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Car drop-off at Termini Train Station/Rome

Just wondering how difficult it would be to return a rental car to Termini. I know it's advised not to drive in Rome but my only other option would be to drive an hour or more out of my way to drop it off in Orvieto en route to Rome plus then I'd need to take a 90-minute train into Rome which would result in wasting 2-3 hours and since Rome is my final destination, I'd rather drop it off in Rome and then take a taxi to our hotel. If Termini is not advised, are there any other drop-off points in/around Rome which would be easier? Thank you in advance for your input.

Posted by
15043 posts

It's not difficult at all. However you must realize that many people who write in this forum have zero experience driving inside a city or on any city street with more than 5 cars at the same time and just the thought of it will give them a heart attack. These individuals will actively try to terrorize you at the prospect of driving in Rome. If you feel comfortable driving in any American major city, there is no fear of driving in Rome.

The notion of dropping the car in Orvieto, even if one is headed to Rome (a notion that is very popular here), to me is as ridiculous as for a person headed to San Francisco to drop the car in Sacramento, 80 miles away. Or for somebody headed to Los Angeles, to drop the rental car in Victorville. Who the hell does that?

Actually all major rental car companies have many offices in Rome, some of which may be even more convenient to you than the Termini station. Let me know which company you will be using and which hotel you are going to, and I'll tell you which rental office to select for drop off.

Posted by
1446 posts

Thanks Roberto. I won't be doing the driving but my husband will & we live near Los Angeles and are very experienced in driving in large cities and with heavy traffic. My husband has driven twice in Italy and while we have mainly driven in Tuscany and the Dolomites, my husband is not intimidated by driving in Rome, with the help of GPS. I'm assuming the ZTL areas are clearly marked...is that correct? We will be coming from Tuscany & will be staying in the Pantheon/Piazza Navona area. I think I will be renting through Avis or Europcar. Thanks for your input...I didn't like the idea of detouring so far out of the way to Orvieto just to return the car.

Posted by
135 posts

Hi Sheron,

I've done it. It was not fun. I thought, oh, well, how busy can it be on a Sunday morning! When I dropped my car off, the location was on the South side of Termini, with multiple one way streets not going in the direction I needed to go. After lots of doubling back and retracing my route, I finally made it to the parking garage with about 10 minutes to spare. If you leave yourself plenty of time, and are comfortable in driving in Rome traffic (no one pays attention to lanes, turn signals, etc.) it can be done. It might be easier to drop the car off at the Rome airport and take the train into town (as an alternative). Buona Fortuna!