National Tonkoon's Vacation

[CT III]

By the way, does anybody have an old car booster seat (or even two) lying around that I could borrow for a couple of weeks, or buy off you?  I'd need them for the road trip (07/20 - 08/03).  I got a really, really good deal with National car rental but they want an arm and a leg to rent something that probably only costs twenty-five bucks brand new.  We could bring 'em with us, but I'd rather not.

I don't have a spare one, but it might be cheapest to just buy from Amazon and have it shipped to Chicago when you arrive.

Cheaper than borrowing one from one of the many breederfriends that Tonk has across the pond?  

Great advice--I'm sure Tonk has never heard of Ama.  Zon?  It's kind of the reason he threw that out there, Chad.

Tonk--I think we've got an extra one too.  Would be the same as Chuck's--simple booster, no back.

That's quite an expansive definition of Chad. Are we expanding it from "bros who wear tanktops in the bleachers while crushing some macrobrews" who become to include "unhelpful dads who make dumb suggestions?"

Your unintentionally hilarious "advice" sort of came off as a married Chad who buys his baby boosters from Sky Mall but will "slum" it and suggest someone merely go to Amazon to save a few hundred bucks, yes.  You can hide behind "clumsy dad' all you want but until you move out to the suburbs full stop you really don't get that privilege, Chad.

All right, who told Huey he could create his own stereotypes again?

[World's #1 Astros Fan]

By the way, does anybody have an old car booster seat (or even two) lying around that I could borrow for a couple of weeks, or buy off you?  I'd need them for the road trip (07/20 - 08/03).  I got a really, really good deal with National car rental but they want an arm and a leg to rent something that probably only costs twenty-five bucks brand new.  We could bring 'em with us, but I'd rather not.

I don't have a spare one, but it might be cheapest to just buy from Amazon and have it shipped to Chicago when you arrive.

Cheaper than borrowing one from one of the many breederfriends that Tonk has across the pond?  

Great advice--I'm sure Tonk has never heard of Ama.  Zon?  It's kind of the reason he threw that out there, Chad.

Tonk--I think we've got an extra one too.  Would be the same as Chuck's--simple booster, no back.

That's quite an expansive definition of Chad. Are we expanding it from "bros who wear tanktops in the bleachers while crushing some macrobrews" who become to include "unhelpful dads who make dumb suggestions?"

Your unintentionally hilarious "advice" sort of came off as a married Chad who buys his baby boosters from Sky Mall but will "slum" it and suggest someone merely go to Amazon to save a few hundred bucks, yes.  You can hide behind "clumsy dad' all you want but until you move out to the suburbs full stop you really don't get that privilege, Chad.

All right, who told Huey he could create his own stereotypes again?

You flatter me, but RV did all of the heavy lifting here.

*sits back, puts feet on desk*

[R-V]

By the way, does anybody have an old car booster seat (or even two) lying around that I could borrow for a couple of weeks, or buy off you?  I'd need them for the road trip (07/20 - 08/03).  I got a really, really good deal with National car rental but they want an arm and a leg to rent something that probably only costs twenty-five bucks brand new.  We could bring 'em with us, but I'd rather not.

I don't have a spare one, but it might be cheapest to just buy from Amazon and have it shipped to Chicago when you arrive.

Cheaper than borrowing one from one of the many breederfriends that Tonk has across the pond?  

Great advice--I'm sure Tonk has never heard of Ama.  Zon?  It's kind of the reason he threw that out there, Chad.

Tonk--I think we've got an extra one too.  Would be the same as Chuck's--simple booster, no back.

That's quite an expansive definition of Chad. Are we expanding it from "bros who wear tanktops in the bleachers while crushing some macrobrews" who become to include "unhelpful dads who make dumb suggestions?"

Your unintentionally hilarious "advice" sort of came off as a married Chad who buys his baby boosters from Sky Mall but will "slum" it and suggest someone merely go to Amazon to save a few hundred bucks, yes.  You can hide behind "clumsy dad' all you want but until you move out to the suburbs full stop you really don't get that privilege, Chad.

All right, who told Huey he could create his own stereotypes again?

You flatter me, but RV did all of the heavy lifting here.

*sits back, puts feet on desk*

I'll give you plebes a few days to enjoy your little jokes before I buy this godforsaken site on SkyMall and shut the damn thing down.

