Hello everyone,
I am planning a 4week trip to Italy next summer. My husband and I will be camping (partly to cut costs and extend trip time, partly to stay more flexible). To make this easier, we probably will lease/rent a car (or maybe a camper van) for the duration. Initially, it seemed that this wouldn't really pose a problem, since we can park all day at the campsite and bike or take a bus into whatever city we are in/near.
Our itinerary probably will include (in no particular order):
Rome
Naples/Amalfi coast/Pompeii
Venice/Padua/Ravenna
Florence/Tuscanny region
Cinque Terre
maybe Le Marches, Piedmont, Valle d'Aosta, Dolomites

Depending on the price difference in car rentals, we may fly in and out of Zurich and pick up the car there. Otherwise, probably Rome. Your thoughts about the benefits/drawbacks of including Swiss travel are welcome.

I am a bit nervous about driving around Naples and the Amalfi Coast based on some things I've read. Is the road along the Amalfi coast in the same league as, say, the PCH in California (Big Sur area)? I realize that people's perception of "dangerous" or "scary" is really a relative thing, and while we love driving in Big Sur, my mother for example would be terrified and not enjoy it at all. We're experienced with traffic and navigation both in the US and villages and small cities in Europe (Sevilla, Bruxelles), although never Italy. I suppose our option, if flying in and out of Rome, would be to wait to rent a car until after seeing Rome and Naples based out of hotels. Our car expenses would be less (maybe), but our lodging and train/bus expenses would be quite a bit higher. Would any decrease in stress level be worth the difference in price, in your opinions?

Thanks for your help!

do a text search on "rules for driving the amalfi coast" for an amusing and insightful discussion of this topic. if you enjoy driving big sur, you'll REALLY enjoy a.c. we drove rome-a.c.-maratea and return and had a wonderful time.

Chrissy, That kind of trip will have a myriad of logistics that you will need to plan well. However, if you really rent for a month--or more than 17 days--you will want to pursue the Peuguot buy-back program to save a bundle. That would restrict your pick-up/drop off points, but still worth it. I believe both Rome and Milan are options in Italy, but also consider Nice as an entry point. Look at the classic post on this site named " Helpful information:Italy to see more good info.

On ths surface, it seems like bob is right about the Peugeot program (or other lease options).

But you plan to do a LOT of moving around (maybe too much?) - - I wonder if you can plan your trip to make do with as little as two seven-day rentals (and some train) - - by virtue of not having a car for the time you are in cities (like Rome and Venice, for example).

It all depends on whether you are willing to "micro-plan" around your transportation like that.

I have never camped in Europe, so I don't know how much it saves - - but sometimes "self-catering accommodations" (see www.slowtrav.com for example) might give you much more comfort for hardly any more price - - though it would typically mean staying in one place for seven nights (typically in a rural location).

Best wishes,

Rex

Hi Chrissy,

Are you veteran campers?
Have you been to Italy before?
Do you know where the campsites are?

If the answers are "No", I suggest you carefully research the logistical problems.

You are visiting places that are not automobile friendly.

While I don't necessarily think you are trying to do too much, I think you need to re-think the need for a car in Amalfi & Cinque Terre. Try the train system for most trips - use the car in places like Tuscany, where you want to roam and thr train does't go.
The drive from Naples to Salerno along the Amalfi coast is like the PCH on steroids. Hire a driver.

I agree, hire a driver. The road is very narrow and you share it with scooters, cars and huge tour buses. There are hairpin turns and yes there are railings in most spots but to really enjoy the view have someone else drive. I've done Sorrento to Amalfi twice and I'm luckily enough to have relatives from the Naples area who are used to this type of terrain do the driving.

Thanks, everyone, for your thoughts. We are very experienced campers, and have quite a bit of info on campgrounds. This will be our first trip to Italy, however.

The issue about using a car exclusively is that we will have camping gear that will need to be carried from place to place, and set up repeatedly. This really isn't doable on trains! In many places, there are campgrounds just outside the city that are served by city buses, but accessible also to the major roads into the city. So I am hoping that the difficulty of city driving in places like Rome, Florence and Naples can be totally avoided. We may choose to leave our car behind at the campsite when staying near Sorrento and take the bus down the coast and the ferry back... Although other threads seem to make this drive sound really exciting! Similarly for the Cinque Terre, we would be camping south of there and would take a train/bus up for "day trips".

Does anyone have any thoughts on where to fly into and rent from? Zurich vs. Rome vs. Nice? (mostly a price vs. convenience issue, I think).

Also, Bob-- when you say that a trip like this requires planning myriad details, what in particular were you alluding to? You got me a little worried! In our view, the beauty of driving/camping is the freedom to change plans last minute. (few reservations needed, no train schedules to worry about)...

Ciao!

Just one tiny warning--we rented a car in La Spezia this past May and meandered around Tuscany, planning to return it at the Rome airport, to avoid having to drive in Rome (my nerves are not that steely). My husband, the seasoned traveler, kept saying, "Don't worry, there are always signs for rental car return at the airport." However, there weren't any at the Rome airport--we eventually found out where to drop the car off by going into an airport hotel and asking the desk clerk. The rental return is in a parking lot--forget the number now--but ask the rental agency for explicit directions about where to return it when you rent the car. Other than that, driving was fine--except they gave us a car that was much too big to easily negotiate those tiny winding streets in some of the towns, even though we'd asked for a compact. Next time I'll be more insistent and get the tiniest one possible.

I meant finding acceptable camping sites, but you must have good info. Trust me, you will want the lease program, but you need to check out WHERE you can pick up and drop. I know Rome is one, but the locations are very few outside of France--maybe Milan and maybe Zurich.

Interestingly, when I checked out prices for renting vs. leasing yesterday, I found them to be very similar for a 30 day period. I called Europe by Car and the agent told me that the price difference "depends" but couldn't be very clear on what it depends on. She mentioned that the savings for leasing is best with large cars. I thought the whole thing was kind of strange.