. For this reason, street parking in Seattle is the most commonly used way to leave a car for a night.

No worries about whether you will find a free space where you need it, because Seattle parking map covers all the major attractions, business facilities and other popular destinations throughout the city. The price of street park slots is one of the highest among US locations, which means choosing the right place as it will help you find the best rate and save your budget.

Parking meters are the way to pay for a space for leaving your car. Usually, they accept cash, coins, electronic bank cards, and have a 2-, 4- or 10-hour limit. The whole procedure takes several minutes:

  • You find a convenient parking spot.
  • Choose the required parking time and pay in any way possible.

In case of violation of Seattle downtown parking rules, you will be ticketed or even towed. Also, keep in mind that general traffic rules prohibit leaving the car for more than 72 hours in a row at the same parking space.

Cheap parking spots in Seattle

Due to the large area of the city and the abundance of special places, at first it will be difficult to decide where to leave the car. There’s a general rule – the closer to the center, the higher the cost. However, you can still find even a free place at the busiest areas.

For quick searching, you can use Spotangels, which is an online resource showing all available places for cheap airport parking in SeaTac and city downtown. The most popular city destinations are listed below:

If your goal is to find a low-cost Seattle parking garage, then in this case look for the orange $3 signs offering the same price for short-term parking. However, all these places have already been entered into the online services database, and it will be much more convenient for you to use them and not to search for a parking place while driving through the streets.

In addition to Spotangels, affordable parking in Seattle can be found by using such handy apps as Spothero, Park Mobile and BestParking

6 Downtown Seattle hotels with free parking

seattle airport parking, seattle parking map, seattle parking

Sometimes it’s very important to have a car at hand to be able to quickly start the engine and go to any place at any time. For this reason, many travelers want to take advantage of the best Seattle hotels and their no-cost parking slots.

Of course, this is very convenient from the point of view of transportation, since you can plan your vacation according to your needs and desires, without looking at the bus or subway schedule.

Also, when returning in the evening to the hotel by car, you will save yourself from the need to leave it in a parking garage somewhere in the vicinity of the hotel and go from there on foot.

Luckily, the list of hotels which include this option into the suite price is quite large, so it will make your choice easy and quick. Here’re some attractive options for travelers:

  1. Kings Inn (2106 5th Ave) – $152/night;
  2. Hotel Max (620 Stewart Street) – $149/night;
  3. Hilton Seattle (1306 6th Ave) – $181/night;
  4. Marco Polo Hotel (4114 Aurora Ave N) – $98/night;
  5. Brighton Retreat (45th Ave S) – $105/night;
  6. The Paramount Hotel (724 Pine St) – $167/night.

You have chosen a hotel but it doesn’t provide free garages for your vehicle? In this case, you’ll have to pay additionally $20-$50/night for a separate guarded space for your rental car.

Top Seattle airport parking lots

Imagine that you have a business or leisure trip with a starting point in Seattle. You need to get to the airport, but you don’t want to pick up a taxi. One possible – and probable the most befitting – solution is to use your own car for this purpose, and then leave it at SeaTac parking spot.

All customers who need a long term parking in SeaTac air hub are offered 2 variants to choose from:

  • Terminal direct parking.
  • General parking.

Terminal direct park lots are the most progressive and convenient solutions. The fact is that the fourth floor of a huge building that serves for parking has a direct connection to the main terminal of the airport via skybridge. This is the fastest way to get from the plane to your car and back. The exact address is 17801 International Blvd, SeaTac, WA. The only drawback of this variant is Sea-Tac Airport parking rates – $5 per hour, or $37 per day. 

Note: reservations are not allowed.

General parking is a good alternative when you can leave your car at the airport. It’s available on 1-3 and 5-8 floors of the building. Seattle airport parking rates in this section is $4/hour, $30/day or $140/week.

SeaTac hotels with free parking

Here are a few examples of hotels where you can leave your car for no cost:

  • Ramada (16720 International Boulevard) – $60/day;
  • Sleep Inn (20406 International Blvd) – $88/day;
  • Coast Gateway (18415 International Blvd) – $100/day;
  • Country Inn & Suites by Radisson (3100 S 192nd St) – $87/day;
  • Surestay Plus (19260 28th Ave S) – $87/day;
  • Red Roof Inn (16838 International Blvd) – $68/day.

Parking downtown Seattle

seattle parking, seattle parking ticket, parking downtown seattle

If you need to leave your car in downtown Seattle parking, then you need to look for special garages marked with ‘P’ sign. The cheapest of them have an orange $3 inscription, which means the price of parking per hour is three dollars.

Also, those parking garages that are marked with a turquoise marker offer a fixed price for evenings and weekends. It’s usually cheaper than the standard tariff available in other garages – less than $7 for these times. The regular parking price in garages marked with blue ‘P’ sign is most commonly hourly and varies between $3 and $8 per hour.

For your convenience, there’s a comprehensive map which is an excellent way to find the cheapest parking downtown Seattle in just several clicks. Another advantage provided by online services is a real-time parking tracker showing currently-available parking spaces.

As you can see, Seattle parking is not a problem at all, and in order to choose the necessary option you just need to use these valuable recommendations and a smartphone in your hands. Also, don’t forget to follow the traffic regulations on the road to avoid any problems when traveling to Seattle by car.

Is One Way Car Rental With No Drop Fee Possible?

