Dropping off at Hertz in Siena

The google street view shows a driveway directly off Viale Sardegna

Thank you, for both the specific information and the reminder that GSV exists.

Maybe you can contact the Hertz Siena office directly ? We returned to Hertz Orvieto and the office really didn't have a place for returning cars -- just some spaces on the side of a busy street (both of which were full when we arrived, so we pulled into a neighboring business parking space, marked "no parking" and I walked back to Hertz while my husband stayed with the car.)

It's in a modern building on Viale Sardegna. I'm not clear what turn off you are referring to. Viale Sardegna is not a freeway, it's a regular two lane street. The Hertz station is near the train station, about 1/2 km toward the freeway to Bettolle. There is nothing to be nervous about, if you miss it there will be plenty of opportunities to turn around at a roundabout and go back.

Before you go, more than anything, you need to become familiar with:
European signage system (google "Italian road signs")
ZTL or limited traffic zones where only residents, transit, and emergency vehicles can enter.
Freeway driving rules: no cruising in left lane which is passing lane only. Always stay in the rightmost lanes.
Roundabouts: Europe is full of roundabouts, which have replaced most street light intersections. In a roundabout the car inside the roundabout has the right of way, you must yield to cars inside roundabouts before entering one. Find one near your home and practice, if you are not familiar with roundabouts.
http://www.aarp.org/home-family/getting-around/driving-resource-center/info-08-2013/guide-driving-roundabouts.html

Here is a post-drop off update: The short version is never drop off a car at Hertz on Viale Sardegna in Siena.

Here is why: As we approached this location from the south on S2, we ran into a sign for a ZTL zone, so I was forced to turn off the S2. Recalibrating, the GPS led us through a truly hair-raising sequence of tiny lanes. At one point we drove several hundred yards on a road just wide enough for one car, with stone walls on either side. If we had met another car, someone would have had to back up under almost impossible conditions. After driving around for a long while it became clear that we were getting farther and farther away from our destination. So, we re-programmed the GPS to take us to a town just south of Siena, where we able to get back on the S2 going north.

At that point we could see no alternative to just driving through the ZTL zone, and eventually having to pay the fine; so that is what we did. Once we arrived at the Hertz location, we saw that there is no driveway off Viale Sardegna, just a curb (too big to jump, I thought about it) where there should have been a driveway. So we turned around (with great difficulty, due to heavy traffic), went back to the rotary, and found another road that did lead to Hertz.

The man there insisted that there there are no ZTL zones on the S2, and thought what we saw might have been some kind of general warning to drivers to watch for the zones. I am skeptical; I'll post the result to this list. Bottom line, this was a seriously nightmarish experience, possibly sufficient to put us off European car rental for good.

But, we did have a great time in Siena today 😊

Curious if what you saw was a sign stating there is a ZTL further ahead? If you are nervous about a ZTL those can be tricky in some spots as the sign makes it seem as though you don't have a later option of not entering a ZTL even though you do. All I remember about driving in Siena and ZTL was that the ZTL area was all inside the walls, so as long as you were outside the obvious large city wall you were not in a ZTL at any point. All of the wall entry areas were obvious gate looking things you would be skeptical of driving through as well.
Not saying this is true for all of Siena but was for the part we drove through off of the highway.

The good news is you probably did not drive through a ZTL so likely won't be getting a fine in the mail.

Mreynolds, to me it looked like a standard ZTL, but the Hertz guy agrees with you, and we definitely were not inside the walls (though the gps wanted us to be at one point). So presumably it is a false alarm.

If you took the SR2 from the south, eventually that takes you to Porta Romana and inside the city walls and that is ZTL. So yes you should have seen such sign at the intersection with via Gigli. You should turn right on Via Gigli which goes around the city walls. The ZTL camera is after the Porta Romana, past the University, so if you didn't go through it you won't receive a fine. Not sure where you ended up in a small street or where you went through when you tried again.

Roberto, I am sure we were not near the university, so that is more good news.

It sounds like, at least from the fine standpoint, it worked out well for you - not so much from the stress/worry standpoint, though. Thank you for sharing the experience, as I will be returning a Hertz car in Siena about four weeks from now. I've saved this thread for future reference.

Melissa,
Yes, like most of my travel crises, this one was probably much ado about nothing. Assuming the ZTL sign was simply a warning, it is easy enough to approach the place from the south on the SR2. And whether you approach from north or south, use the traffic circle just SE of Hertz to get to the access road, which is the dead-end road "on top" of the circle, which heads in the direction of Hertz.