Driving or trains?

Do you have the RS Italy book? Here's what Rick says about that itinerary: "This trip is designed to be done by car, but works fine by rail with a few modifications." See here: Italy in 22 days Personally, I prefer trains because you don't have to worry about getting lost or finding parking.

John, I find Rick's suggested 21-day Itinerary to be a bit "fast" for my travel style. While it may be feasible, it will likely be quite rushed. Italy is best enjoyed slowly (IMO). There are a few "caveats" to be aware of with both driving in Italy and using the trains. If you decide to drive, keep in mind that EACH driver will require the compulsory International Driver's Permit, which is used in conjunction with your home D.L. Failure to produce an I.D.P. if requested can result in fines on the spot! You can obtain I.D.P.'s at any AAA office for a small fee. You'll also need to be aware of the dreaded Zona Traffico Limitato areas, which are becoming increasingly prevalent in Italy. Passing through these zones can result in expensive fines, which you won't know about until several months after you've returned home. Recent posts here would seem to indicate that authorities in Italy are becoming more aggressive in collecting the fines from foreign drivers and there may also be charges from the rental car firm for providing renter information to the authorities. You'll also need to be aware of tolls, CDW costs, high fuel costs, parking and you may encounter some automated fuel pumps that ONLY accept "Chip & PIN" credit cards. A GPS along with a good Map would be prudent. And now the trains...... Some trains have compulsory reservations, such as the fast Freccia trains. If you're riding on a train that requires reservations, you MUST have these or you may be fined on the spot! The fines start at €50 PP and increase from there. If you're riding on Regionale trains (which don't require reservations), you MUST validate your ticket (time & date stamp) prior to boarding the train or you may be fined on the spot! continued.....

John, Part 2..... To answer your question, my suggestion would be to use a combination of well planned rail trips, along with strategic use of a rental car. However, you may have to skip one or two stops on suggested Rick's Itinerary to make it work better and provide more "breathing room". He states that particular Itinerary can also be done by train with a few modifications. The fast trains run at 300 kmH when they get going, so that's a more efficient use of your limited travel time. You can relax and enjoy the view, and not have to worry about driving in cities, parking, etc. With the premium trains, you can achieve substantial savings by pre-booking tickets on the Trenitalia website. If you book early, you may be able to get the Super Economy or Economy fares. One important point to note is that trains which require reservations are specific to a particular train and departure time, so you'll be "locked in" once you buy. If you miss that train, you'll have to buy new tickets at full price. Some users have reported a few "issues" using the site, so you may want to check Ron In Rome for information on how to purchase. As this is your first trip to Europe, I would highly recommend reading Europe Through The Back Door prior to your trip. It provides a lot of good information on "how" to travel in Europe. Use the country or city-specific Guidebooks to plan touring in each location, and for details on hotels, restaurants, local transportation, etc. Note that many Guidebooks are also available as E-books now in a variety of formats. Be sure to check the version though, as the E-books are usually released a few months after the print versions, so you may be buying last year's edition. Happy travels!

Correction to my above posting: We used Trenitalia exclusively and we day-tripped Florence-Siena (not Assisi). Jim
Covington, LA USA 1/10/13

All depends on whether or not you want to be on a train schedule or your own schedule. I would opt for the train in the city to city part and do as suggested,and get a car for Tuscany. For me, I cannot imagine visiting this area by bus or train, but I prefer to explore and take any turn in the road that looks interesting. I love roadside picnics and I am a photographer so I want to be able to stop whenever I please. There are the occasional traffic jams, or times when I am lost, but it's all a trade off, and those times when I can drive to the top of a hill to watch the sunset over a field of sunflowers or a vineyard make me forget all the hassles. (Don't remember too many toll roads in Italy.. but maybe I have just forgotten)

You should use a mix of modes of transportation. Trains are better for traveling from city to city (fast, cheap, hassle free). A rental car is also a hassle to have while you visit a big city like Rome or Florence. The same way as it is a hassle to have a car while visiting Manhattan. Basically the car would end up staying parked the entire time at the hotel. A rental car is however more efficient to visit the small towns and the countryside of Tuscany and Umbria. My suggestion is therefore to rely on trains and city buses. But, then, between Florence and Rome, rent a car to visit the country side and small towns of Tuscany and Umbria. Make sure you return the car as soon as you arrive to the big city. For example, you could rent a car after you finished visiting Florence, then you keep it a few days around Tuscany and Umbria (country side/small towns) as you work your way south to Rome. Then make sure you return the car as soon as you arrive to Rome, where you won't need a car to visit the city. In case you start from Rome and work your way north, you'd do the opposite. Visit Rome, then rent a car, work your way north through Umbria/Tuscany. Return the car as soon as you arrive in florence. Visit Florence, then take train further north to Venice. In northern Italy a rental car would be useful to have to visit the Dolomites mountains, if that is part of your itinerary. So basically car is good for countryside/small villages, while it's not good to have for big cities.

