Suggestions for car pick up and drop off in Tuscany.

Hi Gado,

I think picking up a car at the Florence airport will be your best option. Many car rental offices are closed on Sundays, so an airport location would be your best bet. Florence airport is a good choice as well, since it's outside of town, so you can just head into Tuscany without driving through the city. Check out www.autoeurope.com for rental options.

There are trains every half-hour between Rome and Florence, taking about 1.5 hours. You won't have any problem buying tickets on the spot, but you can save some money by buying ahead through the Italian Rail website - www.trenitalia.com. Most of the advance-purchase, cheaper tickets are non-refundable, non-exchangeable, so be ready to commit at the time of purchase. Upon arrival in Florence you can take a shuttle bus or taxi from the train station to the airport to pick up your car. When you head to Monterosso you can either drop the car back at the airport and take a train from Florence to the Monterosso (which involves a train change in La Spezia and/or Pisa) or drop in Pisa for a small drop fee (usually an additional $40-50).

Try the Pisa airport location for drop-off. We are doing exactly what you are doing (even using Hertz) and that is where we are dropping it off. We will then take the train into the city center, check our bags at the central train station, and visit the Leaning Tower before getting on our train to Monterosso.

If you pick up on a Sunday the Florence airport location is the only one open.

However I would pick up in Rome and drive from there. Why going to the trouble and expense of taking the train to Florence, then a taxi to the Florence airport, then a rental car?

It's much faster to go by taxi from your Rome hotel directly to a rental office at the Tiburtina station in Rome, which is right at the freeway entrance (A24/Tangenziale Est) and drive to Tuscany from there. The station office is open from 8:30 to 1.00pm on Sundays. Alternatively, if you can't leave before 1pm, you could pick up at the Fiumicino airport (rentals always open) and drive from there.

For the rental car return, the La Spezia offices close at 12:30pm on Sat. If you don't think you can make it, then the Pisa airport is the next best option (rentals open until Midnight every day). The Pisa airport is only 1.5 km from the Pisa Central station (I have no idea where you saw 44km). From the rental return you can take the shuttle bus (PisaMover Bus) to the station and proceed to Monterosso from there. But of course if you can return the car earlier in La Spezia, that is even easier and closer.

Having done this both ways:
1) driving from Rome to Tuscany and dropping the car in Pisa and training it to the Cinque Terre

or

2) Taking the train from Rome to Florence and picking/dropping the car there and taking the train to the Cinque Terre from Florence

I have to say that the latter seemed better for me. The train is much faster than driving and I had to pay a $50 drop fee for picking the car up in Rome and dropping it in Pisa. Add the cost of gas and tolls on the Autostrada, going to Florence by train and picking up the car at the airport was cheaper when I did the math. Especially since an advance-purchase train ticket from Rome to Florence is 29 euros.

Hello,

I would like to thank all of you for your kind replies. It was helpful to have a few options and sort through the ideas. I think we will take the train to Florence from Rome and stay a few days. This way we don't have to park in Florence. We will get the car at the Florence airport and then drop it in Pisa, before heading to Monterosso. All of your input is most appreciated!