Car Rentals At Messina (Sicily) Port?

[anniversay/grad trip]

My DH and I are planning to rent a car in Messina and drive to Taormina on our upcoming Med cruise (June)....Can anyone tell me if there are car rental agencies at this port? I know when we cruised the Med before several ports had agencies (Hertz, Budget etc) right at the terminal...Is this the case in Messina? Or should we try and find an agency in the town of Messina? Has anyone done this that could give us some insight? My husband is Sicilian so the language barrier is not an issue....

[anniversay/grad trip]

My DH and I are planning to rent a car in Messina and drive to Taormina on our upcoming Med cruise (June)....Can anyone tell me if there are car rental agencies at this port? I know when we cruised the Med before several ports had agencies (Hertz, Budget etc) right at the terminal...Is this the case in Messina? Or should we try and find an agency in the town of Messina? Has anyone done this that could give us some insight? My husband is Sicilian so the language barrier is not an issue....

 

Has anyone drove a rental from Messina port to Taormina?

[the_goat]

Do you need an international driver's license to rent a car in Messina?

[cruiser620]

When we were in Messina a few years ago, we did rent a car and drive to Taormina. I can't remember the name of the company now, but I do remember that it was a short walk to the right from the port and across the street. If you search this forum, you might find the info. You should definitely reserve a car in advance. I can't drive a manual transmission and had reserved an automatic, but when we got there they didn't have one. Fortunately my son was with me and could drive the stick. I did not have an international driver's license and have rented cars all over the world and have never been asked for one. It was nice to have the car since we could stop and take pictures whenever we wanted and also buy drinks and snacks at a store along the way. After visiting Taormina we drove to this cool gorge where locals go -- Alcantara. It was great!

[the_goat]

When we were in Messina a few years ago, we did rent a car and drive to Taormina. I can't remember the name of the company now, but I do remember that it was a short walk to the right from the port and across the street. If you search this forum, you might find the info. You should definitely reserve a car in advance. I can't drive a manual transmission and had reserved an automatic, but when we got there they didn't have one. Fortunately my son was with me and could drive the stick. I did not have an international driver's license and have rented cars all over the world and have never been asked for one. It was nice to have the car since we could stop and take pictures whenever we wanted and also buy drinks and snacks at a store along the way. After visiting Taormina we drove to this cool gorge where locals go -- Alcantara. It was great!

 

Thanks for your input. Do you remember, was it fairly easy to find your way from Messina to Taormina? Did your rental car have a GPS?

[cruiser620]

Our car did not have GPS. I don't remember it being at all difficult to get to Taormina from Messina. Most of it was a major highway (toll road) and I think there were exit signs. Taormina is a major destination. We just got a map from the car rental. The road wound around the mountains and through tunnels -- very scenic for picture taking. When we returned to Messina, we did have a little trouble finding the place to leave the car. The rental office was closed at that time and they had just told us where to park it, but it was a little confusing. Everything worked out fine, though