Storing luggage when travelling by car to avoid theft

It's pretty much of an unfounded fear that's going to keep your guts in an uproar the whole trip.

Good luck.

And if your car doesn't have a trunk, won't it have a cover deal over the luggage compartment of the hatchback?

From a lot of experience: junk on the backseat doesn't result in smashed windows.

I've never heard of a parking lot with lockers.

Does your wife have a particular reason for not leaving luggage in the car when it is parked? Millions of cars are parked all over Europe every day, and few of them have their contents stolen, especially if they are parked in an open public area with lots of people around. I wonder what car you will have if it "doesn't have a trunk", but even if your car is not a saloon, nobody will be able to see what luggage is behind the back seat, and few thieves are actually interested in cases full of clothing and part-used toiletries. I have never seen lockers in a car park, and a locker would be no more secure than a car.

If yours is a rental car, it will have Italian licence plates, and be indistinguishable from cars driven by locals who are at work or out shopping. More vulnerable to theft are cars driven by Swiss, Germans, Dutch, French, British and other European nationals. Their cars are easily identified.

Having said that, there are a number of simple things you can do to reduce the possibility of loss even further.

1. Park your car, lock it and walk away. Don't open the back and "hide" your valuables. Do that on the previous occasion you stopped. Don't let any potential thief know what you have in the back.

2. Don't leave anything valuable where it can be seen. That includes coats and bags, which could contain money. Satnavs should be hidden, together with their mounts.

3. Reverse your car against a wall or other obstacle so that the back cannot be opened.

Worrying too much will only spoil your trip. Is this your first, or is it just Florence that worries you?

Like Ed (edit: and Bob), I've never seen a car park with lockers in Italy. Switzerland yes, but never Italy.

I am as fearful of the dreaded ZTLs in Florence as the next guy but when I pop into Florence for the day I park under the train station (watching the route very carefully) which is secure, and underground. There is a left luggage area on the station.

Be careful of the ZTL leaving the station, too.

I would be surprised if a hatchback doesn't have a privacy screen.

Alex, the only experience I have with this issue was in Sicily, where an experienced travel adviser there advised me never to leave my baggage in the car unattended while traveling, at least not in a parking spot which is not enclosed and staffed. She said there were some petty thieves who waited and watched, especially at tourist site parking lots and spaces on nearby streets. That was in Sicily, and I have never heard of problems further north in Italy. One idea that I have never seen, not sure why, is that you might carry some kind of lightweight cable lock, like often used with bicycles, and lock your bags together and to the structure of the interior of the car. Not 100% safety, but certainly more difficult for anyone to mess with your baggage.

Lockers are unusual at train stations, but many have staffed deposito bagagli where you can leave your bags. Note opening hours.

Given that I know someone who's car WAS broken into in Italy, I wouldn't leave anything of value in the car for sure. Thieves are more likely looking for laptops and electronics, not toiletries and undies. If they did break into the car, they'd more likely rummage the bags, not steal them. A hatchback will have a screen cover. When parking, don't then call attention to the fact that you have bags in the car. Have what you are taking with you in the car, get out and walk away. Try not to put things in and out of the bags you are leaving behind. A secured lot/garage is better, but pedestrian access is usually pretty open even in secured lots.

The parterre is not near the station, it's on Piazza della Liberta'.

Drive to the station and park in the underground carpark there, as Nigel suggested. if you don't trust to leave your luggage, you can always haul it above ground inside the station and leave it at the deposito bagagli.