How to pick up and return a hire car at Perth Airport (PER)

Perth Airport (PER) has five terminals grouped into three precincts — Terminals 1 and 2, Terminals 3 and 4, and General Aviation. These are located on the east, west, and northwest of the airport respectively, and are connected by a free inter-terminal shuttle bus service which departs every 20 minutes and takes about 15 minutes. Which terminal you need depends on your airline, flight destination, and rental car provider. Read on for detailed information on how to collect or return a hire car at Perth Airport.

International or domestic?

If you’re flying internationally, you’ll be using Terminal 1 or Terminal 3. Domestic flights operate from all four terminals and the General Aviation Terminal, and which terminal you need to go to depends on which airline you’re flying.

Transferring between terminals

If you need to transfer between terminals, note that Terminals 1 and 2 are connected, as are Terminals 3 and 4, and the General Aviation area sits to the north of Terminals 3 and 4. You can walk between the 1–2 and 3–4 terminal pairs, but it’s not a comfortable walk between any of the three terminal clusters.

Instead the three terminal complexes are connected by a free transfer shuttle service, with the ride between Terminal 1 & 2 and Terminal 3 & 4 taking around 15 minutes. The shuttle service runs every 20 minutes between 06:00 and 22:00 and every 30 minutes between 22:00 and 06:00.

How to pick up your hire car

At Perth Airport, both on- and off-airport rental car providers are available, and regardless of which you’re using, when booking an airport rental car it’s a good idea to supply your flight number so that the provider is aware if your flight is delayed.

Find your rental desk: On- or off-airport

Perth Airport has both on-airport and off-airport depots, so knowing which type of provider you have booked with is the first step in determining where you need to go to collect your rental car.

On-airport

On-airport rental provider desks are located in the public arrivals area in Terminal 1 and opposite the baggage reclaim areas in Terminal 2, 3, and 4.

Off-airport

Off-airport depots do not maintain a rental desk at Perth Airport, instead you need to arrange transport to their depot, either by using a shuttle transfer, taxi, or rideshare. All the off-airport depots serving Perth Airport are located in Kewdale, a light industrial suburb around six kilometres — or a five to ten minute drive depending on traffic — to the south of the airport. Shuttle transfers to off-airport depots are either free or cost $5 depending on the provider.

Finalise your rental agreement and collect keys

Once you reach the correct hire car desk, you’ll need to finalise the paperwork, inspect the vehicle, and collect your keys. Read more about a typical airport rental car pickup process.

What should I do if the desk is unattended?

Hopefully the car rental provider has left a sign with instructions or a contact number which you can call to let them know that you’ve arrived. If not, make your way to the rental car parking area where a rental attendant should be able to assist you. If the desk is unattended and there’s no sign, check your booking confirmation email for a contact phone number. If you have no luck contacting staff, call us at 1300 722 920. Don’t be alarmed — unstaffed rental desks are not unusual — but rest assured there’s usually staff in the hire car parking area.

How to return your hire car

On-airport

While each of Perth Airport’s terminal clusters are around a 20 minute drive from downtown Perth, the approaches are different. If you’re driving to the airport during weekday peak hours (typically 07:30-09:30 and 16:30 to 18:00), be sure to allow a bit of extra time in the case of traffic congestion.

It’s also a good idea to allow at least 30 minutes for processing the paperwork and returning your vehicle at an on-airport depot, and at least an hour for an off-airport depot — the latter can take a bit longer due to the extra time involved with taking a shuttle transfer to the terminal. Be wary of returning your vehicle too close to your flight departure time — you’re best to be at the terminal two hours before departure for a domestic flight and three hours for an international flight.

Terminal 1 and Terminal 2

The primary access road to Terminal 1 & 2 is Airport Drive which approaches the terminal cluster from the south and leads right to the passenger drop-off and rental car parking zone. Follow the car rental return signs and access the car park by taking the slip road on the right of Airport Drive as you approach the terminal. Learn more about how to return an airport rental car.

For after-hours returns to Terminals 1 & 2, there’s a key dropbox at the terminal car park booth. Please make sure you’ve removed all your personal belongings and have locked the car before depositing the car keys in the dropbox.

Terminal 3 and Terminal 4

For Terminals 3 & 4 from downtown Perth, take the Great Eastern Highway followed by the Tonkin Highway to Dunreath Drive, then Brearley Avenue and Miller Road to Terminal 3 & 4. Once within the airport precinct, follow the signs for the rental car parking area. Learn more about how to return an airport rental car.

For after-hours returns to terminal 3 & 4, there’s a key dropbox at the terminal car park booth. Please make sure you’ve removed all your personal belongings and have locked the car before depositing the car keys in the dropbox.

Off-airport

All the off-airport depots serving Perth Airport are located in Kewdale, an industrial suburb around six kilometres to the south of Terminal 1 & 2 and around the same from Terminals 3 & 4. After returning your rental car, a shuttle transfer to Perth Airport can drop you at your desired terminal in around five to ten minutes depending on traffic.