Where to start our trip

Take the train to Florence; do your touring, then train to Orvieto renting the car from there through AutoEurope or go to initaly.com. initaly has cheaper but AutoEurope will match the price. AutoEurope has an Avis rep in Orvieto. Then, take the train to Rome from there. We're flying into Rome first and taking the train to Venice. We'll rent our car the last week in Italy for touring the Tuscany area.

Are you flying out of Rome or are you returning to Venice? If you are not returning to Venice why not spend a few days to enjoy the beauty and sights. If not, you could fly into Pisa which has a nice-sized airport and train in the Florence. In holding on to a car while you visit Florence, it's a really bad idea. First, there literally is no parking in Florence. That's why thousands ride motorscooters. Second, you need a permit to drive in the older parts of Florence. No permit equals expensive ticket. Your rental company will tell you they got the permit for you. You find out months later at home that they didn't and they took a picture of your license plate on the date you were driving. Besides, the best sites in Florence are all walkable and for the most part a car would do you no good. Take the Eurostar from Venice to Florence and from Florence to Rome. If you plan on visiting Tuscany outside of Florence, a rental car would certainly be appropriate.

Returned last week ... stayed in Tuscany & drove right into Florence & parked with no problem and not as expensive as I thought it would be, on a street attatched to San Lorenzo market. We had no problem. Will we get a ticket in the mail for driving without a 'permit' ... we'll see! We liked being able to stop and check little unknown towns or bars out on a whim on the way home. We were worried after reading not to take cars pretty much into any major city & found it was not a problem at the time we were there! Good luck!