We are thinking about renting a car from Florence to drive thru Tuscany (visiting towns and wineries still undetermined...Any suggestions on towns/wineries?) Sunday on our way to Rome. Stay over in Monitisi Sunday nite and catch a hot air balloon flight early Monday morning (I hope it’s as cool as I am imagining it would be). Then continue into Rome and drop the rental off at the Termini in town and near our hotel, probably can walk from there to hotel. I heard driving in Rome can be a challenge, is it smart to drive in Rome or should we drop off at the Airport on the outskirts then have to pay for transportation back to hotel? Any suggestions? Maybe transportation isn’t that much to offset the possibility of getting lost in Rome or getting into an accident?
Any thoughts or suggestions would be greatly appreciated!
Posted by
Portlandia
3313 posts
Brian - It would be far easier to drop the car off somewhere short of Rome like Orvieto and take the train into the city. Then, when you emerge from the Termini station, you can congratulate yourself on not having tried to drive in that traffic.
Posted by
Vernon, Canada
32350 posts
Brian,
I strongly agree with Doug - do NOT drive in Rome! While I'm sure many on the Forums here have done this without any problems, it's NOT something I'll be doing anytime soon. The traffic is crazy! I'd prefer rush hour traffic in L.A. over Paris or Rome!
As Rick has mentioned numerous times in his Guidebooks, having a car in cities is more of a nuisance than a convenience. One has to worry about parking, theft, vandalism, etc. There are also the costs of tolls on the Autostrada, and traffic tickets (several cases of which have been documented here lately). The public transit is so good in Italy (and elsewhere in Europe), I normally try to avoid cars as it makes travel much less complicated.
The suggestion to drop the car in Orvieto is good, as it's only a short train ride from there to Rome.
Happy travels!
Posted by
Hudsonville, MI, USA
25 posts
I think Doug had a great idea (and one I wish I would have thought of!) I was considering renting a car, too, but chickened out. We're doing the train instead. As for towns/wineries...I am really interested in Villa Vignamaggio in Greve. It is where Kenneth Branagh's "Much Ado About Nothing" was filmed and where the "real" Mona Lisa was born. Well, at least that's what they advertise. There's a nice website to check out - you can do tours (they also produce olive oil) with tastings and/or lunch. I think we're going to give it a try while we're there in September. Siena has a nice wine enoteca (museum) I hear. Also, places like Montalchino and Montelpulchiano are big wine-areas. Montelpulchiano, I believe, is the town with a local winery that also has Etruscan tombs and a museum of wine. Good luck!
Posted by
525 posts
Tours in Tuscany area. I am reading Too Much Tuscan Sun by Dario Castagno (Rooster Tours). He has been a tour guide for quite awhile. I have not met him but know his cousin here in Tigard, Oregon. If you are looking for someone to take you around the area, look him up. If you don't have a car and want someone to explain the area to you, he sounds like a great guide. I'm not sure if he is still doing the guide work since he is writing books but he will have lots of info of the area. I can almost follow his book to go on our driving tour. His book talks about the customers he has had and what his growing up years were like in Italy. Just my thoughts. The website for this tour is "toomuchtuscansun.com - Confessions of a Tuscan Tour Guide.
Posted by
Lake Forest, CA, USA
1633 posts
Just returned from Italy. We decided NOT to take the trains and rented a car from AutoEurope instead. We did leave the car at the train station (by the funicular) for free for 3 days while we went to Rome. Took the train--it was 55 min. late. This worked out o.k. After Rome, picked up the car and continued to drive where we wanted, when we wanted with comfort, convenience and a.c. Don't drive in Rome. The airport is way on the outskirts and the train takes you to Termini in 30 min. If dropping the car off in Orvieto doesn't work, then I would consider the Rome airport. By the way, Orvieto is a true delight. It's not as touristic as other hill towns--quaint and quiet at night. Stayed at Hotel Valentino.
Posted by
Sheboygan, Wisc., USA
934 posts
Ive driven into and out of Rome and made it OK>However I think dropping the car in Orvieto is a much better idea.The rental officwes are a short distance from the station and there are a lot of trains into Rome.
Posted by
gaston, oregon, usa
842 posts
We just got back from Rome and Pugla. We picked up our Autoeurope rental car in Rome at the Villa Bourgesse rental area, and it was "piece of cake" driving out of Rome to the freeways .
BUT.........after driving in Italy and Sicily on four different trips I vowed NOT to rent again without getting a car...... with a GPS. Either buy one here that is loaded with maps of the EU (Tom Tom, etc) or rent one with your rental car. AutoEurope has specials all the time and they will throw in a free unit with your rental.
My wife is the best darn navigator in the world, but when a road number does not show up on your map, or you want to navigate thru a town(Rome) a GPS can't be beat.
We love the freedom of the car, but it can become a prison when you get lost.
Also, make sure that you are prepared for driving in Florence........it can be fun without a GPS!