We're flying into Rome, staying for three nights, then heading for Grosseto area, Florence, Spello, and circling back to Rome. What locations in Rome are the easiest to rent a car from? Also, is it difficult or a hassle to drive into Florence? I know we'll have to pay to garage the car in Florence (four nights). Should we drop the car at the Florence airport on our drive in, then re-rent again on our way out? Thanks for your help.

We spent last August in Italy, and spent the last couple days at the Hilton Hotel at the Rome Airport. The Hilton offers a free, shuttle to the heart of Rome every hour. You may wish to stay there for the first segment of your trip, and then pick up your rental car when you're ready to leave Rome. Airport rental agencies are typically the easiest for Americans to navigate in Europe, plus you'll save three days on the rental rate while the car otherwise would be parked in a garage in Rome. Check out the Rome Airport Hilton---it is great, and the shuttle is a tremendous plus.

Hi, H:
We got the cheapest rental rate from Thrifty, which is Europecar in Italy. We picked up the car at the Thrifty location nearest our Rome hotel after checking out of our hotel. As far as which location is easiest to rent from in Rome, I went to Thrifty.com during the planning of our trip and picked a few addresses off of their list of office locations in Rome. I then emailed our hotel and asked which location was closest to them. That's the location I reserved a car from.

As for Florence, we didn't stay overnight, just a day trip in and out, so we were able to park our car at a meter type of spot in a public lot. But when we drove to Sorrento on a subsequent trip, we left the car in the hotel's garage for 3 days and used the in and out priveleges to visit other towns, which I assume you'll want to do in Tuscany.

Thanks for the help. We're not going to pick up our car in Rome until we're on our way out. Absolutely right, no need to mess with a car in Rome. So I'm wondering how Florence compares then?

Also, thanks NorCal, but we already have a hotel booked in Rome (Modigliani).

If you are staying in Florence for four nights, I'd turn in the car and get another on the way out. You can easily fill four days in the city w/out a car (heck, you could fill four days at the Uffizi) and driving in Florence--even for seasoned urban US drivers--is not pleasant. Save the cash for less stressful diversions.

H - Be aware that there is an extra charge for an airport drop-off.

Steve