[Tonker]

Okay, next up: CTA passes.  I can pick up seven-day passes at O'Hare for $28 a pop, but I can't figure out whether I need them for the kids or not.  There's something on the CTA site about a reduced fare for kids but it looks like you either have to pre-order a reduced-fare permit, or buy a reduced-fare ticket every time you want to travel, or maybe even both.  Is there an easy way of travelling with kids on the El and buses, or should I just get four CTA passes and be done with it?

EDIT: looks like kids under 7 ride free with a paying adult, anyway, and ATonk doesn't turn 7 until our last week in town anyway.  Even after her birthday, I presume they don't actually require proof, as long as you can feasibly claim that your child is still 6... right?

[Richard Chuggar]

Okay, next up: CTA passes.  I can pick up seven-day passes at O'Hare for $28 a pop, but I can't figure out whether I need them for the kids or not.  There's something on the CTA site about a reduced fare for kids but it looks like you either have to pre-order a reduced-fare permit, or buy a reduced-fare ticket every time you want to travel, or maybe even both.  Is there an easy way of travelling with kids on the El and buses, or should I just get four CTA passes and be done with it?

EDIT: looks like kids under 7 ride free with a paying adult, anyway, and ATonk doesn't turn 7 until our last week in town anyway.  Even after her birthday, I presume they don't actually require proof, as long as you can feasibly claim that your child is still 6... right?

UberX

[thehawk]

Okay, next up: CTA passes.  I can pick up seven-day passes at O'Hare for $28 a pop, but I can't figure out whether I need them for the kids or not.  There's something on the CTA site about a reduced fare for kids but it looks like you either have to pre-order a reduced-fare permit, or buy a reduced-fare ticket every time you want to travel, or maybe even both.  Is there an easy way of travelling with kids on the El and buses, or should I just get four CTA passes and be done with it?

EDIT: looks like kids under 7 ride free with a paying adult, anyway, and ATonk doesn't turn 7 until our last week in town anyway.  Even after her birthday, I presume they don't actually require proof, as long as you can feasibly claim that your child is still 6... right?

No one checks, if the lil tonks can walk under the turnstile, it should be fine.

[Tonker]

T minus eleven days, and here's a question for you: for our two-week road trip, I have rented a car with National Car Rental in the Loop.  The details they have sent me with my confirmation are scant but I can't see any reference to insurance.  In Europe, when you rent a car, comprehensive insurance is included in the price you pay, albeit normally with a pretty high excess, so that if the car gets nicked or written off, you're on the hook for (say) five hundred, but the rest of it is the car company's problem.  If you want to take out extra insurance to cover the excess, you can do that do but you don't have to, and are legally covered regardless.

I'm guessing that the price I have agreed with National in the US probably doesn't include any insurance, but does anybody know what their standard practice is?  And if that standard practice is no insurance, does anybody have a recommendation for how I should cover myself?  Take their insurance?  Organise my own?  Would the insurance be taken care of if I pay for the rental on a credit card (Chuck), maybe?

[ChuckD]

T minus eleven days, and here's a question for you: for our two-week road trip, I have rented a car with National Car Rental in the Loop.  The details they have sent me with my confirmation are scant but I can't see any reference to insurance.  In Europe, when you rent a car, comprehensive insurance is included in the price you pay, albeit normally with a pretty high excess, so that if the car gets nicked or written off, you're on the hook for (say) five hundred, but the rest of it is the car company's problem.  If you want to take out extra insurance to cover the excess, you can do that do but you don't have to, and are legally covered regardless.

I'm guessing that the price I have agreed with National in the US probably doesn't include any insurance, but does anybody know what their standard practice is?  And if that standard practice is no insurance, does anybody have a recommendation for how I should cover myself?  Take their insurance?  Organise my own?  Would the insurance be taken care of if I pay for the rental on a credit card (Chuck), maybe?

Insurance isn't typically included from my experience. It's usually sold as an extra.

Any chance you have an American Express card? If you use that to pay for the rental it's possible insurance will be included. I have two cards with them and both provide complimentary rental car insurance.

