Need Help with Hertz Rental Car Return in Florence

Question 1.
Directions offered by strangers on the internet may not be 100% reliable or current for the date/time of your arrival. It is best if you contact the local Hertz office on Via Borgo Ognissanti, tell them the date and time of your arrival, and ask them for specific driving directions to the Garage Europa.

Florence - Via Borgo Ognissanti 137/R
Via Borgo Ognissanti 137/R
Florence , 50123
Italy

Phone: +39 055 2398205
Fax: +39 055 2302011
Hours of Operation: (Seasonal Location) Apr to Oct: Mo-Sa 0800-1900, Su 0800-1300 // Nov to Mar: Mo-Fr 0800-1900, Sa-Su 0800-1300

Question 2.
There should be no need to improperly enter a ZTL if you follow their specific directions.

Question 3.
As part of their directions, you will drive north on Via Senese towards Porta Romana. There are numerous gas stations on Via Senese to choose from.

Question 4.
It may feel a bit strange doing it for the first time. Basically, Via Mario de Bernardi, the exit from the rental garage, leads to the highway (A91) driving east towards Rome. I think it's one of the easiest ways to rent a car in Italy.

1. Not difficult to find. Exit the A-1 freeway at FIRENZE SCANDICCI exit and follow the directions below EXACTLY. It’s easer from this exit. (plot on Google Maps from FIRENZE SCANDICCI exit to HERTZ Borgo Ognissanti.)
2. You will not get into the ZTL cameras if you follow the above directions EXACTLY.
3. There is more than one station between the freeway exit and downtown on Viale Etruria and on Viale Talenti. Just stop at the first you see. You can also stop along the freeway at the AREA DI SERVIZIO CHIANTI. It’s located between the Incisa Valdarno exit and the FIRENZE SUD exit (which is the first Florence exit).
4. No. Piece of cake.

Bonus hint: on Viale Etruria, just after you exit the freeway, there is a speed camera that collects the most speed fines of all of Florence. That diabolic machine is more merciless than the ZTL. Respect the speed limits.

https://community.ricksteves.com/travel-forum/italy/why-you-don-39-t-want-to-drive-in-florence

Additional info.

Exit the A-1 freeway at FIRENZE SCANDICCI exit

It's possible the rental car agency may direct you to this out-of-the-way exit, but that has not been my experience. I have driven the route from Montepulciano too many times to count, and the agencies typically instruct you to exit at Firenze Impruneta and drive north on Via Senese.

Not all city center rental offices are open on Sundays. Just return it to the Hertz at the airport. Mass transit is available from there, as are taxis

If you want to exit at Firenze Impruneta, Google Maps still sends you on the right way without incurring into ZTL cameras. It’s more convoluted than from FIRENZE SCANDICCI, but whatever makes your boat float. Just make sure you turn right on Via del Gelsomino, because there is a bus only lane on Via Senese going north.

Hertz at Borgo Ognissanti closes at 1pm on Sunday, but you can arrange after hours drop off.
If you want to return at the airport, the exit you should take is FIRENZE NORD. The rental center is on Via Palagio degli Spini.

whatever makes your boat float

Floating boats are irrelevant. Coming from the south, the Borgo Ognissanti rental offices are not likely to advise drivers to exit at Sandicci. If you know your way around, Sandicci is an option, but it is not likely to be part of the agency's instruction, coming from Montepulciano.

Thank you all so much for the help! I am located in US. I am not sure calling Italy local office is the best way to get clear driving direction (with potential language barrier).

I know the office closes at 1 PM on Sunday. I plan to return the car before 1 PM.

I am not sure calling Italy local office is the best way to get clear driving direction (with potential language barrier).

It absolutely is the best way. They speak English. They get this request 20 times a week. Hotels in Tuscany are constantly calling them for these instructions. They probably can email you English instructions if you provide an address. Use Skype if necessary. If all else fails, and you're staying in a hotel, ask your hotel to make the call a day or two before you need to drop your car off.

