Wife and I are planning a trip to Italy late September early October. Itenerary as follows: Arriving Rome 1 night (arrive 6 pm) Siena 4 nights Rome 4 nights Sorrento 4 nights Departing Rome 1 night (prepare us for early departure next day) Hotel reservations made. All at between $80 and $110 per night. Working on transportation now. Need advice on following: Considering driving from Rome to Siena to provide more flexibility while in Tuscany. ** Is driving in this area feasible? (I live/drive in Washington DC daily.); ** In total, driving seems comparable cost (approx. $300 round trip for car; petro; tolls) to train/bus for 2 people when factoring in cost of round trip (Rome to Siena and return) and touring Tuscany sites. (Considering Pisa/Lucca; San Gimignano);
** Google map/viamichellin directions reflect total driving time between Rome to Siena approx. 3 hours. Is this an accurate reflection of actual time required considering roads/traffic/etc? Considering train/bus from Rome to Sorrento using public transportation to tour Pompeii and Amalfi Coast. Any and all advice from the experts in the group will be appreciated. TIM
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Elk Grove, CA, USA
6898 posts
Driving from Rome to Siena is just fine. A car in Tuscany is an asset. One thought, however. Rent the car in Orvieto which is a 1-hour train ride from Rome. Orvieto is a very popular place to pick up and drop off rental cars. This avoids the heavy traffic and restricted zones in Rome. The rental car agencies are near the train station. Second, you get your first look at a really nice Italian hilltown. From there, you can drive on to Siena. If you need to day-trip to Florence, you can easily do that by train. For your journey to the Amalfi Coast, you take the high-speed Trenitalia train to Napoli Centrale (1hr10min), take the escalator down to the Circumvesuviana train part of the station and take the train to the Pompei-Scavi stop. There is a left luggage facility at the entrance to the ruins. Once in Sorrento, you can take the SITA bus or tour buses down the Amalfi Coast.