Italy: Should I Drive on a Vacation There?

Question

I'm working on a 3 to 4 week trip there. I want to see areas like Venice, Cinque Terre, Rome, the Amalfi Coast, maybe the less visited southeast, and maybe Sicily. I'm a really good driver, & can deal with high stress situations, but I'd be slower & cautious about it all. Is driving there realistic, or are the trains better?

Questions I have?

- Is it realistic to drive in Italy? What personality traits would I need for success?

- Is it true it would be best not to drive into the cities? Then where would I park my rental car?

- They say theft is somewhat common. Is that true? Do you have ideas to prevent it or lower the odds of it happening to me?

- Can you safely park outside of Venice?

- Have you driven in Sicily? I hear that signs don't exist there, & theft is common. Do you agree?

- They say don't drive in Naples. So what should I do with my car?

- Can you really get around all over by train? Are they on time? If not, how late do they get?

THANK YOU.

Answer 1

Ok. I studied abroad in Italy so let me see how many of these questions that I can knock off for you. Drivers in Italy are definitely crazy. I lived in Florence and the traffic patterns just don't make any sense. People weave in and out of "lanes" if you can call them that, they tailgate, speed, and come within a centimeter of hitting everything in the world yet somehow there's NEVER accidents. I don't understand it but it seemed like everyone had road rage yet it somehow works for them? If you didn't grow up with their traffic habits though I don't see how you'd survive! Also, it's very expensive to rent a car and road signs are different over there too so you may have trouble finding your way around anyway. Trains and buses are awesome over there. Taxis are expensive but are good to use at night. Trains are usually on time and run very often. If delayed it's usually only by 10 minutes. The only problem is that trains and buses don't always go or don't go very often to some of the smaller cities in the countryside. However, if your only there for under a month you're probably just going to the hotspots and will be set with public transportation. I lived there for 4 months and never needed a car. If you're a student or faculty member you can save some money on airfare, rails, hostels, and cars if you decide to use them through  http://www.studentuniverse.com/ . They saved me a lot of money. I hope that helps! Have fun, wish I was in your place!

Answer 2

Hi,

You can drive in italy. In the cities, it is sometimes chaotic. Hve for the car always comprehensive insurance. I always park at police stations.

Sorry this Link is in german:

http://www.venedig.com/VenedigAZ/Venedig...

In english:

http://www.informadove.it/webservizi/sit...

Or:

-From Mestre and Marghera: you can parking your car in one at car parking in Mestre or Marghera.

Bus LINE 12, 12/, 4, 4/, 2, 6, 6/, N (to VENICE).

Special tipp, car driving in italia:

http://www.lifeinitaly.com/travel/drivin...

My special tipp:     ; )

http://www.panzerkutscher.de/en/index.ht...

Buon viaggio e buon comportamento di guida.

Greetings from Munich, Bavaria.

Answer 3

I consider the Italians to be some of the most highly skilled [yet crazy] drivers in the word. Still, I'd suggest traveling by train most of the time...it's what I do!!. You can get to Venice, Rome, Cinque Terre and all over Italy by train. I think it beats the hassle of driving and the time and/or expense of having to find parking spots in cities.

With a few exceptions, the trains have been on time. When traveling by train, you have to pack lighter, which in my view is usually a good thing. And, most major stations have storage lockers where you can safely store your bags....much safer than leaving them in the car!  And, with the internet, it's easy to find train schedules, and in some cases, buy tickets.

For trips to rural and more out-of-the-way places like the Amalfi coast, I think it's worthwhile to have a car. Rather than bring yours, you could rent a car for a few days. And, you could also do so in Sicily.

One method we have used, is when renting a car when departing a big city, pick the car up at an office on the outside of town...on the edge of town in the direction we plan be traveling. with the internet mapping applications, it's easy to discover where rental offices are located, and how you would get there.

For example, last September, after a few days in Paris [without a car, of course], we began a car journey to Normandy. Rather than pick up the car in Paris itself, we took a regional train to a village near Versailles, walked 3 blocks and picked up the car. From there, we had much less traffic than if we had picked up the car in Central Paris.

Good luck!