Why would someone need to call the Borgo Ognissanti office to get directions to Borgo Ognissanti if I tell him how to get there? I spent almost 30 years living in that city and since I visit it once or twice a year I know my way well enough.

Coming from The Firenze Scandicci exit, it is a straight shot. The chances of being fined are fewer (provided you don’t speed on Viale Etruria). Coming from Firenze Impruneta, it is shorter, but it is more complicated. There is a new bypass around Galluzzo that opened last summer. There is a bus only lane on Via Senese, that you must go around taking via del Gelsomino and Viale del Poggio Imperiale. Lots of visitors continue straight on Via Senese through the bus lane and get zapped. Then you have to be careful not to turn right into Piazza Tasso, instead of Viale Ariosto, and hit the ZTL camera. You can take the Impruneta exit. it’s shorter, maybe a couple of minutes faster, but, IMO, not as easy for those who aren’t familiar with the idiosyncrasies of Florence’s roads, bus lanes and ZTL.

I would take Roberto's instructions and run with them!! Even before his second explanation!! I appreciate his putting this in such clear terms and am bookmarking in case I'm lucky enough to be in the position of returning a rental car to Florence.

Thank you Roberto for your detailed direction. This is what I am looking for. We have never driven in Italy before and are a little nervous about it. We would rather take a little longer but more straight forward route. We just don't want to get any ticket. With the rental car, each ticket is 30 euro service fee on top of the fine.

I have two more questions:
1. What are the landmarks (signs) we should look for when we near the location? Are there signs for Garage Europa/Hertz Rental?
2. Is it easy to find taxi after we return the car to take us to the Florence city? How much taxi would cost (roughly) from there to the following address:
Via della Colonna, 27
Florence, Tuscany 50121

Thanks again!

Why would someone need to call the Borgo Ognissanti office to get directions to Borgo Ognissanti if I tell him how to get there?

There isn't one choice for this helpful information. There are multiple ways to achieve the same goal. Readers and researchers are free to judge for themselves.

On two recent business trips to the area, I spoke to several rental office executives from competing companies. This is what I know:

The car rental offices on Borgo Ognissanti are a unique animal because of their proximity to the ZTL cameras. Costly mistakes happen, and they often cause a rift between the car rental company, the city, and the car rental customer.

The car rental companies on Borgo Ognissanti have access to the most recent traffic information. It is their duty to prevent their customers from making costly mistakes. They are also required to submit your car information, which grants your license plate temporary permission to pass a specific ZTL camera. Their directions to their drop-off garage are the most reliable, trustworthy, and up-to-date. This is not to say that other people don't know how to drive to the Ponte Amerigo Vespucci. To get there, many route choices exist. However, the car rental offices typically recommend one route, depending on where you are coming from with their car.

Very important: If you did not pick-up your rental car at Borgo Ognissanti, but you have plans to drop it off there, it is strongly advisable that you call your Borgo Ognissanti office, get precise driving instructions for drop-off, inform them of your license plate number and make/color of your car, and tell them the time of your expected arrival. If you are concerned about a language issue, ask your lodging personnel for assistance.

Thank you NYCTravelSnob for your warnings. This makes me even more nervous. According to your email, I can't even call them now to ask for direction. I need to wait until I have my rental car to call them in order to give them the details of my rental car. Is that correct? I don't know the spelling of any Italy street and won't be able to write down the direction over the phone. This is very challenging task.

Is there any other Hertz location in Florence that is easier to get to and won't get me into any trouble?

@ying.wang
I did not send an email.

You can secure drop-off directions at any time. But, yes, on the day before or the day of, you should call the rental office and give them your car details, since you did not get the car from their location. The most important reason to do this: if you get a ticket and your case goes before a judge, the judge will ask you if you notified the car rental office of the date and time of your drop-off, the make/model of your car, and its license number. I promise you, the judge will not ask you if you got instructions from someone on the internet. If you dot all your i's and cross all your t's beforehand, you'll better protect yourself down the road.

