DIY Orvieto and Civita di Bagnoregio

[agadora]

Since my group of four and I will be in Rome post-cruise, we are thinking of renting a car and doing a DIY trip to Orvieto and Civita di Bagnoregio. Here is my working itinerary for the day, and I'd love input from anyone on if it's doable, realistic, etc.

 

Also, I've never driven in Italy and am curious about the ease of it all. The only other country I've driven in, besides the U.S., is Canada. :)

 

We are in port from 8am-7pm.

 

-- 8:30 Pick up Hertz car rental

-- 10:00 Orvieto: Farmer's Market, Duomo, and wandering

-- 12:15 Orvieto Underground tour

-- 2:00 Civita di Bagnoregio

-- 4:00 Return to Civitavecchia

-- 5:30 Drop off car

[Hlitner]

We have driven over 10,000 miles within Italy and are still alive (and well) to talk about it! The Italian drivers are crazy...but they are some of the best drivers we have seen anywhere in the world. The good news for you is that driving your itinerary is not difficult...especially if you have (or rent) a GPS. The biggest problem you might have is finding parking...although there is a nice lot at Orvieto (close to the tourist office).

 

Hank

[maryann ns]

This is a lovely drive and you have picked two very different places. You should have a great day.

[slidergirl]

I did the drive from Rome to Orvieto by myself in May. Very easy! I used my iPad Mini as my GPS (I bought a data SIM for it from TIM in Rome) and was able to easily navigate Rome to Orvieto to the Chianti area and up to Florence. Between Rome and Orvieto, it is autostrada the whole way until the exit for Orvieto, then a few short miles up the hill. Use the large public parking lot by the TI center and the funicular and then just walk up to the main piazza and the cathedral.

If I could easily get through Chianti with all the little twisty roads with my iPad, getting to/from Civita could be easy.

Oh, the only place that I thought the drivers were crazy was within Rome itself!!! But, even then, it wasn't any worse than what I've experienced in Los Angeles at rush hour. Now, Cairo….:eek:

Edited December 30, 2013 by slidergirl

[agadora]

Thanks for the feedback. I am feeling a bit more comfortable about driving since the Hertz car rental is so close to the port. I looked up directions to Orvieto on Google Maps and it does look pretty straightforward. I'm really looking forward to this day because we will be touring a LOT of major cities and people-filled tourist sites; I think it will be nice to hit the countryside.

 

@slidergirl: I am planning on getting a SIM card for my iPhone in Italy, since we will be spending a lot of our time there during this trip. Ideally I would find one on our first excursion, but we will be headed to Cinque Terre and I'm not sure how much luck I'll have at the Livorno port. Do you know of a TIM store close to the port in Civitavecchia?

[Hlitner]

One warning about driving in Italy. The Italians have discovered that speed cameras are an easy way to make some extra income (I think they got the idea from the Brits and French) so they have been putting more and more cameras along the major Autostrade. The days when I used to speed in Italy are coming to an end, because the fines for speeding are pretty steep...and the rental car companies love to add an additional admin fee. You can easily get nailed for over 100 Euros on a single violation...and you will not even know until months after you get home. So when you are on the major roads...watch your speed!

 

Hank

[slidergirl]

Thanks for the feedback. I am feeling a bit more comfortable about driving since the Hertz car rental is so close to the port. I looked up directions to Orvieto on Google Maps and it does look pretty straightforward. I'm really looking forward to this day because we will be touring a LOT of major cities and people-filled tourist sites; I think it will be nice to hit the countryside.

 

@slidergirl: I am planning on getting a SIM card for my iPhone in Italy, since we will be spending a lot of our time there during this trip. Ideally I would find one on our first excursion, but we will be headed to Cinque Terre and I'm not sure how much luck I'll have at the Livorno port. Do you know of a TIM store close to the port in Civitavecchia?

 

I just went onto the http://www.tim.it site and did a search for you (it's in Italian, but I can understand it). I found one TIM store and one authorized independent seller nearby:

1)Negozio TIM (the TIM store)

CORSO CENTOCELLE 50 A/ CIVITAVECCHIA

Tel.:0766503165 Fax:

Negozio TIM - Centro Assistenza Telecom Italia

 

2)EG TRADING S.R.L. (the authorized seller)

LARGO PLEBISCITO 15 CIVITAVECCHIA

Tel.: 0766370127 Fax:

Negozio Autorizzato TIM

[agadora]

I just went onto the http://www.tim.it site and did a search for you (it's in Italian, but I can understand it). I found one TIM store and one authorized independent seller nearby:

1)Negozio TIM (the TIM store)

CORSO CENTOCELLE 50 A/ CIVITAVECCHIA

Tel.:0766503165 Fax:

Negozio TIM - Centro Assistenza Telecom Italia

 

2)EG TRADING S.R.L. (the authorized seller)

LARGO PLEBISCITO 15 CIVITAVECCHIA

Tel.: 0766370127 Fax:

Negozio Autorizzato TIM

 

Thank you soooo much! The second option looks like it's right by the port and VERY close to the Hertz car rental location. yay! :D

[DKJ]

There is also a train from Termini Station in Rome to Orvieto . We have a pre cruise trip planned this spring and we are going to stay 5 days in Orvieto as a base . We plan on using the train to commute to Rome and Florence. Looks like a lovely place :)

Edited December 31, 2013 by DKJ

[realnice46]

You should be okay in rental car bit it will probably take you longer for the rental process than you think. I would do Orvieto first as most of the shops close for a few hours in the afternoon.

