In September we will be visiting Rome for a few days and then we will get a rental car to drive to Umbria for my son's wedding and after that we will be heading to Sienna and then eventually will be dropping the car at the Florence Airport. I would love any advice on the best (easiest to navigate and drive out of Rome from) area to rent the car from. We will be picking it up on a Sunday. Not all rental areas are open on Sundays. We will be staying in the Trastevere area. In my research I see that we could rent from FCO airport or from the central Termini Station. Any suggestions on which would be the easiest to do as well as to navigate out of the city? Any additional advice on rental areas or driving out from Rome is appreciated! Thank you!
Posted by
Chicago
1363 posts
Is cost a factor, or are the prices (factoring in the cost of getting to FCO) close enough
to not matter between the two pickup locations?
If you pick up from FCO, you are already outside the city, but, a bit longer circumnavigation
to get to your destination. If you are picking the car up on a Sunday morning, it may not
be all that crowded in downtown Rome and you may be able to get out fairly easily,
assuming you are versed in using some form of nav tool.
Posted by
Gettysburg PA
9383 posts
Picking up at Tiburtina station is a pretty straightforward exit from town
Scroll thru these threads for more info
https://search.ricksteves.com/?button=&date_range=2y&filter=Travel+Forum&query=Tiburtina
Roberto is our resident expert so look for his responses
He will likely respond to you here as well
More specific
https://community.ricksteves.com/travel-forum/italy/car-rental-in-rome-77c82d00-8c08-4a56-8491-bdd3bd1bf80e
Make sure all drivers have an IDP-required by law along with your Drivers License
Posted by
OP
4 posts
Thank you @shoeflyer. That's what I'm thinking, too. Costs are similar and going from Tremeni would be easier because there are 5 of us that would have to get us and our luggage to FCO. We are definitely used to using navigation apps and have done some driving in Italy before. But - we have not driven in Rome and it is definitely intimidating. If anyone has done this before - picked up a car at Termini station and driven out towards Montefalco? I would like to hear about your experience. Other options are also appreciated.
Posted by
Washington State
474 posts
We are usually coming from Umbria and returning the cars to FCO…just the opposite. Others might disagree, but we find it so easy to return the cars to the rental garages at the airport. So that said, if we were to rent in Rome, we would absolutely pick up at FCO and go on to Umbria from there. You aren’t in the city per se, and the autostrada is adjacent to the airport, so easy to get out and on your way.
Posted by
OP
4 posts
Thank you for all of the great information, Christine. I will definitely check out the threads and yes, getting our international license from AAA prior to the trip is on the list.
Posted by
OP
4 posts
Thank you, Cathy. FCO does seem easier to get us on our way. We will have luggage and a 14 mo old with us so we
just want to make it as easy as possible.
Posted by
San Francisco Bay Area (USA)
17883 posts
Check the pricing with www.autoeurope.com
The FCO pickup makes the least sense in your case, because the airport pickup is always substantially more expensive, and since you are already in the city picking up at the airport will be extra money and time.
On Sundays however you will be limited to the following pickup locations in the city:
Termini (2nd most expensive, but all open).
Via Sardegna/Via Veneto (but not companies open on Sundays)
Tiburtina would be the best to get out of of town, but only Sixt opens on Sundays.
See on AutoEurope if you find a good price from Via Sardegna or Tiburtina (Sixt). If not, choose Termini. Once you book come back and I’ll tell you how to get easily out of Dodge.
Posted by
Washington State
474 posts
tea41985, I would absolutely listen to Roberto…he is always spot on, and his advice has always come through for us, especially the first time we rented a car and managed successfully to get out of Firenze!
Posted by
404 posts
My experience renting near Termini is from 2019 so not sure if it still applies. We stayed in the city 2 nights, then made our way to the rental car agency at Termini Station at 8am on a Monday in late April. We had booked Hertz through autoeurope. It took a little while to get through the paperwork, then we walked to the garage to pick up the car. Getting out of the garage was the worst part. We had a small Ford wagon (Fiesta?, can't remember). We waited awhile in the garage because the attendant struggled to move it into place because things were so tight. I remember driving down the ramp was really hard because I swear the turning radius of this small car was alsmost more than the spiral of the ramp. Once outside and onto the street, I remember thinking it really wasn't too bad, maybe 5-10 minutes of city streets and being stressed about the signs and getting the directions right, but we were going away from the city center and traffic was heavy but not impossible. Once we were on the highway we were fine, headed to Molise.
If I had to do it again, I would consider picking up at the train station but would prefer as small a car as possible or perhaps look to see if there's any other city office that doesn't use the big garage at the station. I'm just relieved we didn't have to return it there because getting back up the ramp and into a tight spot would have been worse. We returned at FCO. If you decide to rent at the train station, note that as of 2019 the office was in the station and then there was a few block walk with luggage to the garage.