Pick up car in/out Florence

If you are just going to San G. why not let the SITA bus take you there. Nice modern buses with frequent departures. CLICK HERE</> to see the bus schedule. The SITA bus station is about 1,000' from the main Florence train station.

Kelle: Larry has given you excellent advice: take the bus from Florence to S.G.

It's what most people (reporting in here) do on their trips.

The bus is better than the train, for that route.

Those travelers who don't take the bus, take the train.

I'd make a rough guess that travelers on this site, traveling from Florence to S.G, about 60% take the bus, 30% take the train, and 10% try to drive.

Taking the bus or train will completely remove the worry and stress of trying to drive in Florence and getting the expensive fines in the mail months after you return. People here have received multiple ZTL fines in a few hours. At $125 to $150/fine, these have added up to $600 to $1,000 for some--just for trying to drive a rental car out of, or back into, Florence.

We will be staying a little out of San Gigimano and will need a car. Where could we rent one.

Boy I feel lucky! Just this afternoon we booked a car rental in Florence. We chose the Via Del Sansovino Hertz. After reading the posts here (better late than never!!) I googled 'ZTL florence' and got a map of the 'Florence ZTL explained'. Via Del Sansovino is outside of it. We are taking the car from Florence (spending 2 days walking around florence!) to use in Tuscany for two days.

Try www.bellinibruno.com for car & bike rentals in San Giminango. 5 day min. for car rentals.

why not rent from the airport? Yes it's more expensive but I see it as insurance for not getting a ticket a year later! You can take a bus or taxi to the airport easily enough, yet you can avoid the "adventure" as you put it ;)

Thanks Debra We will do that. Do you suggest a rental car company?

I always rent the car from home because it is cheaper and the most recommended way to rent a car. I always use Autoeurope (Europcar). When it asks you where you want to pick up the car, choose the Via Gelsomino pick-up location. This is far enough away from the center of Florence that you will have no trouble getting out of town from there. Just take a taxi from your hotel to the Europcar office on Via Gelsomino and you can zip right out of town toward San Gemignano! Easy!

If you are in the center it is not that big a deal to rent a car to leave Florence with. There are many rental places on Borgo Ognissanti and Via Maso Finiguerra. I think another poster was also referring to an article I wrote about the ZTL http://www.florence-on-line.com/maps-of-florence/florence-driving-map-ztl.html which is worth checking out.

What trips people up more often is that they have rented the car outside of Florence and drive into town with it - that is where you have to be pretty careful, especially if you are not staying at a hotel. The camera entry points are pretty obvious - so if you want to avoid the fines just don't enter where one is. If you rent a car to leave Florence and come back just talk to the agent and they will let you know how to return it, etc. without being ticketed.

If you are in the center it is not that big a deal to rent a car to leave Florence with. There are many rental places on Borgo Ognissanti and Via Maso Finiguerra. I think another poster was also referring to an article I wrote about the ZTL http://www.florence-on-line.com/maps-of-florence/florence-driving-map-ztl.html which is worth checking out.

What trips people up more often is that they have rented the car outside of Florence and drive into town with it - that is where you have to be pretty careful, especially if you are not staying at a hotel. The camera entry points are pretty obvious - so if you want to avoid the fines just don't enter where one is. If you rent a car to leave Florence and come back just talk to the agent and they will let you know how to return it, etc. without being ticketed.

You won't need a car while staying in Florence. When it is time to leave for San G., take a taxi to the car rental at the airport (I use Europcar), and leave from there. The Autostrada is nearby. Don't forget to buy your own GPS before you leave for Italy and learn how to use and program it. It will make your car trip so much easier, otherwise you will more than likely get turned around, and you don't want to waste your precious vacation time wandering about aimlessly. Your GPS is your buddy!

I would get my rental car in Florence (not far from the train station) and leave from there. In Italy you will pay 20% more for renting a car from the airport locations.

If you decide to rent a vehicle, there are several major car rental companies located on Via Borgo Ognissanti, at the south end of Florence near the river. Since you will already be heading in that direction, this option might save you some travel time. Via Borgo Ognissanti is a short walk from the center of town (if you pack lightly), or a quick taxi ride (if you pack heavily). As long as you have good directions, or a map, or a GPS, you should be able to navigate out of Florence. If you have any hesitation about driving in Florence, though, the airport option would give you peace of mind.

Kelle - We rented a couple of times from Sixt in Florence. The agency was several blocks from the train station away from the city center. We had no problem walking with our bags. They gave great directions to get right out of town avoiding most of the congested areas. Don't know if they are in the same location, but for us it was easier and much cheaper than renting from the airport.