driving in Italy
Aug 3rd, 2012, 06:42 AM
#3
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Drove all around Lago Como and loved it. Suggest you get a smaller car and drive like the crazy Italians. 
Years ago - also rode around Tuscany (one guy was driving while we went wine tasting) and also had a blast.
Years ago - also rode around Tuscany (one guy was driving while we went wine tasting) and also had a blast.
Aug 3rd, 2012, 10:24 AM
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IMHO driving in Italy is not difficult, although parking can be.
There are several things you should be aware of:
The centers of many cities and towns are pedestrian only and you often have to leave cars further out (larger cities) or outside the walls) hill towns. Then you take public transit or walk to the center. If you are staying in the center your hotel needs to give you a pass to enter with your car - which you will have to put in their garage (at $30 to $40 per night). Driving in these areas without a pass can result in fines of hundreds of $.
Highway driving is easy - but faster than in the US and rules are taken VERY seriously. You cannot drive in the left lane. It is for passing only - and you should leave your blinker on so anyone behind you knows you will pull back to the right as soon as you have passed. If you want to drive slowly - stick to local roads.
Local roads are typically one lane in each direction and near the lakes may have narrow lanes with sheer drop offs on one side and a hill on the other. Perfectly safe but not for the faint of heart.
Road quality is good and in general drivers are much better than in the US.
You need to be able to parallel park on either side in a space just larger than the car - practically no mall-type parking and space is at a premium. Once parked always fold in your side mirrors to avoid them being knocked off.
We have driven all over europe, enjoy road trips and love driving there. But we are used to driving and parking in NYC - which I know some people find challenging since they are used to conditions that are very different.
There are several things you should be aware of:
The centers of many cities and towns are pedestrian only and you often have to leave cars further out (larger cities) or outside the walls) hill towns. Then you take public transit or walk to the center. If you are staying in the center your hotel needs to give you a pass to enter with your car - which you will have to put in their garage (at $30 to $40 per night). Driving in these areas without a pass can result in fines of hundreds of $.
Highway driving is easy - but faster than in the US and rules are taken VERY seriously. You cannot drive in the left lane. It is for passing only - and you should leave your blinker on so anyone behind you knows you will pull back to the right as soon as you have passed. If you want to drive slowly - stick to local roads.
Local roads are typically one lane in each direction and near the lakes may have narrow lanes with sheer drop offs on one side and a hill on the other. Perfectly safe but not for the faint of heart.
Road quality is good and in general drivers are much better than in the US.
You need to be able to parallel park on either side in a space just larger than the car - practically no mall-type parking and space is at a premium. Once parked always fold in your side mirrors to avoid them being knocked off.
We have driven all over europe, enjoy road trips and love driving there. But we are used to driving and parking in NYC - which I know some people find challenging since they are used to conditions that are very different.
Aug 3rd, 2012, 10:43 AM
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Hello. If you'll be driving on autostrada or major highways, there may be construction that can delay you. I drove from Germany thru Switzerland into Tuscany last month and had no real problems but some delays. It took longer than I expected it would. But some friends who went from Rome to Tuscany had a terrible time with detours due to construction. Took them several hours longer b/c they got really lost getting out of Rome.
Be sure to make yourself aware of the big and medium sized cities and where they lie in relation to where you are going. The signs will have city/town names and it's useful to be aware of what direction you need to head when you have to exit or the road splits. It's easy to miss an exit b/c they can come up rather quickly. It also seems - oh, wait - no "seems" about it: the roads have multiple route numbers, so know which ones will carry which set of numbers and in spite of GPS, study maps. Sometimes when the road has two numbers, it splits and the numbers split, so you think you want, oh A5 and 16 (made up numbers), then they split with A5 going one way and 16 another, so you need to know which one you should remain on.
And you can't always trust GPS or Google maps. Google gave me an exit after 15 kilometers so I was watching for it. After considerable distance, I pulled out my real map and found the route I was looking for. 150 kilometers. Not 15. And remember that kilometers pass a LOT faster than miles; compute it to miles to get a better sense of how long it will take.
