Italy Guide
Getting around
By car
Travelling by car in Italy is relatively painless, though cities and their ring roads can be hard work. The roads are good, the autostrada (motorway) network very comprehensive, and the notorious Italian drivers rather less erratic than their reputation suggests. The best plan is to avoid driving in cities as much as possible; the congestion, proliferation of complex one-way systems and confusing signage can make it a nightmare.
Bear in mind that the traffic can be heavy on main roads (particularly over public holiday weekends and the first and last weekends of Aug) and appalling in city centres. Rush hour during the week usually runs from 7.30am to 9am and from 5pm to 9pm when roads in and around the major cities can be gridlocked.
Although Italians are by no means the world's worst drivers they don't win any safety prizes either. The secret is to make it very clear what you're going to do – and then do it. A particular danger for unaccustomed drivers is the large number of scooters that can appear suddenly from the blind spot or dash across junctions and red lights with alarming recklessness.
Most petrol stations give you the choice of self-service (Fai da te) or, for a few centesimi more per litre, someone will fill the tank and usually wipe down the windscreen while they're at it. Petrol stations often have the same working hours as shops, which means they'll be closed for a couple of hours at noon, shut up shop at around 7pm and are likely to be closed on Sundays. Outside these times many have a self-service facility payable into a machine between the pumps by bank note or, more rarely, credit card; these are often not well advertised so you might need to go onto the forecourt to check.