[Tonker]

T minus eleven days, and here's a question for you: for our two-week road trip, I have rented a car with National Car Rental in the Loop.  The details they have sent me with my confirmation are scant but I can't see any reference to insurance.  In Europe, when you rent a car, comprehensive insurance is included in the price you pay, albeit normally with a pretty high excess, so that if the car gets nicked or written off, you're on the hook for (say) five hundred, but the rest of it is the car company's problem.  If you want to take out extra insurance to cover the excess, you can do that do but you don't have to, and are legally covered regardless.

I'm guessing that the price I have agreed with National in the US probably doesn't include any insurance, but does anybody know what their standard practice is?  And if that standard practice is no insurance, does anybody have a recommendation for how I should cover myself?  Take their insurance?  Organise my own?  Would the insurance be taken care of if I pay for the rental on a credit card (Chuck), maybe?

Insurance isn't typically included from my experience. It's usually sold as an extra.

Any chance you have an American Express card? If you use that to pay for the rental it's possible insurance will be included. I have two cards with them and both provide complimentary rental car insurance.

I do have an Amex, but it's a European one (natch) so I'll bet it's not included.  I'll call them tomorrow to find out.

In the meantime, I'm trying to sort out a pay-as-you go call-and-data micro SIM for my unlocked Galaxy S3 which I can just plug in, charge online and start using.  Can I figure that out?  Can I fuck.  It's not until you try to do this sort of thing that you figure out how fucking different in a thousand tiny little ways our cultures are.

Can I just walk into a Best Buy and fucking buy one and charge it there and then?  Because at this rate, that might actually be my easiest option, unless somebody can break it down into middle-aged European idiot-sized chunks for me.  Jesus, I don't half feel old, right now.

[ChuckD]

T minus eleven days, and here's a question for you: for our two-week road trip, I have rented a car with National Car Rental in the Loop.  The details they have sent me with my confirmation are scant but I can't see any reference to insurance.  In Europe, when you rent a car, comprehensive insurance is included in the price you pay, albeit normally with a pretty high excess, so that if the car gets nicked or written off, you're on the hook for (say) five hundred, but the rest of it is the car company's problem.  If you want to take out extra insurance to cover the excess, you can do that do but you don't have to, and are legally covered regardless.

I'm guessing that the price I have agreed with National in the US probably doesn't include any insurance, but does anybody know what their standard practice is?  And if that standard practice is no insurance, does anybody have a recommendation for how I should cover myself?  Take their insurance?  Organise my own?  Would the insurance be taken care of if I pay for the rental on a credit card (Chuck), maybe?

Insurance isn't typically included from my experience. It's usually sold as an extra.

Any chance you have an American Express card? If you use that to pay for the rental it's possible insurance will be included. I have two cards with them and both provide complimentary rental car insurance.

I do have an Amex, but it's a European one (natch) so I'll bet it's not included.  I'll call them tomorrow to find out.

In the meantime, I'm trying to sort out a pay-as-you go call-and-data micro SIM for my unlocked Galaxy S3 which I can just plug in, charge online and start using.  Can I figure that out?  Can I fuck.  It's not until you try to do this sort of thing that you figure out how fucking different in a thousand tiny little ways our cultures are.

Can I just walk into a Best Buy and fucking buy one and charge it there and then?  Because at this rate, that might actually be my easiest option, unless somebody can break it down into middle-aged European idiot-sized chunks for me.  Jesus, I don't half feel old, right now.

This is a few years old, but maybe it's still relevant:

The Best Plan for Short Visits: Ready SIM's $25 7-day card
Ready SIM specializes in anonymous, self-activating SIM cards and offers 3-, 7-, 14-, and 30-day options. Its $25 card includes unlimited talk, text, and 500MB of data—perfect for a visitor who's constantly reloading Google Maps on a smartphone. A 14-day version, with 1GB data, costs $35.

Looks like they're available on Amazon if that's your kind of thing. Maybe check the reviews?

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00AB3UOV6/ref=pd_lpo_sbs_dp_ss_1?pf_rd_p=1944687542&pf_rd_s=lpo-top-stripe-1&pf_rd_t=201&pf_rd_i=B00AB3QVOU&pf_rd_m=ATVPDKIKX0DER&pf_rd_r=0QZVDNX43YXSYRFRHBNJ

[Tonker]

T minus eleven days, and here's a question for you: for our two-week road trip, I have rented a car with National Car Rental in the Loop.  The details they have sent me with my confirmation are scant but I can't see any reference to insurance.  In Europe, when you rent a car, comprehensive insurance is included in the price you pay, albeit normally with a pretty high excess, so that if the car gets nicked or written off, you're on the hook for (say) five hundred, but the rest of it is the car company's problem.  If you want to take out extra insurance to cover the excess, you can do that do but you don't have to, and are legally covered regardless.

