Girls on Vespas
 

Okay, either my friends are crazy or I am a bit of a coward. They want to rent Vespas and travel around different Italian cities over a one-week trip. There will be a total of five girls on this trip. I have read some of the postings, and frankly, I am afraid to drive in a foreign city on a scooter. We are all late twenties, early thirties, and this will be our first trip to Italy, and my first trip to Europe. Should I go along with this, or try to convince them to do Vespas for only a day or two?

Well it isn't something I would do or have ever done jaimkee but I will be interested in what those more adventerous than I have to say.

Mad to do it at all.

Do you all know how to ride a motorbike (and ok it may be a cute looking little Vespa, but that is what it is) anyway? Do you know how many tourists get injured on mopeds in all sorts of countries because for some reason they think that as they are on holiday they will be immune from all the accidents novice motorcyclists have (combined with unfamiliar surroundings/driving on the 'wrong' side/mad traffic/probably more booze than you normally drink/no helmet?) Do you know what Italian traffic is like? Will you be happy riding along in the rain, getting wet, and on a slippery road? And what are you going to do with your luggage?

I think it would be great to rent a vespa for a day trip through the back roads of Tuscany, but not for a whole trip. They are noisey and you can not talk to each other, luggage etc.

You are nuts if you do it.

Jaimkee:

My wife and I have owned scooters here in the US for five years, and drive them every day to work. We thought it would be a 'great' idea to rent them in Tuscany, to go from small town to small town. I now have a good sized scar on my arm and knee from an accident outside of San Gimignano. (You should have seen the scooter!). The problem is that the Italians don't have the same lane etiquette (spelling?) that we do. They think nothing of driving in the 'wrong' lane to pass someone going too slow for them.

In my case, I was coming down around a hill. I had a rock wall to my right, traffic to my left, and a car was coming at me, in my lane, trying to pass the car in front of him. I went down, he swerved around me and kept going.

My recommendation - if you're really excited about doing the Vespas, rent them for an afternoon first and see how crazy the drivers are. I'd bet you a gelato that you wouldn't rent it the next day. Rent a car, take a train, but I wouldn't recommend going city to city in a Vespa. It's just not that much fun when you're worried about every driver possibly coming at you in your lane.

Unless you are really experienced on bikes, have your own leathers and are able to travel with the tiny amount you can attach to your bike this is not only ridiculous - but quite impossible.

There are masses of moped accidents in Bermuda - with few cars and relatively calm, slow traffic.

In the Italian cities you would be like deer in the headlights - since there are few traffic signals and most intersections work on the "chicken" model.

And however would you get any sort of luggage between cities?

(Yes - in europe bike touring groups do this all the time - with either sidecars or pulling little luggage trailers. But these are experienced bikers who ride all year long - and are used to the highway rules, the traffic and the road/weather conditions.)

I agree with the other posters. I hate to tell a real downer of a story, but if it saves one person's life here goes. Some friends of ours went to Tuscany last summer for a Vespa riding trip. Our friends collect Vespas and ride them regularly in town here. Another couple on the tour didn't ride them although the husband had ridden a few times here, the wife never.

For the first few days the wife was very nervous riding the Vespa, on the 3rd day heading to San Gimignano she went around a blind curve and was killed.

I only tell you this story to encourage you to go along with your instincts.

Not in Italy, but on a Vespa in Bermuda, a friend of ours went around a curve, skidded on a small stone in the road..ended up being flown back to NY for surgery on a very torn up broken leg.
I think the Vespa idea is fun in a movie but not in real life :)

Really do not do it. My nephew is a 13 yr old boy from Florence Italy. All his friends have motorinos. I told him that I will personally buy him a new car when he is 19 if he promises not to get a motorino. So far he is still alive and I have saving up for his new car!

Actually a good friends younger brother in N Italy has had two bad accidents while on his Vespa while he was a teen. He almost gave his poor mother a nervous breakdown.

Jaimkee, I never thought about the luggage problem that so many other brought up. Yes, how do you friends plan to handle that? I think I would go by train and hopefully meet them when they arrive at their last spot. And hopefully they will all arrive and in once piece. Best wishes to you.

