Trains in Italy easier than car?
 

Do you have any hints for traveling by train between cities in Italy with 3 children (10,8,5)? Would it really easier for us than renting a car? And would we miss the Tuscan landscape between Florence and Rome (in March) by riding a train?

If you have some big & heavy luggage, using trains could be difficult (getting on, getting off, storing luggage inside the carriages, you get the picture).
Apart from this, using trains is the best way to do city-to-city travel. You could need a car only if you plan to spend some days visiting smaller villages and countryside.

You need to provide more info in order to give you a meaningful answer. What is the trip itinerary? How many adults are part of the trip? what type of sighseeing you want to do?

The train route between Florence and Rome follows the road route...at least somewhat so how much scenery you'll miss is questionable.

You'll miss a lot less on the train if you factor in that nobody is going to have to be watching the road.

A car would give you more flexibility <b>within</b> various regions.

How disciplined are your children? Admittedly, it will be easier to know where they are and what they are(n't) doing if they are in the car with you.

Have you considered whether or not <b>they</b> might enjoy traveling by train more than in a car (how crowded will that end up being?) or is that irrelevant to your decision?

Regarding the landscape question:
I have taken the train between Florence and Rome. We did get to see some beautiful landscape, including hilltop towns in the distance, but not as much as we thought we would because the train went through many tunnels. (I have not done that trip by car though, so cannot offer a comparison.)

Hi L,

Florence to Rome is only 1:30 hr on the train.

If you are only going from city to city, the train is usually better than a car.

What's the whole itinerary?

((I))

I would say the car is a good choice only if you're used to driving in big cities. Rome is a pain to get in and out of and can be hectic - nothing you're not used to though if you drive in LA or NYC.

John

I think it's pretty much always &quot;easier&quot; to take a train and let someone else figure out how to get where you're going, and the other logistics (not the least of which is where to park when you get there and how to circumnavigate the closed market streets, the one way or pedestrian streets, and the traffic.

But is it really just a matter of which is easier or are you looking for the &quot;total&quot; experience? I'd agree that a good possibility might be to rent a car for a couple of days to explore the Tuscan countryside, but not if you're simply using it to get from Rome to Florence.

Thank you all very much for your responses!

Viajero2 and ira, we (2 adults and 3 children) are traveling for 13 days from Florence to Rome to Venice, then to Zurich to fly out. We had planned to take daytrips in Tuscany until I realized that we probably wouldn't have enough days to do that anyway, and the weather may be more predictably pleasant for it another trip.

Dukey, it's a good question what they'd prefer (I do want them to enjoy this!) -- I think they'd find it an adventure, my only thought is that we can't pull over whenever we want, like in a car (it's not as flexible), but being able to walk around while we're moving might make up for that! They're good kids -- but still kids!

NeoPatrick, I know what you mean by your question about my wanting to &quot;experience&quot; Italy, which I guess is why I'm torn -- it seems logical that trains are easier and we'll probably do that, but I guess that since I lived in Vicenza and Pordenone from 6th through the 10th grade and Italy feels like part of who I am, I also feel somewhat sad that, at least this trip, I (and my kids) will miss the quiet, rural Italian villages I loved so much (and haven't seen in 20 years!:( ).

But I'm still excited that they -- we -- will get to be part of the excitement and swirl of the cities! I switched to riding trains because I thought we'd experience the heartbeat of each unique city best by riding the train in and staying in the heart of them, rather than by going in by local trains as daytrips from rural towns.

But, like I said, it's been 20 years, so I'm open to suggestions! Thanks again for everyone's help!

You are five persons, that seems to favor a car.
You are going to visit large cities and you will have to pay parking. Put all this in a scale and see what is better for you. Coming in an out of larger cities like Rome it is a demanding task. Trains have also the expense of taxis to and from the station unless you stay in a hotel close to the station, and of course cars have the expense of tolls and fuel. These expense can be seen in www.mappy.com