smura1278

Hello all! My husband and I are flying to meet my parents in Venice for a few days then driving back to Rome together. Any suggestions on which is the best scenic route to take back, and which places are a must see on the way-but not too far off the path back to Rome? We travel in October.
Thanks! Sonia

ellenem

Are you doing this drive in one day?

smura1278

It depends on if there are not-to-miss stops along the way. We had planned to do it in a day. Open to suggestions..

Zerlina

You will be four people in a car, presumably with four suitcases. You'll need a larger car than you think, because if you stop, all luggage should be hidden. Driving *in* Rome is out of the question and even driving *into* Rome is a pain, but if you drop the car outside Rome (such as at Fiumicino), you still have to get into the city.

Particularly if you're planning to do it in a day, save yourselves the trouble and go by train, from city center to city center.

ira

Hi S,

Amica fare for 4 adults is about 160E ($225) in 2cl.

A midsize car will be about $180 - 200 for drop off at FCO.

It will than be about 45E ($65) to get to Rome.

You could drop the car in Orvieto and see the town before taking the train to Rome. Cost about $55.

See Avis.com for one-day rentals.

jjkbrook

(1) Its nuts not to drive right into Rome - there isnt any big problem with that, we done it a couple of times.

(2) There are literally dozens of places worth a day or a week between Venice and rome - if I were covering this in a car it would kill me to drive by them - less painful to go by train or air! It seems to me, though, that it would be nice to spend a night or two on the way, in a quiet historic place before hitting Rome, if you have time.

deke

Drive into Rome and get there before dark. The drivers are courteous - everyone watches out for each other. Just don't be a road snob and think you own the road. As a cousin said "in Rome the rules are more like guidelines, not hard rules like elsewhere"

HowardR

"The drivers are courteous - everyone watches out for each other."
Hey, what Rome are you talking about??

smura1278

Thanks to all for your comments and advice. We are talking about Rome, Italy. Actually, our end goal is Nettuno-a small port city an hour from Rome-where we have some family. We know all too well the dilemma of driving around Rome. My father is a Roman but has lived here in the States for almost 30 years and hasn't seen his family in over 23 yrs. So, we don't want to take too much time away to see th sites, but maybe Orvieto is the one place we should stop to check out. Thanks again for your candid expertise! Sonia

landlcochran

Sonia:

To answer your original question, I would highly recommend Orvieto. The hill town is less commercial than what you experience in many Tuscan towns. The shops have some nice local made items, such as pottery and table clothes. The church is beautiful.

We stopped on our way to Rome and easily spent a few hours there.

vetralla

I'm sure your father,being an italian, will realize that its not a good idea to leave 4 bags in the car while you tour Orvieto.

cferrb

When driving from Florence to Venice we stopped in Bologna. I wish we had had more time there. It's worth a stop.