We are leasing a car for our trip to France and Italy in September this year. We will still have the car while we are in Rome for 6 days, although we don't plan to use it during this time. We have booked an apartment in Campo de Fiori area and not sure what the best thing is to do with the car.If anyone has some suggestions or good ideas to help we would be very grateful.

You should probably look for periphery parking where there is good public transport. Tibertina comes to mind, where there is a big metro and bus station and a lot of parking. I have no idea what it costs, but in Roma Centro I paid €16 for 2 hours while at the Embassy for business.
Aha! Found a locator, but no pricing.
http://parcheggi.informadove.it/locator.asp
The site is in Italian, so I expect it is a practical price level, but who knows? One thing I would not do is leave a car unattended on any street in Rome for longer than an hour. (Presuming you could ever find a space for even an hour.)

quote:

Originally posted by susi:
We are leasing a car for our trip to France and Italy in September this year. We will still have the car while we are in Rome for 6 days, although we don't plan to use it during this time. We have booked an apartment in Campo de Fiori area and not sure what the best thing is to do with the car.If anyone has some suggestions or good ideas to help we would be very grateful.

The BEST thing would be to give it back to the rental agency and save some $$. Parking, particularly in the campo fiori area is impossible. Why would you pay rental on a vehicle that is doing nothing but sitting? Not to mention parking costs. And remember your car may not have the correct license for staying in centro storico. Cost if it doesn't have the right permit? 100 euro per day.

Having a car in Rome is like having a car in Venice. It's an anchor not wings.

Agree with turning it in. Do you have a special rate (monthly) that makes you want to keep the car?
Where will you be driving from?

Likely, you have a monthly rate that would be disrupted (i.e. go away) if you split up the rental.

One convenient place to park would be the parking structure at the Villa Borghese. You can then walk right to the metro, or to the exit of all the underground passways near the Spanish Steps, and then to the Campo area.

If it's a lease, you probably need to keep the car the whole time. The Villa Borghese garage is one option; there are lots at some of the peripheral metro stations, but it's reportedly hard to find a spot there.

quote:

Originally posted by susi:
We are leasing a car for our trip to France and Italy in September this year.

Oops, just saw the lease part. When you lease the car make SURE they give you whatever it is you need to be able to drive in central Rome. Even the Borghese Garage falls within the no-drive zone. Add in the alternate days driving restrictions - even license plates even # days odd license plates odd # days and you could end up with some severely hefty fines.

Can you leave the car someplace like Perugia? or at least someplace in Lazio BESIDES Rome? Train into Rome from this outside location.

If you have a car trying to tour with it isn't going to be like the old Kodak commercial. The one with the guide who drives by going "coloseo, fontana trevi". I gotta tell you that filming that commercial must have disrupted Rome traffic for WEEKS. You can't even walk by Trevi without a hassle because of the crowds.

Another option would be to schedule Rome at the beginning of your trip and lease after your 6 days in Rome. Or leave Rome until the end of your trip and turn the vehicle back in before you head into centro.

Thanks everyone for the good advice. Yes, the car is leased rather than rented and we will be driving it from France into Italy.
You've really got me worried about the right permits to even drive into Rome to park. I tend to doubt getting anything like that from a French leasing agency, (all handled in Australia)
I have a whole new lot of things to work out. Possibly I might be better to cancel the apartment in Rome anyway and go for something further out and commute. The apartment was with Romecityapartments, and we've been rather worried after the recent go on on this site! I really loved the thought of staying right in the centre of things though - especially as we will be flying our 20 year old son to Rome from his own stay in Russia, for his 21st birthday! What do people think? I feel a bit confused at the moment as to what do do for the best. I'm sure we'll work it out, especially with the advice that I hope you good people keep coming!

Here are two suggestions that come to mind:
1) start a new thread "Looking for a place near Rome to leave my car for the week". There may be an agriturismo owner that would be glad to store your car for a fee and drive you to the nearest train station (and I'm thinking as far out as Orvieto or Chiusi)so you can go on and enjoy your apartment in Rome.
2) search SlowTrav reviews and classifieds for travel consultants, rentals or hotels in Lazio for likely places to commute from or to leave your car.

Good luck and enjoy your trip.
Jeanne

Or consider long-term parking at Ciampino airport.

Kayd came up with an excellent idea. Park at either Fiumicino or Ciampino. There's good public transportation frome either location, you won't be within the GRA (the ring road) so you don't need to worry about the special permits.

Don't give up on Rome just because you have a car.

What excellent ideas! I think I may try the airport one. FANTASTIC. Thanks

This page from the airport site, which I find only in Italian, appears to say that if you reserve parking in advance at Fiumicino, you can get it for €5.50 a day if it includes a holiday, which can be a Sunday. Otherwise the lowest I find at either airport is €18 a day, but it gets lower after a certain number of days.

There is FREE parking at Ciampino just outside the gates, so I am told. My friend seeks cheap tix out of Ciampino for that very reason. Will the car be safe? Hers was.