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Driving in your own neighborhood, town, state, or country can be pretty stressful as it is. We live in the San Francisco Bay Area in California and I thought people were crazy drivers here. And then we got to Italy. Let’s just say it opened our eyes to a whole new world of drivers!
Before we took our trip to Italy, I researched what driving in Italy was like since we had planned on renting a car during our stay in the Umbrian region. The area is very spread out and you definitely want to have your own car when visiting if you are not a part of a tour that provides transportation. So, I thought I would do a little post with my own tips that I found to be helpful when we were driving there.
This is not all-encompassing, just the things we found out on our trip. I’ll update this post in the future when we return to Italy (hint, hint).
GPS
First things first – get the GPS! I repeat…get the GPS! You will be glad you did. Pay the extra fee for it even if it’s just a backup option for directions. I had originally thought we could manage with our offline map apps on our phones. I’m glad my husband convinced me otherwise because it was a lifesaver.
Your phone maps (even with data) might not always work for you, especially in remote areas. And we definitely aren’t the type to pull out paper maps in this day and age!
If you do not speak Italian, you can get an English-speaking GPS. The one we were provided through Avis was a Garmin.
Another benefit of having the GPS is that it shows you what the current speed should be where you are driving, and it alerts you to where the speed cameras are (and there are many). I can’t guarantee that it knows where all of them are, and sometimes it alerted us in strange spots where we didn’t see how there could be a speed camera (unless they are really good at hiding them!), but it was better to be safe than sorry.
Driving Speed
Italy is apparently quite strict on driving the speed limits. They have posted maximums, minimums, and even have different speeds for different lanes. I do not know how more people in Italy don’t get tickets – Italian drivers are nuts! No offense Italians. It is merely an observation.
Italian drivers drive FAST! They tailgate like crazy, and they zoom through tight spaces like nothing. There’s a term we like to use for that called “NFG,” which translates to “no fucks given.” Really…that’s how we felt.
If you are a slow driver (like me), beware! Stay in the slow lane, and pull off to the side of the road to let the speeders pass you if you are on rural country roads. When we were in the taxis there, I felt like I had to close my eyes for most of the ride because I seriously thought the drivers were going to hit all the parked cars we passed going down narrow streets.
Anyhow, if you get caught speeding by one of the speed cameras, they will send you a ticket. From what I can tell by my research, the tickets go the rental car companies, which in turn charge an extra fee for processing your ticket. Try to relax and enjoy the scenery. There’s no need for speeding!
Road Signs
What do they all mean?! There are just too many, and I didn’t even get them all.
Number with a red circle: Maximum speed in kilometers per hour.
Triangle with red trim: Caution. In this photo, they are quite obvious – turns, bumps, slippery, deer crossing, etc.
Green with circling arrows: Roundabout ahead! My least favorite thing about roads are roundabouts. And there are a lot of them in Italy.
Green signs: Point you in the direction of the Autostrada or indicate you are on the Autostrada.
White circle with black diagonal line: This means that the current speed limit is ending.
SOS: Emergency phone box. Makes perfect sense 🙂
Other signs I don’t have pics of:
City name with red diagonal line: You are now leaving the city limits of that town/city.
Blue circle: Minimum speed limit. We only saw these on the Autostrada and there are multiple lanes with different minimums and maximums.
Wikipedia actually has a pretty good sign directory if you are interested in learning more about the plethora of road signs in Italy!
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Road_signs_in_Italy
Limited Traffic Zones (ZTL)
One important thing to note, especially when driving within larger cities and within city walls of the smaller cities like Gubbio and Assisi, is that there are limited traffic zones, also known as ZTL (zona traffico limitato). This means you cannot drive there unless you have a pass to do so. Do not get caught driving in these zones, as you will receive a fine for doing so. Your GPS might not warn you of a ZTL zone, so make sure you stay aware!
The Autostrada
Getting on and off the Autostrada is a breeze! But what is the Autostrada? It’s kind of like a freeway that gets you from point A to point B quicker; however, you do have to pay a toll based on the distance you use the Autostrada to travel.
While traveling to Umbria, we got on in Florence and off in Arezzo. I had used viamichelin.com on recommendation from other travelers to try and determine how much money we would need to pay, and it ended up being way less than what we expected (I think maybe around €6 or so).
When you get on the Autostrada, you take a ticket (biglietto) from an automated machine, and when you get off, you present the ticket at the toll booths and pay your fee.
When approaching the toll booths to pay, you want to pay attention to the signs to see which lane you should be in. They do have a Telepass lane for frequent travelers of the Autostrada; otherwise, there are lanes where you either pay cash or with a credit card (if paying by credit, make sure you choose a booth that is manned by an actual person). You do not want to be in the Telepass lane unless you have a Telepass! Again, Italy will issue you a lovely fine. You’ll notice a little red person figure on the signs if there is an attendant. Go there.
Gas & Food on the Autostrada
There are gas stations and food stops along the Autostrada, such as the ones below, so you do not have to get off and pay a toll and then get back on again, which is nice. We only had a car for three days and did not have to end up pumping gas, so I don’t have any gas station tales to tell!
I did read that some gas stations (maybe ones in the more rural areas) are closed on certain days (like Sundays). You don’t want to get stuck somewhere without gas, so make sure you get your gas topped off whenever you come up on an open gas station.
There are Autogrills at random points on the highway. We passed one, but did not have enough time to stop and get a bite to eat that day. And this is a terrible picture, but you will definitely recognize it when it’s coming up. I’ve heard they have quite tasty food, such as sandwiches, pasta, cheeses, beer, wine, etc.
Conclusion?
Of course, I let my husband do all the driving. I was already stressed out enough just being a passenger! However, driving the Autostrada was quite easy, and the country roads are not too bad – as long as you are driving in the daylight.
I do not recommend driving around at night, as you are in unfamiliar territory and the roads are not well lit. We were trying to find a road to a restaurant near our castle in Umbria and kept missing it. Because oncoming traffic and traffic behind us was just going so fast, even on a country road, we had a hard time slowing down to make our turn. We had to make at least four passes before we could comfortably see it and make the turn!
That being said, the Italian countryside is amazing, and having a car is so useful, especially when exploring Umbria and areas of Tuscany if you are not with a tour group. Even though I may have sounded a bit stressed out in this post, I highly recommend it!
Do you have any additional tips to add or fun stories to tell for driving in Italy?
Hi,
I’m about to rent a car in italy from Florence. Did you encounter any of the nightmare scenarios renting a car from italy? I had done my research and seen plenty of nightmare stories. Appreciate your input since you’ve done it recently.
It was easy to rent the car – we booked online ahead of time through Avis near the airport! We didn’t have any issues with the rental car company itself – driving in Italy is certainly an interesting experience! I had done a lot of research as well and I found some things helpful – especially knowing some of the road signs. The Autostrada toll estimators weren’t too accurate though. It was much less expensive than anticipated.
Great tips! Driving there can be harrowing. Maybe I’ll try again someday. And the Auto grill DOES have great food! Lol