Serving Halifax, mainland Nova Scotia and the neighbouring Maritime provinces, Halifax International Airport (YHZ) is situated 35km from downtown Halifax in Nova Scotia. It acts as a hub for many local airlines and as a stop-over for air carriers operating between U.S and European cities. In 2018, it handled over 4 million passengers.
An exterior shot of the terminal building at Halifax Airport (Photo: Dennis Jarvis via Flickr)
Car rental companies are conveniently located in the Lower Level of the Airport Parkade. To find them, just follow the signs from the arrivals area to the car rental counters.
To determine which car rental companies offer the best options across our three categories (Most Affordable, Best for Luxury, Best for Minivans), TravelMag.com carefully conducted research into all of the agencies at YHZ airport. Our findings are as follows.
Depending on your dates, prices will vary considerably at YHZ airport, but in our findings Dollar and Discount consistently had the best rates for cheap car rentals throughout the year. Dollar for dollar (pardon the pun!), the former is one of the most economical companies in the industry, with a Chevrolet Spark and Toyota Corolla being leased out for under $40 per day. Off site, Discount (which needs to be accessed via shuttle bus) also had a large variety of cheap car rentals, including the Toyota Yaris and a Kio Rio at under $36 per day.
In our search for the agency with the best selection of luxury cars, Discount and Dollar once again had the best cheap car rentals. In among their selection of cars, Discount had a Jeep Compass for $62 while Dollar had a Ford Edge and a Toyota RAV4 at under $60 per day. Discount’s Jeep Compass combines power with comfort and is equally adapt on highways as it is in the Canadian countryside. For a more luxurious drive, Alamo had the Nissan Maxima, Ford Durango and the Chrysler 300 which were all priced at less than a $90 per day.
With its sandy beaches, delightful farming communities and rugged shorelines, there’s no shortage of sites to visit in and around Halifax. As is the case in most Canadian airports, Dollar’s Dodge Grand Caravan was the cheapest minivan, but for something a little swankier, Alamo’s Chrysler’s Town & Country offers a more pleasurable drive with features that include a high-tech sound system. Small details, but on long trips, those in-car amenities can be a blessing.
