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22 day Italy - Austria - Switzerland - France - Italy

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Ok so to try and keep this short I'm planning a Euro trip for the end of 2020.

The idea right now is to fly into Rome on the 18th of December and see as much as we can in Rome within 5 days (not including the day we land), and then take the train to Florence where we'll stay for 4 days and 3 nights which will include a day trip to Pisa.
Following this train straight through to Verona where we'll stay one day/one night and rent a car for 8 days thinking some thing with 4WD maybe or a midsize car like an .
Heres the following road trip I've planned out right now leaving in the wee hours of the morning from Verona (rental starting the day before):

Day 1: Verona - Innsbruk Austria
Day 2: Innsbruk Austria - Chur Switzerland
Day 3: Chur - Lauterbrunnen / Grindelwald
Day 4: Lauterbrunnen / Grindelwald
Day 5: Lauterbrunnen / Grindelwald - Zermatt - Chamonix France
Day 6: Chamonix - Bourg Saint Maurice
Day 7: Bourg Saint Maurice - Como Italy
Day 8: Como - Verona (return the rental car)

One more day in Verona to see if we might have missed anything then train to Venice to stay for 3 days and 2 nights before flying home from Venice airport.

Thoughts regarding the border crossings with a rental car would be great. Driving around that area during the winter months and over the holidays. Time spent in Rome, is it enough time to see the major sites and the minor (we will spend a day in the Vatican city to see the Sistine Chapel and the Art there. Any thoughts/suggestions/advice regarding the trip in general would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks

Posted by
8889 posts

Vondetten, I was trying to work out the exact dates:
18th December + 5 nights in Rome = 23rd December.
Train to Florence + 3 nights = 26th December.
Train to Verona + 1 night = 27th December.
Have I calculated correctly?

I have never been in Italy at Christmas, but I would like to advice you to check opening times for hotels, restaurants and anywhere you would like to visit. Places may be closed. Trains may sell out of tickets.
27th December is a Friday, after 2 days holiday, many places may decide not to bother opening for just 1 day. Are you sure you can get a car on that date.

"thinking some thing with 4WD maybe or a midsize car like" - What do you call "midsize"? In Europe, a Golf is mid-size.

BIG PROBLEM - You have a lot of long drives. followed by one night stops (Innsbruck, Chur, Chamonix, Bourg Saint Maurice, Como). You may not have time to see all you want to see.
Look up routes and times on: https://www.viamichelin.com/
Then add 15-25%, as those times assume no stops for anything.

"Thoughts regarding the border crossings with a rental car would be great. " - Border crossing is not usually an issue, you must tell the rental company which countries you are visiting.

  • If your driving Licences are not issued by a European country, you need an IDP (= International Driving Permit) for each driver.
  • There are autostrada tolls in Italy, autoroute tolls in France.
  • In both Austria and Switzerland you pay Autobahn tolls by buying a "Vignette" at the border. This is a fixed price for a certain number of days/weeks/months.
  • Make sure you learn road laws and traffic signs
  • As well as tolls, make sure you budget enough for fuel and parking.
  • Do not assume hotels have parking. Ask, and you may have to pay for it.
  • You cannot drive to Zermatt (car-free). You need to park at Täsch (pay) and get a train to Zermatt.

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