re: Hertz Italy Charged Credit Card for Traffic Violation

I’ve spent lots of time in Italy, sans car, and had wonderful vacations.

But the best trips have all involved driving & getting into the countryside. Of course, city driving is crazy, a hassle, and mostly not worth it. The countryside, though....well worth the driving. Went from Rome all the way to Palermo and back in Feb, via car. Nothing short of amazing....the mountains of Basilicata & Calabria, crossing the Strait of Messina (seeing the Scylla & Charybdis), the northern coast of Sicily w/views to the Aeolian islands, the countryside around Mt. Etna, the miles of orange groves and the olive orchards around Enna in the Sicilian interior where Persephone descended into the underworld. Anyone who likes ancient ruins and excellent food should do some driving in Italy & get off the generic tourist trails after they’ve seen the obligatory sights.

The major tourist sites of Italy are almost overwhelmed with mass tourism: lines, crowds, hordes of too-large organized groups being herded from place to place. Thankfully, so much of that lovely country is still off the beaten path if you bother to drive.