Take the advice from Tomsd and drive a small car. I rented Quasimodo (a huge SUV - although I was told it was actually small compared) and did not enjoy driving that big lug of a car. When you get on roundabouts, remember you don't have to get off if you're unsure - you can drive around and around until you're sure which exit. also remember that GPS will mistake a driveway for an exit. I had a couple of occasions where there were brand new roundabouts - so pristine - but not on a map and my GPS is a year old.
Having said all that, tho' I found that area of Italy between Com oand Tuscany to be well-marked, but I wasn't always sure when the sign had an arrow if they meant the next turn or one shortly thereafter. Turned around a few times. GPS uses street names - good luck finding any signs with street names. The roads may seem like regular good-sized routes on the map, but can look like a country road in reality. Also remember the Italians have the "shadow lane" on the autostrada. That's where everyone moves to the edge (right or left depending) to create another lane in between the lanes so those going faster can get by without the others actually giving up their spot in the fast lane. Everyone does it and it works pretty well. If you use the GPS in Italy, it will notify you of speed traps - and there are MANY of those.
Toll booths can be a bit confusing - pictures don't work well for me. I use cash for tolls and once had to feed the machine; I couldn't tell if the picture meant a manned booth or "cash" for a machine. But the Italians were very nice about letting me - and a lot of others - change to the proper lanes. Very polite.
The biggest problem is the driver doesn't get to sightsee. although once you get north of Florence thru to north of Milan, it's much like I95 in New Jersey. Not all that pretty. Lots of tunnels - which give me the creeps, but that's just me.
I always consider it a victory to drive in Europe. After a couple of days you'll feel like a native and it will be easy. Have a wonderful time - October can be cool and wet, but there will be fantastic rainbows.
Be sure to make yourself aware of the big and medium sized cities and where they lie in relation to where you are going. The signs will have city/town names and it's useful to be aware of what direction you need to head when you have to exit or the road splits. It's easy to miss an exit b/c they can come up rather quickly. It also seems - oh, wait - no "seems" about it: the roads have multiple route numbers, so know which ones will carry which set of numbers and in spite of GPS, study maps. Sometimes when the road has two numbers, it splits and the numbers split, so you think you want, oh A5 and 16 (made up numbers), then they split with A5 going one way and 16 another, so you need to know which one you should remain on.
And you can't always trust GPS or Google maps. Google gave me an exit after 15 kilometers so I was watching for it. After considerable distance, I pulled out my real map and found the route I was looking for. 150 kilometers. Not 15. And remember that kilometers pass a LOT faster than miles; compute it to miles to get a better sense of how long it will take.
Take the advice from Tomsd and drive a small car. I rented Quasimodo (a huge SUV - although I was told it was actually small compared) and did not enjoy driving that big lug of a car. When you get on roundabouts, remember you don't have to get off if you're unsure - you can drive around and around until you're sure which exit. also remember that GPS will mistake a driveway for an exit. I had a couple of occasions where there were brand new roundabouts - so pristine - but not on a map and my GPS is a year old.
Having said all that, tho' I found that area of Italy between Com oand Tuscany to be well-marked, but I wasn't always sure when the sign had an arrow if they meant the next turn or one shortly thereafter. Turned around a few times. GPS uses street names - good luck finding any signs with street names. The roads may seem like regular good-sized routes on the map, but can look like a country road in reality. Also remember the Italians have the "shadow lane" on the autostrada. That's where everyone moves to the edge (right or left depending) to create another lane in between the lanes so those going faster can get by without the others actually giving up their spot in the fast lane. Everyone does it and it works pretty well. If you use the GPS in Italy, it will notify you of speed traps - and there are MANY of those.
Toll booths can be a bit confusing - pictures don't work well for me. I use cash for tolls and once had to feed the machine; I couldn't tell if the picture meant a manned booth or "cash" for a machine. But the Italians were very nice about letting me - and a lot of others - change to the proper lanes. Very polite.
The biggest problem is the driver doesn't get to sightsee. although once you get north of Florence thru to north of Milan, it's much like I95 in New Jersey. Not all that pretty. Lots of tunnels - which give me the creeps, but that's just me.
I always consider it a victory to drive in Europe. After a couple of days you'll feel like a native and it will be easy. Have a wonderful time - October can be cool and wet, but there will be fantastic rainbows.
