has anyone driven from central italy to Paris?

Piece of cake. Don't think twice about it. Only thing is, that if it were the first time I'd done it, I'd take two days. Arriving in Paris tired and in the dark can be a bit rough if you're unfamiliar with the city. Maybe spend the night around Dijon. Once you're out of the mountains, Burgundy is rolling hills with vinyards and sunflower fields. Interesting, but a lot of the same thing. Expect to pay some road tolls. I think viamichelin.com can give you an estimate of the amount. Also, I assume you've factored in the cost of dropping the car in a second country.

Two summers ago I drove from Cambridge to Florence - via Lagrasse (southern France between Carcassonne and Narbonne). It wasn't the exact plan at the time, but besides the length it really was not a bad trip at all. We took our time on the way down from Calais - but we drove Lagrasse to Florence only stopping for lunch.
We didn't get near Paris though, we stayed to the east of it. The highways in France to my memory were uniformly great.

Natalie:

In 2004 my wife and I (and two kids) drove from Tuscany to Paris. We took two days to do so. Long long drive - the kids did well though.

We didn't want to insert such a long drive into our trip but it worked out ok.

Do not fear the Autostrada or the Autoroute. Very similar to the American Interstate freeway. Remember to always keep to the right. Get in the left lane to pass and get back to the right quickly.
Have fun.

thanks to you three!! That makes me feel easier about doing this! I'm looking forward to it- at least we will get to see something instead of just hopping on a plane and skipping over it. And - great idea about breaking it up- there's so many places in between there that I've always wanted to see, it will be a good excuse!

Natalie,

Have you ever driven from Roanoke to Chicago? About the same. It can be done, but would be a long day in the saddle. Much prettier scenery!

I agree with the other posters. I have driven between Paris and points in Italy a few times. Driving on the Autostrade and the Autoroutes is very easy and has even become a bit easier because of photo radar in both countries slowing the fastest drivers down.

Remember that you'll likely pay to pick up your car in one country and drop in another. Also, carry small bills for the tolls.

Hi Bob- actually I grew up and make several trips a year by car to Boston- up 81/84 through PA- so a 12 hour car trip is totally normal to me- at least this trip there will be something new to see:)

I don't know about the part of the trip in France, but the autostrada driving in Italy is generally more enjoyable than the city/town driving here.

The Italians also sometimes get overwhelmed with the amount of space they are provided on the autostrada and don't seem to know what to do with it, given that it is about 12 times wider than a regular road. OK, that is an exaggeration, but you get the idea....Just keep an eye out, because some of the cars here don't appear to be equipped with turn signals!

But overall, I'd say that it is actually even a bit nicer than the highway driving I did in OH/PA/MD/NY in that the cars seem to be much better about observing the rule of "Left lane is for passing." So that is some good news!

The tricky thing about your rental might be dropping it off in a different country, as others have mentioned.

But the scenery will be gorgeous and you can break up your trip with a nice overnight stop and see another new city along the way :) From quickly looking at a map, Bern looks to be about halfway and would only add a hundred or so km to your journey.

I would only have two concerns about your plan. Well, I haven't driven in Italy (1st trip in 9/10 - can't wait!), so I can't say about driving there. Picking up a car in one country and dropping it in another is quite expensive. Also, driving IN Paris is something I definitely would NOT recommend. I have driven in many cities and Paris is the only one I still feel the stress even thinking about it! Can you drop the car outside of town, maybe at an airport, and take a cab or public transportation into town?

Have been on a few road trips in Europe and the roads in France seem slightly better to me than the Italian roads but the ones I've used were just fine. Drove all over France in 08 ( the 2 longest days were Juan les Pins to Chamonix and Chamonix to Paris)and in Eastern Europe this sunmmer.Both have serious tolls. Viamichelin is a very good resource as mentioned above. Driving in Paris was fine with a GPS and a navigator to tell me which lane; if you are comfortable driving in Chicago, Los Angeles, DC, then you can drop off or pick up your car anywhere as long as you can stand the charge. Take your time and stop often. The countryside is fantastic, don't worry! and....psst... GPS!

Thanks toi all of you for the fantastic replies!! We alreayd have our GPS and are ready for a great trip, with the help of all the resources you've noted!