Hiring a Driver

That is largely up to you, as the total will include your tip for the driver and that will depend on how much you like what he does (conversation, anecdotes and , of course, driving). That said, much of what you pay will be for gas (benzina), which is MUCH more expensive than here. Another factor will be the time you spend w the driver- whether your day is short or long. We hired a driver from Naples to squire us around Vesuvio and Pompeii and Ercolano. Nine terrific hours. Big tip bcuz he was great,probably a bit over $20/-- 4 yrs ago

$20 per HOUR, we meant to say

We've hired a driver to take the three of us to the Dolomites from Venice for a day trip. It's costing us $525 for what will probably be a 9 hour trip.

We are going to chianti region from Florence- and we got quotes from different taxi companies-
We decided on ICAR (www.italiancarrent.it) that they had the best price- and according to the website it is Mercedez:-)
We will be picked up at Florence hotel at 16:00, go to winery castle tour, then to Siena, and back to Florence at 21:00. His quote was 120 Euro- gas, wait time, etc. all included (5hrs. of a driver/car for wherever you want!)
But, we will be doing that in 2wks. so cannot guarantee how good it actually will be.

Thanks for the information everyone. This gives me a good idea of what to expect. Ciao!