Venice to Lucca, renting a car on route

Emma-looks like it is only a 3 hour drive from Venice to Lucca. Since you have to get off the island anyway to get your transport, it should be just as easy to get to the car rental depot as to the train station. We rented our car in Venice and it was very easy to get there from the vaparetto and drive straight away. If you intend to drive and explore on your way to Lucca or stop somewhere before Lucca then just get your car after Venice. Especially if your plan is to stay outside the walled city and drive to the parking lot to explore the town, it seems to make sense to get your car when you are done in Venice.

Karen, so...you can take the vaparetto to a car rental location? I didn't realize that. I'm not sure why I was under the impression that you had to train to the closet car rental location. That does make my plan a little less logical although I still think that the less we drive the happier we'll be.
Ugh. None of these decisions are easy when you have no real idea of what it will be like when you're in it. We rented a car and drove all over France a couple of years ago - even in some cites (though not Paris) - and it was a pleasure. But I know driving in Italy is very different from France and it has me nervous (and I'll be the passenger most likely).

Emma: Lucca is about 40 miles west of Florence, so that puts the trip in @ just over 190 miles. The roads down to Bologna are fast, straight and flatlooks like Arkansas. The last hour south into Florence area is pretty crooked and the roads are congested. You can take a train all the way to Lucca; the easiest way to get there. Another option would be to take a train to Florence, then a train to Pisa where you could pickup a rental car. Warning: The causeway leaving Venice (over to the mainland) has radar/traffic cameras catching speeders. I found out the hard way in April.

Thanks David. From what I can tell, the train to Lucca from Venice involves involves three changes of trains and basically a whole day of travel. Florence isn't that far from Lucca so even if it took twice as long to get there because of congestion as google maps says it will, it still seems as if we would save a lot of time over the train. Plus, it would mean we could have some flexibility to stop along the way without having to drag our luggage in tow.
I am getting so many mixed messages about the choice of driving vs the train (except when you're talking about major cities where no one thinks driving is a good idea) that I guess it comes down to personal preference. As I said, it is difficult to know ahead of time how one will feel in a situation they've never been in. But the thought of spending an entire day on trains or in train stations is much less appealing than driving and possibly encountering a few traffic jams.

Emma, Actually, the trip from Venice to Lucca is fairly simple, and IMO that would be much preferred to renting a car. The number of changes and other details will depend on which train you choose. One of the shortest trips I could find was a departure at 09:25, arriving Lucca at 13:29 (time 4H:04M, one change in Florence, reservations compulsory for the first leg). The trip from Florence to Lucca is only 1H:19M. The departure time is good, as that will allow you to have a relaxing breakfast. The arrival time is good as your room will probably be ready by then. If you decide to rent a car, you'll need to keep the usual "caveats" in mind.... 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 can easily obtain an I.D.P. at any AAA office for a small fee (Passport photos required). You'll also need to be aware of the dreaded Zona Traffico Limitato areas, which are becoming increasingly prevalent in Italy (especially in Florence, but these also exist in Lucca and other towns). 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, using Collection Agencies based here. There may also be charges from the rental car firm for providing renter information to law enforcement. Happy travels!

Emma, I don't know where you are getting your train info but it is not correct. Look carefully at what Ken wrote. Venice to Lucca is a journey of 4 hours with a single change at Florence. There are car rental places at Lucca. We used one just outside the walls at a gate on the west side. There may be one near the train station but I didn't find one.

I am looking at the Rail Europe website and I guess I should be looking at another one? I see a 7:25 or 9:50 train to Florence on the Italotreno.it but not a 9:25 so evidently thats not the right website either.
I was starting to get into the idea of driving the whole way, possibly stopping along the way. I guess its not as simple or fun as it sounds.

Emma, That explains the problem! For train information, Rail Europe is NOT the best source of information. For researching rail trips, use one of these sites..... > www.bahn.de (German rail site but good for rail information just about anywhere in Europe) > www.trenitalia.com (Italy trains) > www.italotreno.it (they only have limited runs at this time, so you'd have to use a Regionale from Florence to get to Lucca) A travel time of 4 hours from Venice to Lucca is actually quite reasonable and not too long at all. The first leg from Venice to Florence will be via Freccia high speed trains, which travel at up to 300 kmH. Cheers!

Emma-For me it would come down to the question of what are you doing when you get to Lucca? Are you staying inside the city walls for a day or two before you start touring around by car? In that case, the train probably makes the most sense because you will be going between two cities (Venice & Lucca), where you don't need a car. We did drive into Lucca but our car remained parked for the two nights we were there. Friends of ours stayed outside the city walls and they also had a car that they used to drive to the parking area outside the walls when they visited the city. We have always enjoyed driving in Italy and don't find it to be such a horrible experience. But what it was best for was to drive around the small towns of Tuscany and Chianti-often parking outside the walls of the medieval towns. With a little research the "dreaded ZTL'" are avoided-we even drove easily to Florence, again following Ricks instructions as to where to park. But when we were simply going from one city to the next, we took the train. Going from Rome to Venice it made no sense to get a car, because we'd just have to leave it outside Venice. If you want to drive the countryside, but also see Lucca, the consider taking the train from Venice and picking up your car when you are ready to leave Lucca.

Ken - thank you for all the information. I was able to find the 9:25 AM train and that definitely makes sense. A 4 hour trip with one change is a lot more palatable than a 7 hour trip with 2 changes. Karen, we are planning to use a car while we are in Lucca and afterwards when we stay in Poggibonsi at an agriturismo.
We enjoy driving - we drove about 1200 K in France - but, as stated, I'm not sure we'd enjoy it as much in Italy so it makes sense to reserve it for Tuscany (although we're planning to drive to lake como too). Anyway, I really appreciate everyone's input.

Emma-we had friends who also stayed at an agriturismo in Poggibonsi the first time they took their kids to Italy and they really loved exploring that area. You will have a fabulous trip. There is no place on earth like Italy!

Emma, I agree with the others...you could easily get a train and switch in Florence. But if you want a car, drive to Vinci, there is a fabulous museum dedicated to Leonardo and it is a fabulous find. When you drive to Lucca (you will NOT be able to park inside the walls) there are parking lots, but not that many. I would also drive to Siena if you have a car, it is easier than the train or bus, however, parking is again difficult. You must realize these hilltowns have very limited parking and the ZTL which are horrid! We had a car when we drove to Lucca and never used it, after we went to Vinci and Siena (2 different days).