Updated 11/10/2023

Travelers take a car for rent at any given opportunity. Also, they often pick a one way rental option to band two travel points, airports, or just explore a new area. Sure enough, all tourists want to get one way car rentals no drop fee. No one likes penalties. Hiring the rental vehicle in the US and leaving it at different spots is often money-taking, but here we will tell you how to avoid a drop fee, what companies offer the cheapest one-way rental car deals and what are the most popular locations for such kind of trips.

Table of content:

Best one way car rental companies in America

Never forget, not all american car hire agencies provide cheap one way car rentals without having to pay for dropping-off the car. Even big respectable agencies with numerous rental spots all over America and abroad may not offer car rental pickup and drop off at different locations without a charge. So, if the agency you used to deal with charges you for one way rental option, it makes sense to change the agency.

Most demanded agencies and their ONE WAY FEE policy:

Alamo Rent a Car logo

Alamo one way fee

Be careful when booking with Alamo – they may take the so-called inter-city fee. Even if you decide to pick up a car in New York and drop it off in Buffalo, be ready to pay $297 for a trip, from which a car price is $89.95 and a drop fee is $150! Of course, Alamo return to a different location fee could be higher or lower, depending on the state and city where a driver starts the reservation.
But still, most of the locations go with no drop penalties. 

AVIS Rent a Car

Avis one way fee

Looking for a cheap one way car rental deal with no fee for drop-off with Avis? You can find a special proposal – one way airport-to-city transfer. You can ride a car one way across the nearby cities or airports. Such a proposal is also available when you take an auto in most of the US cities such Las Vegas and so on. 

Note, that they can ask for airport-to-downtown one way trip between certain US cities and airports. In this case, Avis change drop off location fee will be about $9,99 per day.

Budget Rent a Car

Budget one way fee

Hunting for the cheapest one way car hires no drop fee deal with this supplier. Like the previous company, Budget one way rental fee for 1 day will be about $9,99. The names of the cities you can check on the Budget web page.

Enterprise Rent-A-Car

Enterprise drop off fee

This agency has many interesting deals for one-way car rental with unlimited miles. The penalties vary by locations and time of the year, even more, they have special offers with no penalties. For example, a trip from NY city to Buffalo with an economy car will cost you $489 for 3 days, where $126.34 is a one-way charge already included in the price.

hertz

Hertz change drop off location fee

As usual, the penalty varies from location to location, so you need to check the T&Cs  of the company very carefully. In general, Hertz one way fee at the airports start from $9,99 and may be more then $150 per day.

How to avoid one-way rental fees in the USA?

Drop penalties in America usually bump into such criteria as the company-partner you rent a car from, travel distance, and a tourist season. So, can you drop off a rental car at a different location with no fees at all?  

  • Check rental spots

First of all, look through the list of big car hire agencies with numerous locations. But even these giants may not offer one way rental with no required penalties from some cities. Don’t focus on the airport rental only. Pay attention to the off-airport rental spots. You can save a lot or just get a car with a minimum one way fee car rental.

  • Read the fine print

Getting a rental car without a drop fee can be real if you know how to find it. Hiring an auto you fill in a special form where you can indicate the finite location and check the car rates. There is a variety of interesting offers. Also, you can find even more attractive proposal like a special one-way promo, city-to-city sales, airport-to-city specials.

  • California one way car rentals without drop off fees

Let’s see what the top requested car hire spots usually offer. Pleasantly, you have a real chance to pass over the fees for one way destination. Southern California one way deals are usually free of charge (some fees may be applicable if you rent certain types of cars, so always read Ts&Cs of your supplier). The most significant rental spots such welcomes visitors with no additional costs.

You may think that this is your real opportunity to take a car one way with no drop off charge. But you should know that the one way penalty is usually waived when you hire a car online and may not be seen in the total price. Read the fine print carefully to know all the price details.

cheap-one-way-deal

Hot routes for car rental drop off at a different location 

When you hire a car in any of American states one way, the extra money may apply. It varies depending on where you reserve a car. If you want to get one way car hire with no payments for dropping off your car, check the route carefully. Do you think that economy class car rental one way with no fee? Forget it, as such a deal doesn’t work with economy rental cars for the majority of rental companies.

Go from Los Angeles to San Francisco

This travel destination is the hottest one way rental route without fee for dropping off the car. It is not only in the USA but in the whole world. People come to see Disneyland, Santa Cruz, the Big Sur. It takes you no more than 7 hours of driving there. Leave the car and continue your trip in any direction.

Go one way from Miami to Orlando

Miami is another popular rental location where tourists often come to visit. This sunny state is very hospitable for drivers. Do you have in mind to rent a convertible car? There is nothing like driving from Miami to Orlando with the roof down! Palm Beach, Fort Lauderdale, green countrysides are especially attractive for people who like sport and nature. What is more, one way car hire no drop fee.

Go from Orlando to Tampa

Orlando is a place of bright attractions for kids and adults. Orlando International Airport is a rental spot with no one way drop charge. Ride your automobile and visit Tampa. This is a perfect place for all who like beach vacation and subtropics.

Go from Seattle to Portland

3 hours driving and you can get to Portland from Seattle. This destination usually takes no one way fee and full of sights and memorable places to see. Additionally, Portland offers a big range of road trips you have definitely never seen!

Rates do vary! The final price depends on the route you are following and the rental privacy policy in the chosen city. That’s why, before hiring a vehicle, learn the company’s politics and double check all possible fees.