best rental car options at FCO

We have rented in Italy and Rome on previous trips and are doing it again next month. First, if you are spending any time in Rome on the front end of the trip, rent the car when you are leaving. You don't want a car in Rome. Second, I think whether you rent a van or two cars depends on two things: Where you will be traveling and if it is to places like the Amalfi coast would you be comfortable driving a van on very narrow roads. The major roads are pretty good but in the smaller towns and on the coast they are narrow. I would go to youtube and look at some of the videos of people driving on those roads. It may influence you. I drove a mini van on the Coastal roads and is was tight. Also check to see how the parking is in the places you are staying. I drove on some of the smaller roads on the coast and in Lake Como and after a day I got use to the driving. But I never got use to the frustration of trying to find parking. Also, if your trip includes Florence, find a place to park the car or van and pick it up when you leave. I always drive myself when I go to Europe but try to pick up cars after I leave a city or park it and take public transportation once in a city.

Ten pax vans might not exist, at least for a non-commercial license. The chance of two cars holding five people plus luggage are slim. A seven pax van plus a car might work, but luggage will still be tight as hades when you start using the back row of seats for people. Start thinking about three cars or two vans.

10 adults? I'm not sure you can find a van big enough. That might need a small bus for ten adults with luggage. I'd consider three cars. Five adults and luggage for most rental cars is still too much and the bigger the car is, the more difficulty you'll have driving into towns and parking.

Everyone is posting at the same time but with the same message. Ten people and normal luggage will not fit in either one van or two cars. You need a plan C.

Traveling in Italy is not like traveling in the US where the default is to get a rental car when you arrive. Look into the train as an option, depending on where you're going. That way you all get to stay together as a group, you're much less likely to get lost, and you don't have to coordinate rest stops.

Trains can take you to a heck of a lot of towns, large and small, leaving just a few Tuscan hilltowns that Rick's readers tend to drive to. See also our overview of Italian rail travel. Groups of 10 can get some train ticket discounts when booking at the main train stations.

You need 3 cars or 2 minivans.
Anything bigger than 9 seats (1 driver+8 passengers) is classified in the EU as 'bus' and requires a different level of driver's license (Type D). If you have a regular car drivers' license in the US, your International classification is Type B (you will notice that in your International Driver's Permit, where the AAA stamps it).

As explained above, a car is hardly suitable for 5 people with luggage. Maybe a full size car or a minivan, like a Megane or Touran, might do, but it will be tight. 3 Economy cars is probably the best solution and probably not even that much more expensive than 2 full size cars/minivans.

Since renting 3 cars (or two full size vehicles) is going to cost you at least €120/day + gas, it is a good idea to limit the amount of time you rent it to the time you actually need a car. You will not need a car at all in any cities (Rome, Florence, etc) and it would be a waste to rent 2 or 3 vehicles (regardless of size) to stay parked in a parking garage gathering dust.

A car is nice to have to visit the countryside and small villages (in Tuscany and Umbria for example).