Looking for transportation advice here. Background - we will be in Venice then Sirmione for 8 days. We have an agriturismo booked in Buonconvento, a small town soutn of Siena, for a week, with two days in between. We are planning to stay in Monterosso for the two nights in between. We will need a car in Buonconvento. We are flying home from Florence at the end of the week at the agriturismo. I've looked into various train options from Sirmione to Monterosso and they are all over 5 hours. We can pick up a car in Desenzano at Lake Garda, and return the car in Florence at the end of the trip. When leaving Lake Garda, we'd pick up the rental car.... drive an hour and a half to Parma, stop there for lunch, then make our way to Monterosso, about 2 hours 20 mins. We would not need the car in Monterosso and it would cost 30 euros a night to park it for two nights. On the day we leave Monterosso and head for Buonconvento, we'd stop in Pisa (1 hour 30 min drive) for lunch and quick sightseeing. After that, we'd make the 2 hr 10 min drive from Pisa to Buonconvento.
Spend a week there, then drive to the airport in Florence, return the rental car, spend a night in Florence, then fly home. I've driven in Tuscany before with no problems. It seems for this itinerary, going by car make sense. We would appreciate any feedback on what we are thinking of doing here. Thanks!
Posted by
San Francisco Bay Area (USA)
15939 posts
I don’t think there is a lot of availability of rental car companies in Desenzano. You might have to head back to Verona (either city or airport) for renting one.
Personally I wouldn’t mind having a car for Lake Garda (rent the car in Venice Piazzale Roma or Verona). Sirmione can be visited in a day, but there are plenty of locations you can visit by car more easily than by ferry. Also to reach the Forra Road and Tremosine you’d need a car.
You could also reach Monterosso by train then rent a car in La Spezia at the end of your stay.
Posted by
OP
Charlotte, NC
20 posts
We use Avis in the US and according to their website we can pick up a car in Desenzano and return it in Florence. I will call them to confirm this. We will not need the car while in the Lake Garda area. When we looked at driving from the Lake Garda area to Cinque Terre / Monterosso, it seemed more appealing than a 5+ hr train ride, especially since we can break up the trip by stopping in Parma along the way. Thanks ...
Posted by
Southwest Florida
903 posts
Personally, I would opt for the train as much as possible. The driver never gets to sightsee as much as the passengers and they also deal with the stress of driving. Train time, for me, is a way to decompress during a vacation. Relax, look out the window, have a bite to eat, a drink. If you only require a car for the last part of the journey then why the daily added expense of rental on the other days?
Just my opinion. How a great trip!
Posted by
OP
Charlotte, NC
20 posts
Thank you Marc! On our last trip in 2022, we took the high speed train from Florence to Rome and it was great. While in Buonconvento, we took the local regional train to Siena (2 stops) - also wonderful. For this trip, the trade-off is a 5+ hr train ride from Lake Garda to Monterosso vs driving and stopping somewhere (Parma) along the way to break up the trip. I will need the car when we leave Monterosso, so perhaps an idea I should explore further is training there, then picking up a car as we leave Monterosso. Thanks again!
Posted by
San Francisco Bay Area (USA)
15939 posts
Yes, I checked, and Avis-Budget is present in Desenzano.
I would rent a car at lake Garda for at least a few days at the end of your stay, to visit Tremosine and the Forra Road (and maybe also the Valpolicella wine region or the Franciacorta wine region). The most beautiful portion of the lake is the north side and going by ferry takes forever, the lake is long and Desenzano is in the far south. Sirmione can be visited in less than a day, the rest of the time you’ll want to explore other places.
If you take the freeway on the way to Parma, you can also stop briefly in Cremona, another pretty city.