FYI, Garage Europa claims on their website that if you follow their directions and you still encounter a ZTL camera, they will help you in reporting that. I wouldn't worry so much. It may be annoying, but this is not rocket science.

Garage Europa has a decent website with an English option. I don't know how up-to-date it is. They also offer a ZTL link page:
http://www.garageeuropafirenze.it/en/no-ztl-parking-center-Florence.php

On that page, you can find a Download Map with two options to reach them without incurring a ZTL fine. The blue arrow route is the route that I've taken for many years while conducting business in Florence. I just drove this route this past October:

FROM THE SOUTH:

Exit Firenze Impruneta. Drive north on Via Senese (which originates as the famous Via Cassia SR2). Turn right on Via del Gelsomino. Turn left on Viale del Poggio Imperiale, and drive north to Piazzale Porta Romana. Enter the large roundabout and turn right at the street, Viale Francesco Petrarca with the city wall on your right. At Piazza Tasso, Via Petrarca turns into Viale Vasco Pratolini. Turn right on Viale Ludovico Ariosto. Turn right on Borgo S. Frediano. Turn left on Via Sant'Ofrio. Cross Ponte Amerigo Vespucci and continue straight onto Via di Meleganano. Turn left on Borgo Ognissanti, and in about 300 ft, Garage Europa will be on your right. You can't miss it. It's an ochre-colored building with a large GARAGE sign fixed perpendicular to the facade. The Avis/Budget Car Rental office is on your right, street level, just before the huge Garage Europa entrance.

By calling your Borgo Ognissanti office, you can confirm these directions for the day and time of your drop-off. You can also call the Garage Europa for confirmation, if necessary. Several guys there speak English.

This route is easily viewable using Google Street View. With the Google Man, you can drive the route and practice it as if you're driving your own car. Once you drive this route and discover how easy it is, you'll wonder what all the fuss is about.

Thanks so much for the info.

Follow the advice Roberto gave you. He lived in Florence 30 years, has a house there, returns frequently for a month to visit family.

If you feel confident that you can follow the advice of Roberto, follow it. If you do not, change the point of return of the rental car to some simple little Italian town within easy striking distance of Florence/Firenze by train or bus and return the car there. Lucca, for example.

OP is traveling on Sunday when small town rental offices are closed.
However the Florence ZTL is open to all on Sunday therefore no risk of getting a ticket.
Bus lanes are active at all times, so one has to watch out for those.
There is a bus lane on Via Senese that catches a lot unsuspecting travelers coming from the Impruneta exit, that is why I suggest the slightly longer but easier route from the Scandicci exit through Viale Etruria/Viale Talenti.

Hi Roberto,
We have rented a car from Avis and they provided instructions just for Firenze Sud highway Exit. Because we are comming from Lucca I am thinking that your indication to exit at Scandicci is the right way. I wast trying to explain the ladies from Avis this way to get some confirmation, but I had no success. I just wanted to ask you if the google maps way Via Pisana, Borgo S. Frediano and then left to near Via Sant'Onofrio is the right one. Many thanks!

Roberto is right about the viale Etruria speed camera. The trick is that when you see a sign "Firenze" you are technically entering a city area, so your maximum speed should be limited to 50 km/h. The speed camera is just after the sign, too many people arrive there too fast.

Ovidiu-Minos.
If you are coming from Lucca, chances are you are coming on the A11 freeway.
Your case is one of the few where returning the car at the Florence airport makes sense.
The airport rental center is on Via Palagio degli Spini, right at the end of the A11 freeway.
Of course it’s a bit farther from the city center and the taxi ride from there will set you back about 25€, but it’s not too expensive once you consider you save yourself a lot of aggravation driving inside Florence.

Hi Roberto,
Thanks for the suggestion, but the fact is that I arranged already to give the car back to Garge Europa and then take a train further. That‘s why I asked about Scandicci exit as showed by google maps. Thanks!