Drive in Rome or not?
 

Hi, we are finalizing our plans for Italy and there is one little point on our itinerary that we can't decide on. Should we drive in Rome or not? My husband is from Italy so he is used to driving in Italy. We have two small children (5&3)so I figured they will not get too tired or just in case they get too bored we can take the car and drive to the countryside. What do you experts think? We plan on visiting the main attractions, Colusseum, St. Peters, Borghese Gardens, shopping etc. (hopefully, it will be okay with the kids).

Oh I forgot to mention. After our 3 day stay in Rome, we are driving to Naples to visit my husband's family for a couple more weeks. WE are planning on renting our car at the Fiumicino Airport.

This is very personal. I would not have a car in Rome, you have the rental+parking, for the money I would take taxis when needed. But again with the childred it is very personal.

I agree with Graziella, it is a personal choice, but I don't see the need to have a car in Rome. Last October we ended our trip in Rome and returned our car on the day we drove down to Rome. We walked or took taxis wherever we wanted to go and never would have used the car if we still had it. Like in all cities parking is an unnecessary expense and headache. You can easily hire a taxi or van service to take you back to FCO to pick up your rental for the rest of the trip.

Not.
I would head to one of the park areas with the children if they seem to need to get away from the central city. Probably they will be happy running around in the piazzas like Piazza Navona, Piazza della Rotunda (Pantheon), Piazza San Pietro.
The park near Villa Borghese has a zoo, rides for kids, etc. I have read that there are puppet shows on the Janniculum in the afternoons (except Weds)
The Appian Way is a popular outing for families on Sundays.

If you do rent the car I think kids enjoy the Bomarzo Park with giant stone monsters north of the city.

With only three days in Rome I can't picture getting so bored you need to head to the countryside for one of those days (unless you wanted to go to Ostia Antiqua -- and if so you could easily use the train for that. I agree -- forget the idea of a car in Rome unless you feel like throwing away a whole lot of money for the extra days rental plus the parking, plus the frustrations of keeping it there.

I do agree with the others that it is a personal choice. Rome has a lot of traffic and not a lot of parking. By the time you left your hotel in the car to drive to a site in Rome you will probably end up parking the car just as far away, or worse yet further, from the site as your hotel was. Walking, cabs and public transportation (young children ride free) could be much easier and less stressful in the long run. If you decide to take a day trip you could rent a car for just the day.

Rome is one of the few places I have been that I would never ever want to drive a car. Being used to driving in Italy is not the same thing as being used to driving in Rome. If your husband is an experienced Rome driver, however, then maybe he is looking forward to it for the sport of it, and in that case more power to him (as it were).

I would never ever drive a car in Rome - ever. I esp. would not drive if I had small children in the car with me. Honestly, unless you are a race driver or very skilled at driving in cities like Rome (maybe your are) I would not dream of it. We arrived home a few days ago and commented on it many times.

I have to say that Rome is the #1 city I have been to that I would never, ever drive a car in!

Don't do it!! There is not a square block in Rome. The streets are crazy and not maked very well. Changes names every few blocks.

A car is about the most useless thing you could have in Rome. You'll be faster on foot, even with the kids. Traffic is bad enough, and searching a spot to leave the car will waste even more time.
Parking near the main attractions? Zero.
Do you have any idea what the streets in the center are like? They are narrow, many areas are closed to non-resident individual traffic.

>>just in case they get too bored we can take the car and drive to the countryside<< - It will take you ages to get out of the city because of the traffic.

Thanks for your replies everyone, we decided we are not renting a car during our stay in Rome!