Don't Rent a Car in Italy Before Watching This! Real Stories, Essential Tips

 
________________________________________________________________________________________________

🚗✈️ Transform Your Italian Road Trip with Tripiamo! ✈️🚗
 
🌟 Why Choose Tripiamo?
 
- Easy-to-Use: Jump in and drive with confidence!
- Certified Guides: The only guide approved by local driving schools.
- Affordably Priced: Cheaper than a parking ticket in Rome!
 

________________________________________________________________________________________________

Here I talk about whether you really need a car, top tips for choosing the best rental company, and learn from my personal experience for navigating Italy's roads. Perfect for travelers planning an Italian road trip. Watch now for invaluable insights and advice on making the most of your Italy travel experience.

Find me on social media! 👍

_______________________________________________________________________________________________

[FortunateXpat]

Pro tips for driving in Sicily….
1. Never put your phone down. And remember, texting while driving is a skill that needs to be practiced.
2. Drive as fast and reckless as possible. When you see pedestrians or bicyclists on the road, don't slow down. Try to see how dangerously close you can get without hitting them. Especially at crosswalks.
The same rule applies to driving near motorcyclists on the autostrada.
3. When entering a roadway or intersection, never look in the direction of the oncoming traffic. Only look in the direction that you want to drive. If there's traffic, block the oncoming cars and wait until there is an opening in the lane you need. And of course, never use your indicators.
4. Ignore all speed limits and stop signs. When at a traffic light, honk your horn as soon as the light turns green. Don't be shy, horns are made for honking.
5. Parking. Make sure that when double parking you block as much traffic as possible.
6. If the car or motorcyclist in front of you is not going as fast as you want, be sure to tailgate at least a half meter from their bumper. Don't forget to dangerously pass whenever possible, even on blind corners.

[edmarth]

I have rented twice out of Venice airport. On the recommendation of a friend I used Europcar booked through their website. First class service both times, fair price, and no nasty surprises when returning the car. I have read reviews of cheaper companies that ding you when you return the car. I also used Europcar in Marseille France with the same experience.
Regardless of which company you use, ALWAYS take numerous photos with your cell phone before you even unlock the car. Point to every scratch and dent that may be pre-existing on the car as you snap photos. Include the rental agent in the photos if they come out with you to inspect the car. Also, open the hood and make sure the brake fluid reservoir and oil dipstick show full.
If the car comes with a GPS, find out how to change the language to English before leaving the rental car lot. Set the "home" button to the rental car lot, so you don't even have to plug in the address when returning the car.

[russwoodward]

Thanks for the video David. I agree with your narrative. Some places in Italy, you really need a rental car. I always purchase the full insurance. I have a couple of stories.
Thank you again for the videos, they are always informative! 1:14

[ginafleming]

Thanks for the tips, David! Very helpful for planning my trip!

[tiusernamenabalw]

I have driven a lot across all of Italy. The amount of fines you accumulate without understanding why is out of this world! I am going again this summer but I have budgeted.

[SavvyFuoco]

Great advice and video as always 👍🏼 I love driving when im in Italia! It can be very fun! You are one of the best Italian American youtubers 🔥 🇮🇹 🇺🇲

[dalewun]

Good tips. I rented over Christmas to go from Rome to Basilicata… and got the snow chains because 1. Fines for getting caught without em is supposedly high. 2. Adventuring through the mountains in winter where I had not been before, I might actually need them.
I forgot the cost, but worth the peace of mind.
I paid cash at tolls with 10’s and 20’s, and worked out ok.

[ziecfmb]

Thank you, David. It is very useful for the drivers.

[yoster]

One thing about the speed cameras here in italy, most of them are fake/empty boxes. It's made to force you to always stay on your toes and not go over the limit without actually needing the infrastructure to maintain them. However the empty boxes can be made to contain an actual speed camera so at any point a "fake speed cam" can become a true one.
When this happens there's usually police or carabinieri closeby.

[flugschulerfluglehrer]

I booked a car with “Sicily by Car” in advance for my 75 year old mother and payed everything with my Visa card. Once on the airport, they said that they need the Visa card of the driver for the security deposit. My mother has no Visa card. Fortunately my father was with her. They told him that he had to pay a 20 % fee as second driver if he wanted to use his Visa card. He has no PIN code for the card so he thought he could pay with passport and signature. Upon request, VISA told us, that that works if the car company wanted to. But they did not want that. Instead they now wanted a 50 % fee for paying with a debit card. And if you pay with debit card, you are down graded.
We told them to keep their old car.
The cancelation fee is 100 % but in exceptional cases (lol) they will charge only 70 %.

[likebliss]

So is the "full coverage" through discover cars actually full coverage? The price seems too good to be true. I can't find any info/terms on their website. What's the catch?

[kathleengarber]

Helpful video, thank you. How do you know where the areas are that you get fined for driving into? We are going to drive to a small town and have heard there are huge fines if you accidentally drive into a restiricted area.

[mr-vet]

Great advice. We normally just rent cars using our AMEX Platinum card and don’t buy any extra insurance, as we’re covered with the AmEX and our own US auto insurance. Wife and I visiting Abruzzo area in May—will be looking at several properties for purchase. And since our 30th wedding anniversary is the end of May, we plan to have a vow renewal ceremony—hopefully our adult children will join us for that. We plan to fly into Rome and drive to Pescara—using it as our base of operations for the property search. Not sure where we’ll do the vow renewal ceremony, however. Still need to work out all the details.

[praesentius]

I would say that, barring a planned road trip, most visitors can simply ignore the concept of a car rental. The trains are just far too good and ridiculously on-schedule compared to other countries. But, if visitors want to drive, don't forget an international drivers license/permit. It's much harder to get when you're in country.

Oh, and if you live here, don't forget that you can't drive after 1 year of residence on your foreign license. You gotta buck up and learn Italian and go to driving school!

One last thing... did you guys catch "Bau the way" on the extra costs part of the video? So Italian! Bau! Bau!

[patriciamurray]

Hi David, thank you for this valuable info! I will be travelling with my adult daughter. We need to rent a car from Castiglione della Pescaia, Tuscany to Venice...with stops along the way. Suggestions?

[karenrauch]

Hello, would you be able to do an updated on Vodafone for 2024. I saw you post for the Dolce Vita plan on your Feb 2, 2020 post. I'll be touring Southern Italy for 3 weeks in October 2024 and would like to purchase a month plan and don't know which to get. Can you advise? Thanks

[kellydragna]

Just watched the entire video today. I appreciate the information. My wife and I went Sicilia in October. We rented a car in Palermo and drove to Corleone. Then we drove from Corleone to Taormina and dropped the car off there in Taormina. Driving in Palermo is like driving anarchy, meaning hardly anybody follows the rules and laws. Our friends in Corleone said it is worse in Naples. I have told you in past that I am now a dual citizen. My wife and I are kicking around the idea of moving to Sicilia. I would like to converse with you more about life in Italy as you are another person from United States. Can we make that happen? Please let me know. Prego

[jamesdean]

Great tips! I do have a question. Will my credit card company cover a rental car in Italy. I’m in the U.S.

[dardaraveiga]

If you pick one place in Italy to stay forever, where would that be?

[Amanda_K_]

Do US folks need an international driving permit to rent?