Where to pick up rental car in Florence

The question is debated on this area about twice per week so you could read the archives for additional info. Summing things up: ZTL access is controlled when you are entering the area, so if you are just picking up a car and leaving as soon as possible it is not an issue. Fines are issued when you are returning a car and you do not follow the correct itinerary and procedure.

As for the Sansovino location, it can be reached by car or, very easily, by a tram line leaving on a side of the station and dropping you just in front of the rental area.

Borgo Ognissanti is the correct answer.
Follow these directions to across the river on Lungarno Soderini and you are out of danger.
https://goo.gl/maps/o9kaWDmzJJs
Follow the route using Google Maps Streetview.
The ZTL gate (enforced by camera) is on Lungarno Amerigo. Vespucci just east of the bridge.

How one can miss a ZTL gate in Florence is a mustered to me. Check how they look like. All the signs below will be present at each gate.

http://cdn1.discovertuscany.com/img/florence/transportation/ztl-5.JPG?auto=compress,enhance,format&w=

http://www.ilsitodifirenze.it/sites/default/files/immagini_articoli/ZTL-zona-traffico-limitato-34fg_1.jpg

http://www.repstatic.it/content/localirep/img/rep-firenze/2017/06/06/161209389-e369a0a7-bcc8-4f98-897c-6b1dcb1311f6.jpg

We picked our car up on Sansovino. It was about a 2 mile cab ride from the train station . They gave me directions to the motorway going south avoiding any ZTL.

Thanks Roberto, I feel confident I can spot a ZTL sign. It is more a matter of knowing where to go if you encounter one so that you can get where you are intending to go

Picking up a rental car on Via Borgo Ognissanti rarely presents any problem. It's a one-way street facing west, away from the ZTL zone. If your goal is to drive south, Ponte Amerigo Vespucci is the bridge to cross. For any car rental return, I wouldn't trust anything I read on the internet. I would contact the local rental office and request precise return directions for the date of my return.

I would never rent from the Orvieto office of Hertz, but dropping off should present little problem, unless you ignore their opening/closing hours. With an Orvieto drop-off planned, you are restricted to using Hertz. Another reason why I prefer to drop-off in Rome.

NYC Travel Snob,

Thank you for your feedback. I had not previously considered returning the car in Rome because 1) I like traveling by train and 2) driving into a large and chaotic city such as Rome is a bit intimidating.

I am curious - where do you typically drop off if dropping off in Rome? We will be staying a little south and east from Campo di Fiori, near Santa Maria di Monticelli. There is a bus from the Termini station that will get us very close to there.

You can return the car at Termini station. It is not hard from the freeway A24 Tangenziale Est and then the Circonvallazione Tiburtina (Expressway)
The actual garage where you return the car is here, linked below, at the Radisson Blu hotel. The rental car companies are on the top floors.
Set your navigator app to take you here. That is where I return it. You can’t drive to your hotel, it’s restricted to residents, so drop the car then take a taxi.

ES Park Giolitti (Roma)
Via Giovanni Giolitti, 267, 00185 Roma RM, Italy
+39 06 4470 4053
https://goo.gl/maps/Rm2auJWZr3E2

I had not previously considered returning the car in Rome because 1) I like traveling by train and 2) driving into a large and chaotic city such as Rome is a bit intimidating.

In Italy, I enjoy traveling by train, too, if I have no luggage. When I travel with luggage, I prefer a car. It's much less wear and tear on my body.

Once you have experience knowing how to drive into Rome to return a rental car, and you see how easy it can be, words like "chaotic" and "intimidating" don't play a role. I drive in NYC, so, admittedly, my perspective is thick-skinned and fearless.

Coming from Tuscany/Orvieto/Umbria, my preferred rental location is on Via Sardegna near Porta Pinciana. I find arrival on the Via Pinciana to be a piece of cake. I've been doing this route for almost thirty years. A Vatican priest turned me on to it, and I never saw a reason to change. My Rome apartment is in Piazza Farnese, just behind Campo de' Fiori, so I take a taxi from Via Sardegna. About €15, 15-20 minutes, depending on traffic. If I have luggage, I won't go near a city bus.