Just returned, Jan. 05, 2013, after spending two weeks in Italy: Venice, Florence, Arezzo, Rome. We used Trenitalia extensively between cities and taxis from/to train stations. We day-tripped from Florence to Pisa and Florence to Asissi. We also day-tripped Arezzo to Cortona and Arezzo to Asissi. All day trips we used local (Regionale) trains and longer hauls (Venice-Florence, Florence-Arezzo, & Arezzo-Rome) using high speed Freccia (Trenitalia) trains. We found it convenient to first find our schedules and pricing at each train station kiosk and then used the ticketing window of the station to purchase our tickets. Having rented a car in previous visits to Italy, we opted to try the rail and taxi approach and find that we were able to save time, money, and frustration. Jim
Covington, LA USA 1/10/13

Just to agree with Ken's comments that Ricks's suggested 21 day itineraries (for all places, not just Italy) are much too jammed packed. Moving every 2-3 days for 3 solid weeks is not a vacation, it's a marathon. And I agree that Italy has to be savored, which is just not possible when you're checking places off a list before moving on. Agree with everyone else that trains are best for getting between cities, buses can work where trains don't go (like hill towns), and cars are the best way to see really small towns or rural areas. Which of these you want to see will determine the mode or modes of transit you should take.

Thank you to all of you who took the time to post and offer suggestions. I really appreciate the information and will tone down the itinerary and use a combo of trains and perhaps some auto.
John

I'm a car guy. Done both cars and trains in Italy over 15 years of traveling there. We like the small out of the way places. Cars work great. Trains are nice for long distances between large cities. Otherwise I personally have found them a pain. We can't travel for 3 weeks with just a backpack like Rick! If you go primary by train, rent a car for a day or so and enjoy the countryside.
Wherever way you go, enjoy!

Rick's favorite itinerary was obviously done well before gasoline was $9.50 per gallon. I always agree with Ken and Roberto on Italian travels. With so much culture, art, architecture and history, it's a country to be taken slowly. City to City is best done by train. Rome is worth almost a week by itself. Florence and the Tuscan/Chianti hill country is another week, including spending a few days on a agritursimo. This is where you'd rent a car to do day trips to Siena, Volterra and San Gimignano. Venice is worth 3 days, and a day getting there. Otherwise you'll have to choose between Lake Como area or Naples/Amalfi Coast.
The best airports in the country are Milan and Rome. You might want to fly into one and out of the other.

"The best airports in the country are Milan and Rome" Well, they are the biggest, but not necessarily the best, depending on your itinerary. They do have, by far, the most nonstop flights from the US. But if you are willing to make one change, or are forced to (if you don't have nonstop service to Italy from your US gateway), you can fly into lots of places in Italy directly. For instance, many prefer to start in Venice, as it's easier to acclimate to than either Milan or Rome, particularly if you are not used to big cities. Similarly, if I wanted to fly to Florence, I'd look at Florence, Bologna, and Pisa, as the latter two are only about an hour from Florence, and get more flights. I do agree that for many Italy itineraries, it makes sense to use open jaw flights ("multi city" on Kayak, Orbitz and the like), to avoid backtracking.

I've been on RS tours. It would be stressful to try to replicate his tour at his pace; this is where I think he's lost touch with the independent traveler. His company can do this pace because they have a professional driver and bus at their disposal, a guide that knows the areas and can lead the group efficiently between places or on a sightseeing tour around town, advance group reservations to avoid waiting in lines at museums, etc. Having traveled independently as well as on a RS tour, my estimate is it would take 3 days on your own to do what his tour does in 2 days.

Hi John! We did a three week trip last summer-Rome, Tuscany,CT,Verona, Venice--basically a slower version of the 21 day trip. We picked up a car in Rome and dropped it off in Verona. I actually found driving not as bad as advertised if you remember traffic laws appear to be more recommendations in Italy. The first time you are five wide on a three lane road with mopeds screaming by in between, you will know you aren't in Kansas anymore (or Carlsbad?). We had a Garmin which gives you a heads up on speed traps. Not so helpful when it came to the ZTL-just got a ticket in the mail! I suspect some would suggest the car in CT is a waste-you won't use it-but it was sure efficient in and out with five people! We found it actually was comparable money wise while being way more efficient! Have a great trip!