We will be traveling to Rome by car from the Montepulciano area and will drop the car upon our arrival. One option is to drop the car in Orvieto, spend a few hours there, and then take a train into Rome. Will a few hours be enough time to make this worthwhile? Are there rental car returns near the train station? Will we be able to check our bags at the train station after dropping the rental car? The other option is driving to a near Rome sight such as Ostia Antica or Villa d'Este (Tivoli), and to then drop the car in Rome afterwards. This will be the second week of May and Villa d'Este should be blooming and beautiful. If you have done both, and can recommend only one, which do you recommend? And, what is the easiest way to drop the car after? Should we just drop the car at the airport and take a cab into town, or is it feasible to drive the car to an in-town drop site? We have not made hotel reservations yet, but are a B&B in Trastevere or something near Piazza Navona.
Posted by
Atlanta, Georgia
565 posts
I can only speak for the Tivoli/Ostia option: They are both wonderful but I go to Rome every couple of years and Ostia is easily a top three destination for me. I'm very much into ruins so if you are more into gardens, then I wouldn't hesitate to pick Tivoli either (there are plenty of ruins there too). The advantage of Ostia is that it is very close to the airport where you could turn in your car and cab it in to Rome. I personally don't take public transport in due to pick pockets (not all that common) and the general hassle. I wouldn't ever think of driving into Rome itself though. I've driven all over Europe with no issues, but Rome is not for novices.
Good luck! I'll be going to Orvieto for the first time this spring too and visiting Ostia before I turn my car in.
Posted by
Tresana, Highlands Ranch, CO, USA
23276 posts
The airport drop off would be easier since that is very common. Other drop off locations can have limited hours and hard to find. The taxi from the airport is fixed at 40E. We almost always use public transit in Rome just to avoid dealing with Roman cab drivers and the traffic. In three weeks total over the past few years we have not encountered any problems with pickpockets but we are careful also. Ostia Antica is a good half day stop with a huge parking lot so problems with the car.
Posted by
OP
Houston, Texas
43 posts
Thanks Leslie, We are leaning toward your suggestion of driving to Ostia in the AM, dropping the rental car at the Rome airport in the afternoon, and then taking a cab to the hotel.
Posted by
Florida, USA
12172 posts
We had a leased car and had to drop at the airport in Rome. We stayed the night before in Orvieto, toured Ostia Antica in the morning, then returned the car. We then took the train from the airport into Rome. I get confused over the airport names, suffice to say we flew from the one with the train. The airport is a zoo and we lost a lot of time finding the person who was supposed to meet us and get the car (a recurring theme in Italy). If returning in Orvieto is an option for you, it's a good one. The train is easy from Orvieto and you won't need the car after that.