We will be staying in Rome for 3 days and then returning to FCO to pick up a car and driving to Siena and staying 10 days. What is the best drive as far as scenery and less congestion from FCO to Siena? The coastal E80/SS223 up through Grossetto or the A1/E35. We aren't in a hurry and would like to stop and have a late lunch along the way. I realize we could rent a car at Rome Termini but would rather not drive in downtown Rome. I also looked into just renting the car in Siena but with fewer trains to Rome on our Saturday return just decided to rent a car for 10 days. The train fare for 3 works out the same as renting the car for the additional time.
Posted by
San Francisco Bay Area (USA)
16221 posts
There is no congestion either way, provided you avoid the peak commute (rent after 9am and before 3pm. You could have rented at the Tiburtina station and be right next to the freeway entrance. FCO is quite a distance and the taxi is almost 50€.
I don't know about the scenery. I've driven both routes so many times (including today) that all I want to do is get to my destination). Just decide if you want to stop somewhere along the way and decide. There are a few nice places to visit along each route (or just a slight detour).
Posted by
11689 posts
We drove from Rome(not FCO) on A1/35 to Siena, stopping for lunch with a good visit to lovely hilltop Orvieto en route. We picked up our car on the Via Veneto in Rome.
Posted by
Calgary
2297 posts
Another vote for the A1 and a lunch stop at Orvieto. Easy driving and this town is very beautiful in its own right, well worth a couple of hours.
Posted by
Wyckoff, NJ, USA
8054 posts
We also went via Orvieto, although our destination was Sinalunga, not as far as Siena. Orvieto is a superb visit, with massive parking facilities saving time - but it's still a trip from your parking space. The scenery from the highway isn't that important. It's the slower, local roads that deliver scenery in Tuscany. I got the idea that the coast isn't as rewarding as some other coasts. But we didn't have time to drive there. Lonely Planet mentioned some archaeology sites towards that side.
Edit: I understand about the train, but it might be interesting to see if the car is cheaper without airport fees. We returned at FCO because it gave us the longest "last day", before an airport overnight and return home. Check hotel restaurant closing time if you do that. I'm sure some off-airport places give better choice of restaurants-just check the shuttle service first.
Edit 2: I should have included that we didn't start at FCO, we started at the cruise port in Civitavecchia. So I chose the car company that was 100' from the Port Shuttle Bus station. I don't know if the cruise port business keeps prices "up". But it's WAY out of town, for the sake of easy driving. Although I'd never recommend a 1 hr train ride to rent a car, this train is incredibly frequent and incredibly cheap, just a few Euros. In fact, we also stopped in Viterbo which was fine, but Orvieto is much better.
Posted by
OP
3 posts
Thank you for all the good info. I changed the rental to pick up from Avis at Via Sardegna only an 8 minute cab ride for our apartment. It was even $30 cheaper than renting at FCO and doesn't look to far from the main road to Siena. I'll definitely stop in Orvieto for lunch. Any recommendations?
Posted by
lexington, il
4105 posts
If you have never driven in Italy, please read this.
https://www.italybeyondtheobvious.com/dont-mess-with-ztl-zones
Check with your lodging to see if they provid parking and have them obtain a permit (you want a copy) to park within the walls.