Renting a car in Sicily

Try AutoEurope (an American consolidator that operates with the biggest European players). Of my personal experience, Hertz, Sixty and Europcar are the most no-nonsense (and also the biggest) car rental agencies in Western Europe. If checking quotes directly, try the European sites for the car rental companies, sometimes they offer cheaper prices. The actual process of renting a car is not much different than in US. Except you don't get (AFAIK) the option of strolling the lot and choosing your own car within a row of cars of your category. If insecure about it, rent an automatic. By all means rent a diesel car, that will lower your fuel expense by at least 40% in Italy since it's cheaper and more efficient per mile drive Avoid the temptation of renting SUVs which are expensive and don't fit well the parking spaces of stores, hotels, parking lots... And they cost a lot. Sicily is a fairly big island. There are highways (like Interstates) connecting Trapani-Palermo-Messina-Catania-Siracusa-Rossolini along the coast, a spur to MArsala and a direct inland Palermo-Enna-Catania route. Speed limit up to 130km/h (87mph). There are also a handful of 1-lane-per-direction expressways mostly grade-separated to places like Agrigento, Piaza Armerina, Ragusa. Elsewhere you stick with winding, circuitous bus often beautiful and scenic country roads. Road traffic is not much different than in US. City traffic in Italy is a bit more unorganized, the rule is keep calm and do drive defensively (you can always take a wrong roundabout exit then make some U-turn 500ft ahead, for instance).

Nina, A few points to mention regarding driving in Italy..... As you'll be driving in Italy, note that EACH driver will require the compulsory International Driver's Permit, which is used in conjunction with your home D.L. Failure to produce an I.D.P. if requested can result in fines on the spot! You'll also need to be aware of the dreaded Zona Traffico Limitato areas, which are becoming increasingly prevalent in Italy. Passing through these zones can result in expensive fines, which you won't know about until several months after you've returned home. ! Recent posts here would seem to indicate that authorities in Italy are becoming more aggressive in collecting the fines from foreign drivers and there may also be charges from the rental car firm for providing renter information to law enforcement. If you need further information, post another note. Happy travels!

There are some ZTL's in Sicily. You can find a list (unfortunately in Italian only) - by city - of ZTL's in Italy here : http://ztl-italia.blogspot.de/ The easiest way to avoid problems is simply to remember that a road sign with a red circle around a white center, like this: http://tinyurl.com/8l5g2c9 means DO NOT DRIVE PAST THIS SIGN. Some of these signs will be attached to a red light as in the picture; most won't be. As in most of Italy, driving in Sicily is pretty easy outside the larger cities. We've driven all over Sicily and never had a problem, except for being blocked by the occasional tractor-drawn wagon full of hay. We usually rent through Autoeurope or directly with Hertz.