Rome-Florence-Pisa-Cinque Terre-Venice

The staff at Hertz in Rome Airport were helpful, guiding and arranging a vehicle swap. Even though the originally reserved higher-class vehicle was not available, they provided us with a Peugeot 3008.

Not crowded, no queues

The car pickup speed was reasonable, mainly because I was the first one there, and it took 15 minutes to complete the process. At first, they did recommend some additional insurance, but when I insisted on sticking with the order amount, they didn't push it. Italians have a relaxed approach, handling business while making phone calls, but overall, it was fine with no unpleasant experiences. If you're unlucky and there's a queue, the waiting time could be long.

I picked up the car at Rome Fiumicino Airport. The directions from the arrival hall to the second floor were very clear, and the counter service was quick. Self-pickup car, a brand new hybrid with only 21 kilometers. Returning the car outside Florence Airport was initially challenging as I had trouble finding it. After asking for directions, I finally found it. It wasn’t far, but the route was somewhat complex. Car return involved a simple inspection and some questions. Not sure if there will be any issues later since the pre-authorization is still pending.

It took a while to complete paperwork thus time. I’m not sure why as Zi am a Gold member and have rented from this office 4 times in the last 6 months. The car they finally gave me was not the category I rented and much larger than I wanted. I had to change it in the garage and had to wait again for a smaller car. All in all, it was a very long process to rent a car for a day.