I'm guessing that the price I have agreed with National in the US probably doesn't include any insurance, but does anybody know what their standard practice is?  And if that standard practice is no insurance, does anybody have a recommendation for how I should cover myself?  Take their insurance?  Organise my own?  Would the insurance be taken care of if I pay for the rental on a credit card (Chuck), maybe?

Insurance isn't typically included from my experience. It's usually sold as an extra.

Any chance you have an American Express card? If you use that to pay for the rental it's possible insurance will be included. I have two cards with them and both provide complimentary rental car insurance.

I do have an Amex, but it's a European one (natch) so I'll bet it's not included.  I'll call them tomorrow to find out.

In the meantime, I'm trying to sort out a pay-as-you go call-and-data micro SIM for my unlocked Galaxy S3 which I can just plug in, charge online and start using.  Can I figure that out?  Can I fuck.  It's not until you try to do this sort of thing that you figure out how fucking different in a thousand tiny little ways our cultures are.

Can I just walk into a Best Buy and fucking buy one and charge it there and then?  Because at this rate, that might actually be my easiest option, unless somebody can break it down into middle-aged European idiot-sized chunks for me.  Jesus, I don't half feel old, right now.

This is a few years old, but maybe it's still relevant:

The Best Plan for Short Visits: Ready SIM's $25 7-day card
Ready SIM specializes in anonymous, self-activating SIM cards and offers 3-, 7-, 14-, and 30-day options. Its $25 card includes unlimited talk, text, and 500MB of data—perfect for a visitor who's constantly reloading Google Maps on a smartphone. A 14-day version, with 1GB data, costs $35.

Looks like they're available on Amazon if that's your kind of thing. Maybe check the reviews?

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00AB3UOV6/ref=pd_lpo_sbs_dp_ss_1?pf_rd_p=1944687542&pf_rd_s=lpo-top-stripe-1&pf_rd_t=201&pf_rd_i=B00AB3QVOU&pf_rd_m=ATVPDKIKX0DER&pf_rd_r=0QZVDNX43YXSYRFRHBNJ

That would appear to exactly what I need.  Job's a good'un - cheers, Ace.

[Oleg]

T minus eleven days, and here's a question for you: for our two-week road trip, I have rented a car with National Car Rental in the Loop.  The details they have sent me with my confirmation are scant but I can't see any reference to insurance.  In Europe, when you rent a car, comprehensive insurance is included in the price you pay, albeit normally with a pretty high excess, so that if the car gets nicked or written off, you're on the hook for (say) five hundred, but the rest of it is the car company's problem.  If you want to take out extra insurance to cover the excess, you can do that do but you don't have to, and are legally covered regardless.

I'm guessing that the price I have agreed with National in the US probably doesn't include any insurance, but does anybody know what their standard practice is?  And if that standard practice is no insurance, does anybody have a recommendation for how I should cover myself?  Take their insurance?  Organise my own?  Would the insurance be taken care of if I pay for the rental on a credit card (Chuck), maybe?

Insurance isn't typically included from my experience. It's usually sold as an extra.

Any chance you have an American Express card? If you use that to pay for the rental it's possible insurance will be included. I have two cards with them and both provide complimentary rental car insurance.

The rental will come with liability insurance.  Getting insurance from the rental company will run around $19 per day or so (that's what it is for Enterprise and National and Enterprise are owned by the same company).  For two weeks, that isn't cheap.  You'll be far better off checking with AMEX.  In any case, be prepared, in the case of an accident, to cover the deductible plus the daily rental cost of the car while it's in the shop.

I'm assuming that you have car insurance in Australia.  You may also want to check with your agent to see if they offer car rental insurance (my company does and I have it automatically) but, obviously, I have no idea how these things work in Tazmania, where you live.

Just don't fucking crash your car.

