Yes — with your US licence and an International Driving Permit.
The permit is issued in the United States, so it is not something you can sort out after you land.
If you do not have one, you can still do the whole tour: you ride as a passenger.
The short version: a US licence on its own is not enough.
You need the licence plus an IDP, and you carry both while riding. Nobody in Rome can issue you one
— not us, not the police, not a town hall.
This page exists because it is the question we are asked most, and because every season
somebody arrives at 9:25 for a 9:30 departure and finds out the hard way. Five minutes here saves that morning.
What the law actually asks for
Italy requires a driver holding a non-EU licence to carry an International Driving Permit
alongside the original. The IDP is not a licence of its own: it is a standardised translation of yours into ten
languages, valid only together with the document it translates. Carry both, or neither counts.
There is a second route in the rules — an official sworn translation of your licence — and it is
perfectly legal. But it needs a certified translator and a court stamp, which is realistic if you live here and
not if you are on holiday with a tour booked for tomorrow morning.
Where to get one, and when
In the United States the permit is issued by AAA. You can walk into a AAA office and usually walk out with it,
or apply by post to their permit office in Florida. Membership is not required.
Who issues itAAA, in the United States
What you bringYour US licence, two passport photos, a small fee
How long it takesOften the same visit; longer by post
In RomeCannot be issued. No exceptions.
Get it before you fly. An American permit can only come from an American authority. Once you
are in Italy the only legal alternative is the sworn translation, and that is not a morning errand.
If your trip is still weeks away, this is a twenty-minute job. If you are flying tomorrow,
read the next section instead.
Which tour is yours
Book the self-drive tour if you hold a valid US licence, you have the IDP in hand, you have
real experience on a scooter or motorcycle, and city traffic does not worry you. Rome is not where you learn
to ride.
Book the passenger tour if you have no permit, or no time to get one, or you have never
ridden a scooter, or you would simply rather look at the city than at the road. Nothing to check, nothing to
carry, nothing to sign.
If two of you travel together and only one has the licence and the permit, you share a Vespa: one drives,
one rides behind. That is the cheapest way to do the self-drive tour, and it needs one set of documents
rather than two.
No permit? You still get the tour
The passenger tour is the same route, the same eight stops, the same guide and the same two and a half
hours. The only difference is who holds the handlebars. Plenty of couples book it on purpose, so that both
of them can actually look at Rome instead of at the scooter in front.
Two up on one Vespa at the Janiculum: only the rider needs documents.
Already booked the self-drive and just realised? Write to us and we move
your booking across at no extra charge. Tell us before you travel if you can, so we have a driver and a Vespa
free for your slot.
Riding in Rome as an American: what catches people out
Not the rules, which are much the same as home. The rhythm. Traffic runs closer together, scooters filter
between lanes as a matter of course, and right of way is negotiated as much as signposted. Cobblestones are
slippery after rain, and the tram rails through Trastevere deserve respect.
That is why the self-drive tour has a guide in front: you follow one line through the city instead of
reading a map at a junction. But following still means riding, which is why we ask for genuine scooter
experience rather than enthusiasm — and why there is a short test ride before anyone is handed a key.
You follow one line through the city: the guide picks the route and the gaps.
Questions people ask us
Can I get an International Driving Permit in Italy?
No. A US permit can only be issued in the United States, by AAA. No office in Rome, or anywhere in Europe,
can issue one to a US licence holder.
Can I drive in Italy with just my US licence?
Not for this. Italy requires a non-EU licence to be accompanied by an International Driving Permit or an
official sworn translation. Without one of the two you are not entitled to ride.
What happens if I ride without one?
You can be stopped and fined, and the vehicle can be held. We also cannot hand you a Vespa: as the operator
we answer for who we let ride, and we check documents before every departure. It is the condition on which we
are allowed to run the tour at all.
Is the IDP a licence on its own?
No. It is a translation of your own licence, valid only alongside the original. Carry both.
Is it difficult for Americans to ride in Rome?
If you ride at home, you will manage: denser traffic and faster reactions than most US cities, but you are
following a guide who chooses the route and the gaps. If your scooter experience is one rented moped on holiday,
this is not the place to build on it.
Is the passenger tour really the same tour?
Same route, same eight stops, same guide, same two and a half hours. Only the seat changes.
How long is an IDP valid?
One year from the date it takes effect, and AAA asks that it be used within six months of that date. For a
holiday it is comfortably enough.
Still not sure which one to book?
Ask on WhatsApp before you pay — including the awkward questions about documents. You get an answer
from Francesco, not a contact form.
