Rental Van (8-10 passengers)

You really do not want a vehicle of that size to drive on the roads and the towns in Tuscany. The roads are just not suitable for them.

You may need a special license to drive a van that seats more than 8 passengers. You better check on that.

We had an 8-passenger van in May- one of the worst mistakes we ever made. seriously consider 2 vehicles. Roads are small, finding parking impossible.

We always book our cars with AutoEurope.com
Great customer service and they are very knowledgeable
Call them at their 800 number and ask for advice

I wouldn’t dare try to drive a vehicle that large in Tuscany and I do think you need a special license

Availability in Siena may be limited

All drivers must have an IDP which you can get at your local AAA
Do your homework regarding driving in Italy-ZTLs, parking, speed cameras, etc

Your best bet will likely be renting 2 cars-which also gives your group more flexibility

When we’ve taken day tours, customers were driven around in big vans, but there was no luggage involved for the day, and the driver was a professional, who knew where to park, or took the van somewhere while we were doing an activity. Having 2 smaller vehicles would allow easier access, but you’d have to coordinate logistics and possibly finding each other after each vehicle found a parking spot. It also means at least 2 drivers and 2 navigators.

A possible advantage of 2 vehicles: will everybody be going everywhere, together? Or would 2 vehicles allow different destinations, and/or different time schedules?

You may need a special license to drive a van that seats more than 8
passengers.

Yes, you would need a bus license (class D1 or D). https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/European_driving_licence#Categories_valid_in_all_EEA_member_states

Or hire a van and driver

I would take a serious look at hiring a driver with a vehicle for your stay in Tuscany. Leaving the driving to someone else allows you to enjoy the trip, too. It is often possible to negotiate a weekly or daily rate, depending on how many day trips you are thinking of doing and how many people would be participating and when. If you can nail down an itinerary and are so inclined, you could get bids from several companies for various combinations of days/destinations/number of passengers to come up with the best prices. If your entire group doesn't want to daytrip together, larger companies can provide multiple cars and drivers. All the caveats for car rental above should be duly noted. Renting a van and driving yourself would be a nightmare in about a zillion different ways.

all good feedback.

We already have a driver for day trip.

Will need transportation for short trips; the 2-car idea is a good one

So you just need the large van for a day, not two weeks? And you have a hired driver with the proper license?

AuroEurope will rent you a 9-@2 passenger van at Rome, but not at Siena.

We have a driver w/ van lined up for 5-6 day trips - still working on itinerary. Also have a host for several of the Palio-related days. WE only need our own wheels for the rest.

I would definitely get 2 cars. We did the van a couple times - one was 9 pax(my husband called it the bread truck) and we did not need special license (in 2010). Parking is very difficult
Also with 2 cars people can go where they want - shopping, different towns for lunch.
It’s just so much easier.
We also use a driver on certain days - especially when wine tasting.