If you want to visit rural areas in Italy, then it will be difficult to go by public transport. Therefore, you need to hire a car from car Rental Company. Also, by driving yourself, you can visit to any place at your own pace.
However, driving in Italy is little intimidating, the reputation of drivers of Italy is not too complimentary. You must read more hiring car tips in Italy as well as driving tips before you decide to hire a car.
Following tips can also be very useful to read.
- What you should know before renting a car
You can rent a car once you are in Italy, however it will be better if you book your car in advance. When you book online you can compare different car rental companies and you can choose the best deal.
Car rental can also be booked through phone. Insurance will also be added with the car rental price. If you intend to stay in Italy for longer duration then it is better to rent the car for longer period, as you can get a better deal.
- Automatic cars are not readily available
Most of the cars driven in Europe is manual transmission and Italy is also no exception to that. Automatic transmission cars are in scarcity.
If you want only automatic transmission car then you must book in advance. Remember the price for such car will be much higher than any manual transmission cars.
- You must have international driver’s permit
Car Rental Company will not ask for your license however if you are ever checked by Police on the road, it will be better to have an international driver’s permit in addition to your normal driving license issued by your home country.
It is not too difficult to apply for international drive’s permit, which will be valid for 1 year.
- Must have good map or GPS
If you are new to Italy then it can often be very confusing for you to drive on the roads of Italy as the road signs available will give indications as they usually do not provide North/South or East/West direction.
So, either you must carry an updated map or have GPS installed in your car. If it is not available then you can ask for the one with little additional cost of few euros.
- Must know about road rules of Italy
While driving on the road of Italy, it is very important that you must be aware about the road rules of the country. They too drive on the right side of road like in the USA.
Traffic signs are more or less the same like all other European countries. Remember that while there is red signal you cannot turn right, it is illegal in Italy.
Pedestrian roads are not meant for cars which are mentioned as either “zona pedonale” or “Zona traffico limitato”. If any inverted red with white triangle is shown then it indicates that there is no right way after the intersection.
Certain words that you must remember for directions are for e.g. destra means right, sinistra means left, dritto means straight, uscita means exit and pedaggio means toll.
- Watch your speed limit
There are speed limits for streets and highways which are usually indicated. Remember that here the speed limits are in terms of KMPH and not MPH.
There will be no police who will monitor it. It will be automatically captured by camera and ticket will be mailed to your car rental company and it will be deducted from your charges.
