Rental car luggage storage

Have you checked the Fiat Punto? A couple of friends and I rented one, it was fine and I think it had a trunk, but can't swear to it now.

I initially rented a hatchback, but then went for the Ford Fiesta because it has a trunk. No need to give the crooks any more openings than they already have!
We leave in 4 weeks so I don't have an experience to give you at this time.....have a safe trip!

There are several cars that are better than the Fiat Panda in the same Economy category, like the Renault Clio, Peugeot 208, Ford Fiesta, Opel Corsa, Fiat Punto, Lancia Ypsilon, VW Polo. If the price is not much more, go for one of those. they are all hatchback, but with a bit bigger trunk which will be certainly sufficient for the two of you. You don't need to go to the higher compact category if you don't need more power.

The South Entrance of the Zingaro park is in Scopello. They have a wooden shed ticket office where they sell the entry tickets which is usually manned. that is also where you park the car, so that place is reasonably safe since the car isn't isolated, as there are always people around in the ticket office and your car will be in their plain view. I never had problems when I stayed in Scopello and went there. Nobody is going to break into your car there the ticket office people would see. It's not a big lot. In Siracusa, at Ortigia, there is a large covered pay parking structure on the left side as you cross the bridge, I always parked there and I think it's safe. I don't know about the other places you mention.

There is some risk whenever you leave luggage in a car, and that is true everywhere, including where I leave in California since they opened mine to steal my gym bag. Therefore you should try to minimize that, and if you can't, at least park in a guarded pay lot. Many Pay parking lots are often guarded (by surveillance cameras), therefore safer than parking on a secluded parking lot at a beach or something. No place, including a pay lot, gives you 100% guarantee however.

I would recommend at least carrying $$$ electronic gear around with you as you sightsee. And leave expensive jewelry at home so you don't even have to think about that.

When you rent a car, you are not guaranteed that specific make and model. You get what's available on the lot (within the class you rented). In the 3 times we have rented, we have never got the model that was initially rented. That's why I always rent the cheapest model in the class of car I want.

Jeanine is absolutely right -- we have more often than not been given crappy rattly Korean junk cars as equivalent to the car we had actually booked. You get what they have; you aren't even guaranteed an automatic if you book one. It is very risky to leave luggage in the car at stops. As a tourist you have no idea if you are parking in an area where local thieves target cars. At the least carry all valuables. My husband and I have messenger bags we use for this purpose -- when we stop for lunch the bags come with us with the cameras, computers, etc and I use a money belt for the passports and money and cards. And never open the trunk or hatchback at a stop; arrange all your stuff in the trunk at an earlier stop with only your valuables bag in the car itself so you don't show off your stuff when you stop. I only know one person who had their car stripped of luggage, but they lost everything at a beach stop in Italy. Not a fun moment.

Fiat Panda is a lower category than other cars. Car rentals in Europe use more categories, using the ACRISS car codes. If you rent a car of a certain ACRISS code, they can give you a different model but they won't give you a lower ACRISS code, or you can complain. Panda is an ECMR code car. All the others I mentioned above are EDMR. The last 2 letters indicate the transmission and fuel/AC.