Car rental in Florence, Italy. Tips and tricks

Many people often ask me for advice on how and where to rent a car in Florence, Italy. So I have collected in this post all the useful tips I can possibly give on this topic. After all, the rental car is a very important part of a road trip in Italy.

First question: do I really need it?

Florence is a small city, packed with traffic and the historic center is a restricted traffic area. For these reasons driving in Florence can be a nightmare, can cause several fines and often it is not even necessary.

If you don’t mean to leave the city, you don’t really need a rental car. You can easily get around on foot or by public transport.

• Read here for more information on how to get around Florence.

If instead you are planning to leave the city, visit the countryside or reach some other towns… well, then renting a car it’s a good idea!

Please, make sure your driving license is valid in Italy or get an international driving license! Check your government’s guidelines for any info about that.

The best way to rent a car in Florence, Italy

It’s important to book a rental car in advance, because companies often have few vehicles available. If you expect to rent your car once you arrive in the city, you may not find any available.

I always recommend using rentalcars.com to book a car online. You can compare the prices and services of the most important car rental companies and choose the best one for you, for the lowest price. I always use it for my car trips and recommend it to other travelers as well. Rentalcars.com also displays car rentals on a map, so you can choose the one in the most convenient location.

You can also make your search right here:

Renting a car at the Florence airport

Although small, Florence airport has quite good services and several international car rental companies, such as Hertz, Avis, Budget and Europcar. Rentalcars.com allows you to select the Florence airport as a specific location for your search.

The offices of rental companies at the airport close in the late afternoon until the next morning: if your flight arrives later you risk finding them closed. For this it is even more important to book in advance online.

Car rentals at the Florence station

The only car rental that has an office inside the Florence station is Sixt. But there are many others a few hundred meters away, they are all located in Borgo Ognissanti: remember the name of this street to locate them when using the search engine map. From the station, Borgo Ognissanti is easily reachable on foot (or by taxi if you have a lot of luggage).

Renting a car in the historic center

The Santa Maria Novella station and Borgo Ognissanti are located inside the historic center. So the options I mentioned earlier for the station are also valid if you are looking for a car in the center of Florence.

I hope you find useful these tips on how to rent a car in Florence, Italy. If you have any other questions or you want me to book this and other services in Tuscany for you, get in touch with me!