Are you sure you really want/need to drive in Italy? The train network is very good, cheap and a lot more relaxing! This is especially so if you plan to visit the cities or want to enjoy a few drinks.
hoidayautos.com used to offer guarantee of best price but not sure if they still do. Whatever rental company I would advise you take out the extra CDW insurance as minor crashes are pretty common in Italy.
Whatever you decide I'm sure you'll have a great time in Italia.
I'd have to say that my experience of driving in Italy was really good. They go pretty fast ok (remember we used to do that here?), but the roads are superb it takes about 1.5 hours to travel 150kms from Malpensa airport to Lake Garda without break speed limits - can you imagine doing this in modern day Ireland.
I've recently done some research to find the best Car Hire deal out of Milan Linate Airport. The price range was substantial for a mid-range car. eg for 12 days rental the worst price was 841$ and best price was $405.
I suggest you try www.italycar.net/ .
Others are www.orbitz.com which does a trawl for the different rental providers in the region.
I'm due to get a hire car as part of my holiday package - does anyone know will I have pick up any extra insurance or should this be part of my holiday package? I take it my Irish Insurance doesn't cover me.
I've just booked four days' rental of a Fiesta with Hertz (via the Ryanair website) for EU103 all in - CDW, insurance, tax, unlimited km, etc, from Trieste Airport.
If you are going to southern Italy (e.g. Amalfi Coast) I'd recommend as small a car as you can fit yourselves and your stuff into. The roads can be pretty narrow, especially if you've rented a coastal villa or whatever. We had a midsize car a couple of years ago and were barely able to get too our house.
Used Argus in Italy a few years ago, all went fine. I liked driving in Italy, they go a bit quicker but thought v good drivers IMO, much safer than here, roads generally much better as well. A good idea for car rental is to check the price comparison sites, such as travel supermarket etc.... these often come back with good value, always have a good look around, the difference in prices for the same package can be huge.