Need advice on traveling from Cinque Terre to Rome with a 1 night stop in Tuscany

I agree you should rent a car in Tuscany, best way to see it. I would return it in Tuscany and then take the train into Rome instead of driving into Rome itself.

Thanks! Any recommendations where to stay and return the car in Tuscany?

If you go just to one town like Volterra, instead of exploring more widely, you can access it by train plus a short bus connection at Cecina or Saline.

I actually got another quote for $104 to rent in La Spezia and return in Rome the following evening. That is probably what I'll do. Now what to do during the day and where to spend the night in Tuscany?
Volterra looks like a nice town.

Volterra is in the northern part of Tuscany; I would pick somewhere further south (closer to Rome).

You mentioned wineries; do you like Chianti or Brunellos? If the former, you may want to stay in one of the Chianti towns; if the latter, then consider Montalcino or Montepulciano.

Siena is a great little city, but if you stay there, figure out ahead of time where you would park. San GImignano is known as a gorgeous but touristy little town, but we like staying there because most all of the tourists leave at dark, and the town is still gorgeous but quiet then.

If you take that good rental rate, where will you be returning the car? Driving IN Rome is not for the faint of heart.

Montereggioni or Castellina in Chianti are both about 2 1/2 hrs from La Spezia.

Plenty of wineries in this area. Close to Volterra and San Gimignano is on the way.

Some other towns nearby are Siena, Greve, Radda.

To drop the car, look at Orvieto. Then train into Rome. If that doesn't work, drop the

car at the airport or Tiburtina station in Rome.

San Gimignano particularly cought my eye. I did not know it was a touristy town though. I came across a few b&b's and sent them emails about vacancy.
We are planning to return the car in the termini station in Rome when we arrive there.

Do NOT try to drive in Rome if you have never been there......and, it is ridiculously difficult to find the car rental return areas at Termini station. We must have driven past the station ten times looking for signage - there was none. We eventually pulled into a parking lot, I went into the station to find Europecar.......a HUGE pain! As everyone else has said, return the car in Orvieto or someplace and take the train into Rome. And be sure to get all the car insurance they offer!

Thanks for your input David. As mentioned, I wasn't planning on "driving around" Rome, but would like to return the car to the station as soon as we arrive and avoid driving through the city center. Is that still a bad idea?

Does anyone know the rough cost of taking the train from Orvieto to Rome? How frequent and how long is the train ride? Is it direct?

I would think about Arezzo - it's on the train line to Rome.
Day 1 Pick up a car early morning in La Spezia and travel to Arezzo via Siena.
Day 2 Scenic drive thru Chianti to San Gimignano, returning late to Arezzo.
Day 3 Drop rental car back in Arezzo before train to Rome (approx 2.5 hrs).
Europcar is showing Fiat 500 for approx 150 euros for 21-23 May La Spezia to Arrezo
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/travel/destinations/europe/italy/8581428/Arezzo-Italy-Peace-and-Piero-in-Tuscany.html
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/travel/destination/italy/53679/Tuscany-scenic-drives.html

DO NOT drop the car at Termini !!!! It IS the center of Rome. Tiburtina is on the edge of the
the city center and easy to find. From there take a taxi to your lodging.

Believe us...it will save you time and $$$

To get to Termini, you have to drive well into Rome. It sounds like you're expecting the station to be on the outskirts of the city; that is not true. There's no way I would try it. I have passed through that station many times and have stayed in that neighborhood, and I have never seen a rental agency – which suggests they're not really easy to find.

With only one day, I would use the train or bus and pick a couple of towns to visit, staying in the second town. That should give you more touring time, since you're not going to have to find your way into town and then find a place to park your car. If you do decide to get a car, learn the driving restriction in historical centers -- or you're likely to receive an expensive surprise a year or so after getting home.

Train from Orvieto-Roma Termini 1H17m. Cost 7,50 euro. They run every half hour.

Great advice! I did think that termini was on the outskirts of Rome. I will definitely look into either returning the car in Orvieto or Arezzo and taking the train. Maybe Orvieto since it'll be closer to Rome and probably cheaper.