Costco’s CEO Says You Should Never Rent a Car Without This Member Perk

A Costco membership doesn't just provide access to deals on bulk items and food court finds. it also comes with some major out-of-store perks—like a getaway to Maui.

In an interview with EatingWell , Costco CEO Ron Vachris discussed some of the benefits that members may be overlooking, including travel deals.

"Everybody knows Costco for the brick and mortar," Vachris told EatingWell . "But there's some digital experiences that are out there that members may not be using as much as they can. We have a travel business, Costco Travel , that our buyers really work on developing all these vacation packages and cruise deals [for]. They're fully curated by our buying team."

Costco Travel is a members-only agency that bundles flights, hotels, cruises, and rental cars. The platform has also added tours and activities through a partnership with Viator. The vacation packages combine flights, hotels, transfers, and sometimes resort credits into a prepaid price, making travel planning easier. Many bookings also include a bonus Digital Costco Shop Card.

In addition to the vetted vacation packages, you can also save big through the warehouse giant's rental car program , which offers rates from rental companies such as Alamo, Avis, Budget, and Enterprise. It does not offer rental cars through Hertz, though. Besides surfacing lower rates, the program also includes extras like a free additional driver and no cancellation fees.

"You should never rent a car without going through Costco Travel," the CEO says. "You would be shocked at the amount of savings that you get by using our rental cars through our travel program."

A Gold Star Costco membership currently costs $65 a year, and an Executive membership is $130.

Read the original article on Martha Stewart