Aug 3rd, 2012, 12:23 PM
#8
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I think you're from the US? If so you'll need an International Driver's Permit, which you can get at any AAA office even if you don't belong to AAA.
This is from http://www.tripadvisor.com/Tourism-g...acations.html:
"Driving Licenses
If you have a full driving license from an EU country, this is all you will need. If you have a license from a non-EU country you will need to take your driving license and also an international driving permit with you. You should carry these documents and the rental car agreement with you, in case you are stopped by the police. Some form of photo ID is also required."
This is from http://www.tripadvisor.com/Tourism-g...acations.html:
"Driving Licenses
If you have a full driving license from an EU country, this is all you will need. If you have a license from a non-EU country you will need to take your driving license and also an international driving permit with you. You should carry these documents and the rental car agreement with you, in case you are stopped by the police. Some form of photo ID is also required."
Aug 3rd, 2012, 04:44 PM
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Sorry - you may certainly use a GPS if you like (but I believe they are terminally stupid and won't touch one with a barge pole - I have seen them make way too many mistakes).
If you are going to drive anywhere you need high-quality, detailed maps - paper maps. both to plot out your trip in advance (I'm amazed at the number of people who obviously put together an itinerary without ever having looked at a map) and also to use when you run into either a need or desire to change your route. With a map - it's easy to do - with GPS all you can see is where some program wants to send you. You can get Michelin maps - make sure they are detailed enough for your needs - at any reasonable bookseller (amazon.com if there are no bookstores in your area.)
If you are going to drive anywhere you need high-quality, detailed maps - paper maps. both to plot out your trip in advance (I'm amazed at the number of people who obviously put together an itinerary without ever having looked at a map) and also to use when you run into either a need or desire to change your route. With a map - it's easy to do - with GPS all you can see is where some program wants to send you. You can get Michelin maps - make sure they are detailed enough for your needs - at any reasonable bookseller (amazon.com if there are no bookstores in your area.)
Aug 3rd, 2012, 09:20 PM
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nytraveler has a point: be sure to buy a detailed map on paper. Sometimes the car rental agency gives you a map but it is NOT detailed enough for most travels.
And DO plan your route before you start out!!!
And DO plan your route before you start out!!!
Aug 4th, 2012, 03:20 AM
#11
Two years ago we rented a car for a week's stay in Tuscany. And we also included a GPS (supplied by Hertz) for that rental.
We were staying in a hotel which was located, literally, in the midst of some olive groves between Florence and Siena. The access road to the place ended in what i thought at the time was an Italian attempt to create the Grand Canyon in the midst of a roadway.
We went all over the general area in that car and thought the roads were in very good repair. We would never have had the flexibility for that particular area using the train as we usually do when we go to Europe.
The drivers were not any worse than I have seen in many places in the US and in fact they were better in many ways. Roads were well-marked but I can tell you the GPS told us in advance of every single speed camera location and you are not going to get that on any paper map. It was also good for driving IN Florence, the city that a lot of posters here keep saying you should never drive in. We did and I thought it was a piece of cake.
Parking: get ready to pay for it in larger towns. Even in places like Siena which has numerous pedestrian-only zones we found parking lots we could use.
The car offered wonderful flexibility in this particular area and I would certainly do it again and with a GPS.
We were staying in a hotel which was located, literally, in the midst of some olive groves between Florence and Siena. The access road to the place ended in what i thought at the time was an Italian attempt to create the Grand Canyon in the midst of a roadway.
We went all over the general area in that car and thought the roads were in very good repair. We would never have had the flexibility for that particular area using the train as we usually do when we go to Europe.
The drivers were not any worse than I have seen in many places in the US and in fact they were better in many ways. Roads were well-marked but I can tell you the GPS told us in advance of every single speed camera location and you are not going to get that on any paper map. It was also good for driving IN Florence, the city that a lot of posters here keep saying you should never drive in. We did and I thought it was a piece of cake.
Parking: get ready to pay for it in larger towns. Even in places like Siena which has numerous pedestrian-only zones we found parking lots we could use.
The car offered wonderful flexibility in this particular area and I would certainly do it again and with a GPS.
