When visiting the Tuscan countryside, there is no way better to explore than by renting your own car. This allows you to visit as many different villages, towns, and cities as your time permits and in whatever order suits you best. However, renting a car in a country you have likely never driven in before can be somewhat daunting. The unknowns of what could lie on the road ahead of you may turn some people off to the idea of hiring a car. So, I am here to ease those fears and inform you of what I encountered during my experience driving in Tuscany.

Rental Company

When renting a car for my Tuscan vacation, I chose a company that is supposed to be reliable, easy to deal with, had good pricing, and had different options for pick up and drop off locations, Budget Car Rental. 3 of these marks ended up being hit with one of them not coming to fruition. But, when dealing with companies located in countries that are not your own, that can sometimes be expected.

The mark that they ended up missing for me was that they were not easy to deal with. I set up our initial pickup location for the Budget at Via Borgo Ognissanti 128, Florence rather than at the Florence Airport, where we ended up dropping the car off. This was because it was closer to the hotel where we were staying the night prior to pick up. This was my first mistake as 4 out of the 5 agents there did not speak English very well but, luckily, there was one worker who was able to pose as a subpar translator. My second mistake was standing there for almost an hour attempting to make sense of what the gentleman was trying to convince me to do which was 1. upgrade my rental for an extra 80 euros a day (!) and 2. pay more for additional insurance than I already purchased.

What I should have done was trust my instincts take the rental and leave but instead I was so caught up in trying to better understand him than listening to myself. I won’t let that happen again and if I ever end up renting a car in Florence in the future, I will do the pickup and return at the airport locations as the drop-off was seamless. There were plenty of agents that spoke English very well and even an American working there who made the experience very simple. I cannot recommend enough to pickup your rental at Florence airport!

Common Road Signs

It is super important when driving in a foreign country to be able to recognize common road signs as to avoid getting tickets and keep yourself and others safe. In the Tuscan countryside there can be many dangerous roads to navigate so it is quite important to mind speed limit signs and others that signal there may be dangerous intersections or points up ahead. It is also quite common, especially in town or city centers such as Florence to see ‘Do Not Enter’ and ‘Limited Traffic Zones’ as these areas are only allowed to be used by residents, taxi’s, or officials.

Limited Traffic Zones

This is one of the signs to be most cautious of since they are prevalent in many town/city centers as I mentioned before. A ‘Limited Traffic Zone’ sign means that an area is only accessible for officials, taxi drivers, or residents. Be extremely careful to not enter any area or road that has this sign posted as doing so can result in a hefty fine. There are cameras on buildings surrounding areas that have these signs. These cameras register license plates and make note of any that are in violation.

Do Not Enter

A ‘Do Not Enter’ sign may look different in other countries but its meaning is exactly the same, Do. Not. Enter. As with the ‘Limited Traffic Zone’ entering an area with this sign can result in a hefty fee and there are cameras posted near these areas as well.

One Way Traffic

This is also similar to other countries one way signs yet again looks a bit different. Traffic is only traveling in one direction, abide to the direction it is facing and you will be a-okay.

Stop Sign

This sign must look very familiar to most of you, and if it doesn’t, I sure hope you get familiar with it soon. This is the same stop sign we use her in the U.S. except in Italy most drivers are more lax with its actual meaning. Many use it more as a ‘Yield’ sign rather than a full stop sign. Personally, I would (and did!) still come to a full and complete stop just to be fully aware of what lies in front of you and to also avoid any traffic fines.

City Center

Towns and cities in the countryside can be vast and sprawl out for miles and miles. This sign is present where the down-town, or city center area is. This is where you will likely find most of the restaurants, shops, and other activities.

Parking Area/Lot

This sign will denote where parking is allowed. Be careful to make sure that the area is either free parking or if you must pay in which case their will likely be a digital meter nearby. There is typically a language button to have the directions translated to either English or a selection of other languages. Most of the meters take cash or credit cards. When finished choosing the amount of time for parking, the machine will print out a ticket that should be placed on the dashboard of the car.

No Parking

This means that there is no parking allowed where it is shown. Don’t be silly, just go find somewhere with a parking sign.

No Stopping

This means that there is simply NO stopping, just don’t do it.

No Passing

On many of the roadways, if anyone is travelling slower than another car would like, they may pass them. However, sometimes this is not allowed especially on many of the tight roads you may encounter in the countryside.

Speed Limit

This sign will denote the maximum speed you should be travelling.

Minimum Speed

This sign will denote the minimum speed to travel at. Although, I am not sure if I ever even saw one of these.

Please Remember that:

• Italians drive fast: But you will want to mind speed limit signs to avoid tickets being mailed home to you months later with an absurdly high fee.
• There are a lot of Rotary’s or Round-a-bouts: Be prepared for tons of round aboard. Like, an absurd amount. On a 5 minute drive, we drove through SEVEN!
• There are many tight roads: If you are from the U.S. the size of the roads in the Italy might shock you. Many may look like one lane roads but unless you see the one lane shown above, they most certainly are two way streets!
• Driving at night can be frightening: There are a lot of very dark roads, tight streets, hard turns, high hills. So be prepared to take it slow, pay close attention to your surroundings, and allow anyone who wants to drive faster than you are comfortable pass you.