Parking in Florence

Bad idea, unless you find someplace to park outside the Firenze ZTL. Yes, it is congested, and many of the streets are off limits to vehicles other than residents. Look above in the search block and type in ZTL Florence.

Define quiet??? Florence is a high tourist area that is very busy. What do you plan to do with the rent car while in Florence? There are some large parking lots surround the downtown area. Don't know about overnight parking. Personally I would not do it.

I would not want a car if visiting Florence. The only reason to have a car is if you are taking a day trip from the city to a location that doesn’t have train or bus service and is only accessible by car. Florence is a medieval city with narrow streets and is congested. The central part of the city, as you will find in most Italian cities and towns, has heavily enforced traffic restrictions. These traffic limitation zones (ZTL’s) are guarded by traffic cameras and entering one will get you an expensive fine as well as a charge from your auto rental company for researching and providing your information to the authorities. Parking almost anywhere in a tourist area of Italy is very expensive. There are numerous parking lots in Florence. If you do decide to rent a car, you will also need an International Driver Permit that you can get at AAA.

I don’t know what time of year you are visiting but during season - late May till mid-September - the city is very crowded. The rest of the year it’s just crowded. Realize that this gem of a city is a prime tourist destination.

I would not rent a car while in Florence. The city has a sizable ZTL and parking can be very difficult, and expensive, to come by. Florence is also a very walkable city and if you want a car for the day, it's easy to rent one on the outskirts (away form the ZTLs) of the city.

Ha! Thanks guys.
I got the message, but I would like to drive from Florence to Milan and make a few stops on the way. Would it be practical to rent the car for the day outside of the Florence city center and return it in Milan?

You can certainly rent a car to drive to Milan, but I question the need. The train is of course twice as fast, but even if you plan on stopping, where are you planning to stop? If you plan to stop and visit Bologna and/or Parma (two pretty cities on the route) you are better off using the train. Those cities also have traffic restrictions for non residents so you would waste a lot of time navigating those towns and finding parking. If you use the trains, the stations are in the middle of everything.

"Would it be practical to rent the car for the day outside of the Florence city center and return it in Milan?"

Yes. You will want to rent on your way out of Florence, and return your car somewhere on the outskirts of Milan (taking the Metro in). Just make sure you know all about the following:

ZTL's
Traffic Tutor
Bus Lanes
Speed limits in various areas, like city vs. highway (you are supposed to know these - they won't always be posted).

If you don't find out about these beforehand, you WILL learn when you get back - in the form of expensive tickets. And these tickets come in two installments. First, there's a fee from your rental car company, for turning over your information to the authorities (you agree to this fee when you rent the car). Then, the ticket itself comes - often months later. Since all of these things are enforced by cameras, you get a separate ticket for each infraction - even if they occur 5 minutes apart.

Each driver will also need an International Driver's Permit, used in conjunction with your US license.

" I'm assuming Florence is somewhat quiet."

I'm not sure where you got that assumption from, but you are quite mistaken. It's a big city, and the center can be absolutely mobbed with visitors during the day - particularly if a cruise ship (or 3) is docked at Livorno.

Virtually all the parking spaces in a radius of several miles from the center of Florence are metered or reserved to residents. If you bring a car to Florence be sure you know where to park it. An option, for example, could be the parking silo at Parterre (10 to 20 euros per day, or 70 per week), but parking fees add up quickly.

We rented a car when we stayed in the Tuscan countryside. We chose not to drive in Florence and Rome.

When we rode the bus in from Greve to Florence and in from the FCO airport to Rome, I was glad I didn't have to drive in the city traffic. It looked like what I experienced when driving in Boston and San Francisco, but even more freewheeling. I could have done it, but I'm glad I didn't have to.

If you want to tootle to Milan, I agree with renting a car to get there and returning by train. Be aware that if you want to see the countryside, it will take most of the day to get there by car. The ideal would be to take your time driving there, visiting Parma and other towns on the way, return the car, have dinner and stay overnight. Spend the next day exploring Milan and return by train that evening.

ZTL is not just a Florence thing so for your thought of renting and driving to Milan best to state what places exactly you what to stop off at.
If other cities ; bad idea most likely
If small out of the way places it makes sense but still have ZTL concerns when you drop off the car in Milan.