travelling_circus

Hi all,

I'm starting to try and nail down our travel within Italy and would appreciate your thoughts on moving our large-ish family cost-effectively between Rome and Tuscany, Tuscany and Verona, and Verona and Venice. We have been thinking that the train is the way to travel between places and were planning on having a car (van, really as we our teens and pre-teen are all adult-sized)only the week we are in Tuscany, but after nosing around for fares on the Trenitalia website, I am questioning that decision. If I spend more time I can work it out for myself, but wondered before I do that whether anyone here had already looked at the different options (hired car and driver, rental van, train point-to-point or rail pass) for moving a gang and might share their insights. By the way, in case it factors into the equation, we'll be taking the night train from Venice to Naples, and hiring a driver to take us from there to Positano and then back up to Rome at the end of our stay.

Thanks all!

longboatkey

Train fare for a group of 7 will probably be more than a van, but how about luggage? how many pieces; you might do better with 2 econ. cars. Also check with www.initaly.com they had excellent point to point van/driver/guide service in Sicily as well as other areas. When you say Tuscany where do you mean?? That covers a lot of area. Hope this gives you some leads

micina_italia

Hi TC, generally speaking once you reach 3 people it is cheaper to use a rental than pay for train tickets or passes. Try Mappy.com for calculations of fuel and tolls as well as time and distances.

If you really don't want to drive, a driver would probably be cheaper than tickets for 7 on trenitalia. That being said, driving in the north of Italy is not as crazy as driving in the south, and can be downright pleasant (!), so to drive from Tuscany to Verona is very very do-able from an N American driving point of view. Rome to Tuscany is fine too as i've driven it many times before, it's just getting out of Rome that's the problem...

Hope this helps!

notbob

I'd suggest two cars rather than a van. THey will probably be cheaper than a van rental. Two cars will give you more room for luggage and more flexibility if you want to two different things on day trips. You will also be able rent smaller vehicles. Off the autostrada, roads are usually narrower than what we in the US are used to. Villages and towns can get very narrow very quickly and parking something small is easier too.

Zeus

Driving in Italy? God bless you. I've driven all over Europe but don't have the guts to fare against those Roman maniacs. Maybe arrange to train oout of Rome and pick up your car outside the city?

LoveItaly

Interesting question travelling_circus (love your screen name!).

A vehicle is good to have in Tuscany however yes a van large enough to hold seven adult size passengers plus the luggage would be a hinderance so to speak on some of the roads in Tuscany and little towns. If you rented a driver that would be eight people but imagine they are available as you are having a driver in S Italy back to Rome. Where in Tuscany will you be staying? Will you be renting a villa? Would you need a driver most days and would that fit into your budget?

A train would solve the problem but would limit you for getting around the countryside in Tuscany which I assume is what you are planning. It doesn't sound like you are staying in the City of Florence itself. If you were I would suggest the train to get to all of your various destinations.

The good suggestion was made to rent two vehicles but unless your wife was willing to drive one of the vehicles it doesn't sound like anyone else in your family could drive the second vehicle since they are teens and pre-teens.

Bottom line although it is not from the sounds of it what you want I would stay in Florence I guess and than hire a driver a few times (however many days would work with your budget) to see parts of Tuscany and use the train to get from and to each of the next destinations.

Best wishes to you and your family. You will be making beautiful memories.

jdraper

travelingcircus - What a great name! We were travelling with six from Venice - Florence - Pisa - Lucca- Parma - Verona and back to Venice. We had just enough room in a small rental van for six and luggage so I can't imagine fitting another person and luggage into the rental van. We found the driving very easy but it was a tight squeeze in some towns with the van. If you have that second driver I would consider renting a small van and one economy car, which will give you more room for luggage and all of the people. I would also be very strict on luggage restictions and make sure everyone can pack everything in one small bag and one carryon or you will never be able to schlepp all of that luggage around or fit it into a van. Enjoy J

janisj

If you've got at least two drivers - a small car and a mini-van/Previa-type would be my choice.

More flexibility, easier to drive, cheaper - and more people could have comfortable seats w/o being stuck in the back of some hulking huge van.

StCirq

I agree with the two-car proponents. For one thing, it means you don't all have to be joined at the hip the entire trip, which can be tiresome. It's also logistically a better idea.

Zeus: I don't see where the OP was proposing to drive IN Rome (maybe OUT OF Rome).

nytraveler

I would go with 2 full size cars. That should hold 7 people plus luggage - and means you don;t have to be tied at the hip every moment. For 7 people plus luggage you will need some sort of people mover for 9 or 10 people - and driving it could be difficult if you're not used to such a big vehicle - esp parking in small places.

Driving in Italy (except the center of towns - where you don't want a car anyway) is IMHO easier than in the US. Drivers are better generally and follow the rules of the road. Just make sure to pick up the car on the way out of Rome.

LoveItaly

But, unless the wife of travelling_circus is willing to drive the second car (and maybe she would be, I sure don't know) who would drive the second car? The other five passengers are teens and preteens.

travelling_circus

Thank you very much for all this helpful feedback!

I understand what everyone is saying about the advantages of two cars, but since we are a family group (mom and dad plus 5 kids 20, 18, 18, 14, and 11), I (the mom) would be happier if we all stayed together. We are used to driving big vehicles, although I acknowledge that the driving conditions and especially parking conditions will be very different and geared towards smaller vehicles.

Here is the question: we will definitely have a rental vehicle while in Tuscany (just outside Fiano, Longboatkey, near Tavarnelle, midway between Florence and Siena) BUT should we opt to pick it up in Rome and drive ourselves to the villa and then onward to Verona at the end of the week, dropping it off there or outside Venice the following day OR should we make these transfers by train or with a hired driver? It is more expensive to get a larger vehicle with a driver, but it can be done (yes, Loveitaly, we do have that arranged on the AC, 16-person van to fit us and all our luggage will cost E450 to get from Positano to Rome -- expensive but worth it on those roads and about the same cost as a driver to Naples and train for sevent to Rome).

Thank you micina_italia for your thoughts on the cost differential. Is there a big penalty for dropping off a rental vehicle in a different part of the country? And would we go back to the airport in Rome to get our rental vehicle or should we pick it up downtown? I've read enough on this forum to make me nervous about successfully getting out of Rome if we do that...

Thanks again!

notbob

Obviously it's your trip and you get to do what you want. But from experience, please keep in mind that probably anything you rent as a one vehicle option will be smaller than what you are used to here and a lot larger than a number of the places you may want to go. Last year I almost got stuck in a parking lot with a Ford Focus. Construction at the end of a traffic lane had encroached on the already small area and another car was slightly out of place. Let's just say 15 minutes of jocking back and forth made it.

A couple of years ago, we met up with my cousins who had been on a tour. There were 14 of us in 4 cars. They were traveling as a group in three. They stayed together and had walkie-talkies in each car. It worked well.

If you decide to go with just one vehicle, please remember that if it has enough room for all of you it probably won't have very much room for lots of luggage. This would be a great time to pack lightly.

macanimals

Yours is a tough call but it appears you are on top of the logistics and willing. I stayed in a villa near Tavernelle and enjoyed the use of a large van--9 passenger-- while we explored for two weeks. My brother did most of the driving and he was patient and successful in negotiating lots of daytrips. It was essential to stay on the perimeters of the towns and congested or tourist areas. We explored numerous paved as well as unpaved "white roads"--just be patient.
I would look into pick up at the Rome airport and drop-off in Verona or Venice. There should not be any additional charge for open jaw rental. I wouldn't rent in Rome proper--I've driven in and out and won't do it again if possible to avoid.
Good luck--Paul