Hi,

I am looking for some Americans or Canadians that went to Milan and drove a rental there.
What should I be prepared for?
Any rental agency better than the others?

I am used to driving in the GTA and also in and around New Jersey, with the occasional drive in/through Manhattan.

Please throw in hever everything you've got.

Thank you!

We rented a car in 2006 in Milan after arriving by train from Zurich. It was with Autoeurope. No problem ... we did have a lady plow into us on our way from Bellagio to Venice but we got all the info and when we dropped the car off in Venice the agent wasn't concerned because we had CDW and we never heard from them. We are again arriving in Milan by air and driving all over Italy this May and have rented this time again from Autoeurope (found this the cheapest). This time I have a Garmin GPS with Europe maps to help us along; although we didn't have a problem in /06 with paper maps. In /06 there were 3 lanes each with their own speed limit. We stayed mostly in the middle when looking ahead but when we're on for any length of time we go with the flow in the fast lane.
We also rented from AutoEurope in Oct. /08 in 4 of the Greek Islands on a cruise.
They're fast drivers in Italy and if you are slow they'll tailgate you until you move over. We didn't have any problems.
Good luck,
Som

I've been the passenger in a car (driven by a native) in Milan on multiple occasions and the first question I've got is "why?". Milan's got excellent public transit, so unless you've got a compelling need for a car I wouldn't bother. Busy, small roads, confusing. Manhattan's a cake walk compared to it (though it is admittedly much less insane than it was 20 years ago when I first experienced Milan's traffic).

We used a rental in the area around Milan a couple of years ago (husband drove, as it was a manual transmission) and that was pretty straightforward, but we parked the car and took transit in the city.

I agree if you're just staying in Milan; you have to watch for signs (as in all Italian cities) that prohibit driving in certain areas, if you miss the sign and drive in, do they take a photo of your license and you'll get a credit card charge through the rental agency on your card after you've arrived home. Same for speeding, cameras everywhere!
We'll be driving from Milan to Como, Genoa, Cinq Terre, Villa in Chianti, Positano & Rome. We'll take the bus to Florence while at the Villa for two weeks but will drive to the small villages around it and we're dropping the car off in a Rome suburb and will walk the city while there before flying home.
Som

Thanks everyone.
The reason I am renting is that I will drive around, through Austria, Switzerland and Germany. While in Milan and even to visit Venice, I will use the public transportation.
Sominex, was the accident your fault? If not, then why did you even need to have CDW?

No the lady just drove into us as she wasn't paying attention; she was very nice but had to call her boyfriend because it was his car and she didn't speak English, he gave us all the info on the car, insurance, her license etc. CDW was mandatory in Italy in /06 (not sure this year) but it came with the quote this year so took it out; we'll have the car for 23 days. Because we had the accident in /06 we know that it was painless with the CDW. Never take it out in North America as our credit card has coverage.
Som

CDW is Mandatory in Italy, NOTE BELOW:
What to Know Before You Go:
In-Depth Information
Collision Damage Waiver (CDW) and Theft Insurance

All of Auto Europe's rates include third party liability and fire insurance. Collision Damage Waiver is included in all of Auto Europe's "Inclusive" rates. "Inclusive" rates will also include Theft insurance in most cases.

Collision Damage Waiver and theft insurance releases the client from full financial responsibility for the vehicle in case of an accident or theft. In most cases, the client will still be responsible for a deductible of some sort when collision and theft are purchased. Most car rental suppliers will offer insurance locally which can reduce the collision and theft deductible if the client wishes to do so.

With the exception of Italy, CDW is optional and a client always has the right to refuse it. If your client does not wish to purchase CDW at the time of pick up, please advise that they sign their initials on the "Decline CDW" box on the European Rental Agreement. If they refuse the CDW in order to use the coverage their credit card or personal insurance policy offers, please consider the facts below:
Credit Card Coverage

Some credit cards only offer coverage for certain car types. Exempted with most cards:

* Vehicles valued at over $50,000 (Mercedes-Benz 320, BMW 730, etc.)
* Exotic cars or antique cars (over 20 years old or have not been manufactured in 10 years).
* Off road or 4x4 vehicles, motorcycles, trucks, cargo vans, full sized vans and camper vans

Other credit card coverage concerns:

* Coverage is limited to rentals under 30 days.
* Some credit cards do not offer coverage for car rentals in Ireland, Israel, Italy, New Zealand, Australia and travel into Eastern Europe.
* To extend coverage, additional drivers must be listed on the european rental agreement.
* Most credit cards will file a claim with the client's personal insurance company before they reimburse the deductible. This could affect your client's personal driving record and premium.
* Most credit card companies require the repair bill paid directly by the client and have a specific time period for the client to submit documentation.
* Most credit cards will not cover rentals if the card was issued outside the united states.

Personal Automobile Coverage

* Coverage may be limited to the value of the car your client owns, not the rental.
* Some policies will not cover a rental car unless it's due to the client's own personal car needing repairs.
* The insurance premium could be raised because of the claim. The client could be put in a "high risk" bracket and their insurance policy could be canceled.
* Most policies does not cover damage or theft of personal possessions, third party liability or medical costs.

It is the client's responsibility to check with their credit card company or insurance carrier to determine their coverage.

Hello fotogeek, my late husband drove in Milan each time we were visiting there but he also drove in Rome and Naples, big city traffic didn't bother him but that is not true I believe for a lot of people.

I wanted to mention under Italian law you need to have an International Driver's Permit (assuming that you are a resident of the US). I am almost certain Austria has the same law also. You can acquire the IDP from AAA. You do need to have your US state driver license with you also as the IDP merely translates your US state license into something like 15 languages.