Rental Cars in Italy

check with AutoEurope
I have used them in Italy and had a very good experience

Janeen, Others here have reported good experience with AutoEurope or Gemut. If you haven't driven in Italy before, a few points to keep in mind..... It's important to note that for driving in Italy, each driver must have the compulsory International Driver's Permit, which is used in conjunction with your home D.L. These are valid for one year, and easily obtained at any AAA office (two Passport-sized photos required, which in some case is offered at the issuing office). Failure to produce an IDP if requested can result in fines on the spot! Have a look at This Website for more detailed information on driving in Italy. You may also want to have a look at some of the other posts here concerning the dreaded Zona Traffico Limitato areas that are becoming increasingly prevalent in many Italian towns & cities ( especially Florence!). EACH PASS through one of the automated Cameras will result in a €100+ ticket! A GPS along with a good Map would also be a good idea. Be sure to also give some thought to the question of CDW. If you accept the CDW offered by the rental firm, it will be expensive but will provide "peace of mind". Some "premium" credit cards provide rental vehicle insurance, however I've found this to be somewhat complicated so I just accept that offered by the rental firm. Check the Car Rental section in Europe Through The Back Door for further information. Happy travels!

Call AE up at their Maine headquarters and tell them what you want. They will be happy to find the right type of vehicle for you, at a good price point. All companies offer ALL of the insurance; they just let you pick and choose what you consider to be "ALL". To verify the insurance; read your contract. We have never had a problem with additional fees when using AE, no matter what country we were visting in the EU. All of their data was upfront. Gemut is same; a very reputable broker. Try to keep you luggage down to a minimum when renting a vehicle in Italy for 6. Generally, the smaller the vehicle, the easier it is to drive there.

How about your luggage? Make sure you shop for enough room for your luggage as well. We leased a Renault Grand Scenic II. It seats seven. We found it was just about right for two adults, three kids (15, 11, 7) and one carry-on each (the 7 year-old only had a school day pack). If we had been bigger or had more luggage, we wouldn't have fit comfortably. It would have been enough for six adults day-tripping without luggage, but even then the third row of seats would be less than ideal for adults and require a fairly limber person to climb in and out of.

I looked up rates on Hertz for 3 weeks in Italy (with my USAA discount). The charge for the car, plus CDW, license fee, theft insurance, tax, is 536 euros, which seems reasonable. Then there's an optional "Super Cover Weekly" for 169 per week (507 euros for the 3 weeks) which I can purchase at the counter. That seems very high. I have tried calling Hertz and looking on their website and can't get a good understanding of what this additional insurance would cover, and if it's necessary. Any thoughts on this??

Thank you everyone for your thoughtful input!!! We did indeed end up going with Auto Europe as they had the best price and a low price guarantee. We ended up going with 2 economy sized vehicles as it was WAY cheaper than getting the 7 passenger van. The insurance package that Auto Europe includes in all the insurance that you are REQUIRED to have for driving in Italy. It does not, however, cover personal injury (from what I understand).
Anyway, THANKS again!

Good call, Janeen! We also rented two vehicles when we were travelling as an extended family of 6 in Italy. Not only is it cheaper to rent to small cars than one minivan. It is also much easier to navigate a small car through narrow Italian roads. And much easier to find parking!

We rented a 9 passenger van from Thrifty for a very good price. Reserved it yesterday for a September trip. The rate was significantly less than 2 mid-size cars from Thrifty.

I have also driven the larger vehicles through France and the only problem with two vehicles (maybe cheaper for the rental) is that there will be 2 vehicles needing gas, tolls, parking, vignettes, so what might appear to be cheaper might not be in the end. Also, on one trip we had three 9 passenger vans and I can tell you trying to keep up and follow one another can also be a problem. Italians tend to like to pass a lot so all of a sudden you have two or three cars between you, and it is stressful to find one another, plus find two parking places together... just speaking from my own experience. I also find it so much more fun to all be together, as we can change our minds about which way to go or where to stop on a whim.