Car rental companies gearing up for a busy tourism season on P.E.I.

P.E.I. Car Rental stores most of its fleet in the parkade below the Delta Hotel in downtown Charlottetown. But these days, you won't see many cars parked there — it's mainly empty spots. 

"We hope for them to be outside on the roads. We don't want to keep them here," Volkan Aksu, who works for the company, said with a laugh. "This year, we are expecting even more crowds than last year." 

Just like that, another vehicle pulls out — visitors from Montreal who got one of the last car rental bookings for the day. Another customer wasn't as lucky. 

"Unfortunately, I don't have any available cars," Aksu told them. "It's very busy today." 

Even though it's still weeks away from peak tourism season on Prince Edwards Island, Aksu is already seeing big demand for car rentals. He said he gets about 10 to 15 new bookings a day, and his phone is constantly ringing. 

"We're expecting a big and busy year," he said. "People want to see around the Island, so if you want to go anywhere, you need to have your own car." 

Concerns about a rental car shortage were raised last year. Some companies had sold off much of their fleet during the pandemic to manage costs when no revenue was coming in. Supply chain issues once the restrictions started to lift made replacing those vehicles hard. 

Aksu said P.E.I. Car Rental is nearly doubling its inventory from 80 to 150 cars this year, but supply chain struggles linger. 

"Buying a brand-new car is kind of a challenge," he said. "Sometimes we apply for 50 cars but we only receive five cars." 

Summerside Car Rental is also hoping to expand after being open for almost a year. Although it still has lots of rental availability, after a busy summer in 2022, the business wants to be ready for whatever happens. 

"Currently we have eight cars ... We're expecting to have almost 20 cars at the end of this year, and hopefully more towards the end of next year," said Ece Sezer, who works with the business. 

"We're just keeping our hopes high, thinking back to last summer, and hopefully we'll get more and more customers this year." 

'Expecting a busy season'

According to Statistics Canada, car rental rates in the country are up almost 50 per cent since 2019. 

"We don't want to keep our prices high ... but it is challenging because car prices are really increased too," said Aksu.

"I think it is going to go higher. Especially in July, in August, we have to increase our prices because the demand is really high."

Sezer said it all comes down to whether her company can get the cars it needs. 

"If we are able to expand what we have, then you know the prices would definitely drop, because we will be able to… provide more cars to our customers," she said. 

"However, if you don't have enough cars ... the prices would be relatively high." 

As the tourism season inches closer, both rental companies have similar advice for visitors.

"Do the bookings early while the prices are still reasonable," said Aksu. "I think everybody is expecting a busy season this year."