We did a private tour last May, really just transportation and the roads were quite rough but very scenic.

Civita di Bagnoregio is a wonderful small hill town. Our favorite! Make sure to have water with you as it is a long uphill walk to the town from the parking lot. We were there early June and it was very hot. Lots of Kodak moments. Enjoy.

[sunsetbeachgal]

Another word of warning is that unless you have a credit card with chip and pin (most US issued credit cards do not have this) when paying your road tolls on the Autostrada, you must use a lane that is manned. The credit card only lanes won't work for you as it won't recognize your credit card. We had a terrible experience with this, and had to back up in a crowded exit to get to the correct Kant. Not pretty! ;) This happened a few years ago, so if things have changed, perhaps someone can chime in. We also had a bad experience trying to purchase gas at a station that was totally unmanned...credit card wouldn't work there either. Wish the US had those chips and pins!

Edited January 7, 2014 by sunsetbeachgal

[agabbymama]

Another word of warning is that unless you have a credit card with chip and pin (most US issued credit cards do not have this) when paying your road tolls on the Autostrada, you must use a lane that is manned. The credit card only lanes won't work for you as it won't recognize your credit card. We had a terrible experience with this, and had to back up in a crowded exit to get to the correct Kant. Not pretty! ;) This happened a few years ago, so if things have changed, perhaps someone can chime in. We also had a bad experience trying to purchase gas at a station that was totally unmanned...credit card wouldn't work there either. Wish the US had those chips and pins!

 

We may be getting them soon, since the uproar over the Target breach. Lots of talk here in So Cal about making the banks offer true "Chip & Pin" cards.

[agadora]

That would be great. But I have been looking into different ways of getting a chip and pin card. There are a few credit card companies in the US that do offer them. But it's difficult to find them.

 

 

 

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[CathyCruises]

You should be okay in rental car bit it will probably take you longer for the rental process than you think. I would do Orvieto first as most of the shops close for a few hours in the afternoon.

We did a private tour last May, really just transportation and the roads were quite rough but very scenic.

Civita di Bagnoregio is a wonderful small hill town. Our favorite! Make sure to have water with you as it is a long uphill walk to the town from the parking lot. We were there early June and it was very hot. Lots of Kodak moments. Enjoy.

 

Can't speak for Civitavecchia in particular, but we have found it much easier to pick up a rental car in Europe than in US. Reserve ahead to make it even easier. I have had great luck with Europcar; last April we rented a car for a week in France, picked up in Lyon and dropped in Paris, for $137 dollars. 'Sign here' and off you go. In Zurich, they basically just handed us the keys.

 

Great advice from Hank, the driving is actually easy, just got to be careful of the speed traps. We only spent a month there but I found the signage to be good and the roundabouts make traffic flow well. A day trip will be a piece of cake.

[slidergirl]

The rental process for getting the car has never taken longer than getting a rental car anywhere else. Well, unless you can always use the Hertz #1 lane…

Yes, you do have to be mindful which lane you get in when exiting the autostrada if you don't have a C&P card. Be sure to have some Euro with you! Also, for a truly Italian experience, stop in at one of the Autogrills!!! Good place to use the restroom and pick up just about anything you could want for the road trip!!! My interest was piqued when Mario Batali mentioned Autogrill as a good stopping place...

[I-Cruiser]

Since my group of four and I will be in Rome post-cruise, we are thinking of renting a car and doing a DIY trip to Orvieto and Civita di Bagnoregio. Here is my working itinerary for the day, and I'd love input from anyone on if it's doable, realistic, etc.

 

Also, I've never driven in Italy and am curious about the ease of it all. The only other country I've driven in, besides the U.S., is Canada. :)

 

We are in port from 8am-7pm.

 

-- 8:30 Pick up Hertz car rental

-- 10:00 Orvieto: Farmer's Market, Duomo, and wandering

-- 12:15 Orvieto Underground tour

-- 2:00 Civita di Bagnoregio

-- 4:00 Return to Civitavecchia

-- 5:30 Drop off car

 

I always wanted to do this itinerary but never came around to it.

Your itinerary and timings does it give any lea-room for any "just in case"/eventualities ??

[agadora]

We are not committed to the underground tour so that gives us some wiggle room if needed. Also if, worst case scenario, we miss our ship because of some unforeseen trouble, our next port is Naples so we won't be stuck trying to find a way to a different country.

 

 

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