I personally wouldn't recommend renting a car in Italy, especially in the big cities like Rome, Florence, Venice, etc.
Now, if you are done with the big cities and you want to make a trip to the Amalfi Coast or go north towards the beautiful lakes of the Italian/Swiss border area, renting a car isn't so bad.
Train works well if you are short on time and, of course, on a budget. We took a train for our travels from Rome to Florence to Venice and back to Rome. The total trip cost $90 each, and we found it also more affordable to buy single tickets. We even took a train form the FCO Rome Airport to the Termini Station, which was about $22, as opposed to about $75 for a taxi!!!
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I personally wouldn't recommend renting a car in Italy, especially in the big cities like Rome, Florence, Venice, etc.
Now, if you are done with the big cities and you want to make a trip to the Amalfi Coast or go north towards the beautiful lakes of the Italian/Swiss border area, renting a car isn't so bad.
Train works well if you are short on time and, of course, on a budget. We took a train for our travels from Rome to Florence to Venice and back to Rome. The total trip cost $90 each, and we found it also more affordable to buy single tickets. We even took a train form the FCO Rome Airport to the Termini Station, which was about $22, as opposed to about $75 for a taxi!!!
Of course, it can depend also on the type of luggage you have and how many people you are, but like Manhattan, parking isn’t easy there and gas is expensive!
We traveled by Eurostar a few times, and it was more comfortable than the local train, especially on a hot summer day!
Anyway, the lure of Europe to me is also the train-travel concept, so my recommendation is to try it. You can always plan ahead by looking at schedules online.
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