Jaimkee
I agree with the other posters. When we were in Santorini(Astra Apartments) we saw a couple and she had a cut foot from a rust pipe she stepped on.The husband was telling us that everyone in the emergency room 6 or so people were all in there for motorscooter accident's.We were traveling with our three kids, two who are 17 and 20. They didn't bug us anymore to get a vespa.
I don't want to be a downer. If you are set on renting one, rent it for a day in Tuscany. Hope this helps.

I agree with everyone else and personally I think even the idea of renting in Tuscany is a very bad idea.

I seen so many friends injured by falling on gravel roads and losing most of their skin.

A friend recently went to Antigua and I told her not to rent a scooter, but she went ahead and did it. She ended up in hospital with a broken arm.

Geordie

I guess that's a pretty strong 'no' vote then!

It's not that we want to be a load of boring old fuddy duddys. It's just that we have been there and seen all the accidents and injuries those things cause to tourists. Masses and masses and masses of them. Far more than you get on the roads you are used to. You may not believe us until you see it for yourself but please take our word for it.

Hi jamkee

You are correct. This is a very bad idea. If they insist on any kind of scooters you would do best to skip the trip. We love to travel and wouldn't turn down many opportunities but this is not the way to begin traveling Europe.

Hi jaimkee,
As an experienced biker who has come off both motorcycles and a Lambretta (a Vespa-like bike) my answer is "no". Don't even think about it. Scooters are notoriously unstable. Combine that with mayhem of Italian roads, inexperience, unfamiliarity with directions, bad Italian wine etc...and what do you get? A disaster waiting to happen. Capice?

My husband - an Italian with many years' scooter and motorcycle experience - while at a conference near Naples decided to rent a scooter to explore the lovely coastline. Went around a blind corner, hit a ditch that went all the way across the road (unmarked road work), lost control, fell on his face and hands. The worst injury was a broken finger, plus a lot of skin lost on his hands. He chose to come back to Milan for treatment because he doesn't trust the hospitals in the south - they are underfunded and notoriously much worse than the ones in the north. So even WHERE you have the accident could be a factor in how well you come out of it.

best regards,
Deirdré Straughan

beginningwithi.com

I'd rather run w/the bulls than ride a Vespa in Italy. Sounds to me like you are the only one w/any sense.

>They want to rent Vespas and travel around different Italian cities over a one-week trip.<

Do these folks have a death wish?

In one week you shouldn't be visiting more than 2 cities anyway.

((I))

My husband and I have a scooter (Vespa) on the island where we live and are very used to driving it around. However, we would never think of renting the same in Italy unless we were strictly in one very, very small town.

So, I highly agree with the others that this is not a good idea at all.

As soon as I saw the title of this thread, I immediately thought of the girl that we saw crashing her Vespa last month in northern Italy. She ran right into the back of her boyfriend's Vespa after he stopped too suddenly. She seemed okay, but her scooter didn't fare so well. My family was actually pretty shaken up by the whole sight.

As others have mentioned, Italian traffic is so unpredictable. You won't believe this until you see it first hand.

Trust your instincts.

I rode a Vespa & motorcycles for years in the States and planned to rent one in Tuscany. However, I decided against it once I got there. Reading the above comments, I'm sure I made the right choice.

So, does ANYONE think that this is a good idea (not me !!!!!!)

I rented a scooter with my husband on capri. We had a wonderful time. Yeah, the traffic is scary but we just drove conservatively and were fine.
I think it would be fun.

Steveigene:

I've not been to Capri (although I will be there in about a week), but I have to believe that the traffic on that little island is MUCH less then on the mainland, especially around the cities that Jaimkee may be visiting. I plan on renting scooters in Capri, but will NEVER rent them again on the mainland. I'm very thankful that I wasn't killed in my accident.

Dear God, no.