[ChuckD]

T minus eleven days, and here's a question for you: for our two-week road trip, I have rented a car with National Car Rental in the Loop.  The details they have sent me with my confirmation are scant but I can't see any reference to insurance.  In Europe, when you rent a car, comprehensive insurance is included in the price you pay, albeit normally with a pretty high excess, so that if the car gets nicked or written off, you're on the hook for (say) five hundred, but the rest of it is the car company's problem.  If you want to take out extra insurance to cover the excess, you can do that do but you don't have to, and are legally covered regardless.

I'm guessing that the price I have agreed with National in the US probably doesn't include any insurance, but does anybody know what their standard practice is?  And if that standard practice is no insurance, does anybody have a recommendation for how I should cover myself?  Take their insurance?  Organise my own?  Would the insurance be taken care of if I pay for the rental on a credit card (Chuck), maybe?

Insurance isn't typically included from my experience. It's usually sold as an extra.

Any chance you have an American Express card? If you use that to pay for the rental it's possible insurance will be included. I have two cards with them and both provide complimentary rental car insurance.

The rental will come with liability insurance.  Getting insurance from the rental company will run around $19 per day or so (that's what it is for Enterprise and National and Enterprise are owned by the same company).  For two weeks, that isn't cheap.  You'll be far better off checking with AMEX.  In any case, be prepared, in the case of an accident, to cover the deductible plus the daily rental cost of the car while it's in the shop.

I'm assuming that you have car insurance in Australia.  You may also want to check with your agent to see if they offer car rental insurance (my company does and I have it automatically) but, obviously, I have no idea how these things work in Tazmania, where you live.

Just don't fucking crash your car.

[Tonker]

T minus eleven days, and here's a question for you: for our two-week road trip, I have rented a car with National Car Rental in the Loop.  The details they have sent me with my confirmation are scant but I can't see any reference to insurance.  In Europe, when you rent a car, comprehensive insurance is included in the price you pay, albeit normally with a pretty high excess, so that if the car gets nicked or written off, you're on the hook for (say) five hundred, but the rest of it is the car company's problem.  If you want to take out extra insurance to cover the excess, you can do that do but you don't have to, and are legally covered regardless.

I'm guessing that the price I have agreed with National in the US probably doesn't include any insurance, but does anybody know what their standard practice is?  And if that standard practice is no insurance, does anybody have a recommendation for how I should cover myself?  Take their insurance?  Organise my own?  Would the insurance be taken care of if I pay for the rental on a credit card (Chuck), maybe?

Insurance isn't typically included from my experience. It's usually sold as an extra.

Any chance you have an American Express card? If you use that to pay for the rental it's possible insurance will be included. I have two cards with them and both provide complimentary rental car insurance.

The rental will come with liability insurance.  Getting insurance from the rental company will run around $19 per day or so (that's what it is for Enterprise and National and Enterprise are owned by the same company).  For two weeks, that isn't cheap.  You'll be far better off checking with AMEX.  In any case, be prepared, in the case of an accident, to cover the deductible plus the daily rental cost of the car while it's in the shop.

I'm assuming that you have car insurance in Australia.  You may also want to check with your agent to see if they offer car rental insurance (my company does and I have it automatically) but, obviously, I have no idea how these things work in Tazmania, where you live.

Just don't fucking crash your car.

In as much as you actually care about how things work in Australia, which you don't: hire cars here come with insurance, so nobody has or needs it included in their own car insurance or credit card contracts.  I'm not hugely optimistic about having a back door to this one, but do hold out a sliver of hope for Amex, you know... being 'Murican, and all.

EDIT: Okay, I spoke to Amex and they said "Aha ha ha, fuck off".  So then I spoke to National and they'll provide me with bumper-to-bumper cover for $13.50 a day, which isn't as bad as I thought.  So unless anybody has a better idea, that's what I'll do.

[Eli]

EDIT: Okay, I spoke to Amex and they said "Aha ha ha, fuck off".  So then I spoke to National and they'll provide me with bumper-to-bumper cover for $13.50 a day, which isn't as bad as I thought.  So unless anybody has a better idea, that's what I'll do.

I usually end up getting the insurance when renting, just for the peace of mind. It's probably your best option, even if it's a bit of an annoying expense. The last thing you want is some sort of Bart vs. Australia international crisis over car rental damages.