It won't be anything remotely charming a la Roman Holiday. There will be crashing, cursing, crying, torn clothing, scars, and having to pay for damages. I'd go find a cute parked vespa somewhere and you can take pictures standing next to it.

why dont you all decide when you get there and get a taste of the traffic and the roads, etc. It is probably hard for you to imagine not riding along the beautiful little roads with the wind blowing in your hair and the boys waving at you at you pass, but it might not turn out that way as others have noted.

Do you all ride scooters at home?

Have you all at least driven a Vespa/scooter before?

If not, then no I wouldn't do it in Europe.

Also where exactly are you planning to go? Vespas are certainly not appropriate for on the highway or long distances. So do you mean within one city only? Then take a train to the next city and rent another scooter there? Or going from city to city? I'm a little confused by the way you worded the post.

I think jaimkee has ridden off into the sunset....leaving a little puff of dust

Just for fun, may I suggest the book "Vroom with a view" in which the writer buys a vintage Vespa on the internet and tours Italy in search of la dolce vita- It's a fun, irreverant read- might also scare you out of renting a Vespa :-)

Steve

a single post, never to return to Fodor's forum. too bad because i was interested in hearing what they decided to do.

Ah Vespas.
I just ran into 2 Italian guys on a powder blue 1959 150cc Vespa in Columbus Circle in NYC yesterday. mmmmm

I took Vespa lessons on the streets of NY (yes, ther's a school!) last year because I wanted to use a Vespa on my trip and I wanted to be well prepared.
I got a motorcycle permit to take with me.

Within the first 15 minutes of my arrival in the small town where I was staying in Italy I witnessed an accident where 2 tourists in a car crashed into a local fellow on his Vespa. They hit him from behind, and he wasn't going fast or changing lanes. He hit the street on his head, and in spite of being injured, was up immediately and pacing in a fury-- about the damage to the Vespa!!! I rented my Smart Car per Due the next day.

On this latest trip- I enjoyed a wild night ride through the back streets of Palermo with a local resident my last night there- and yes the driver did use both street and sidewalk as needed and drove like mad, but for some reason I felt quite calm during the ride because I was with someone who knew how to navigate an Italian street.

My conclusion- don't rent Vespas in an Italian City as a way to have fun if you don't know the city.

The "wind in your hair" fantasy is a great one, but better as a rider when you ride with a local who knows what they're doing. If you do rent scooters, do it in an area without much traffic. And get some practice driving one before you leave so you can know how to handle unexpected road situations (hitting gravel on a curve, sudden swerves on a wet surface, etc. Turnign on a hill, etc. Safety first!

We rented a Vespa in Positano and drove the Amalfi Coast and had a blast. So much so I bought one when we came home! Though at home is a lot different than Italy, especially Florence or Rome. I would not recommend renting one unless you are driving maybe the coastline such as us. The traffic moved relatively slow and we felt safe. In the city you are just asking to have your trip ruined!!!!

If jaimkee ever comes back, I would suggest that she rents the 'pack' car and let the friends ride their Vespas. This is a very common arrangement with biker groups.

She can take all the luggage and rescue the girlfriends when it starts raining.

Jaimkee: I'm sure I speak for many other Fodorites - How was your trip? And, did you rent Vespas????

I wonder what <b>women</b> on Vespas would be like.

guys, jaimkee has never returned to comment after her OP.

I'm a woman on a Vespa! I own two, a vintage 1960 model and a 1980 100 Sport.Yes, purchase of which was totally inspired by Audrey Hepburn in Roman Holiday.Do I ride on USA highways? NO. Would I ride in Italy? NO. Would I like to and am a big whoos? YES.
Number one, you must be very familiar with riding something that according to Eddie Izzard is merely &quot;a hairdryer on wheels&quot; and be knowledgeable on how to make repairs along the way. They can break down frequently.
Although, I've read about people who have taken Vespas across Europe and even across South Africa. What a way to see a country for sure, maybe if I was much younger and had that adventuresome spirit again.

Thanks for all your comments. I have managed to talk the girls out of the Vespa adventure. I think they came to their senses. I am the only one in the group that has motorcycle experience, I used to race dirt bikes and know how dangerous they can be. Much different than a scooter, I know, but I, too, have seen the dangers of two-wheel-mobiles!