Driving in Italy

We have been invited to a wedding in June in Ostuni, which is a little town near Bari.
There are no direct flights there from the UK so the next best thing to do is fly to Naples and then drive or get the train, but there does not seem to be any direct train routes.
It's a 3 1/2 hour drive from Naples to Ostuni, does anyone have any experiences driving in Italy? Good bad or indifferent?
Thanks guys! 

I drove all around Tuscany a few years back without too many problems.  I would say the road signs are not always the best but DH is a great co-pilot/map reader so we didn't have too many problems.  I didn't drive in any large cities, I would think that could be a nightmare but the highways were just fine, as were the country roads.

Are you aware that Ryanair fly from Stansted to Bari and to Brindisi? That would cut down on your driving!

I was just about to say that. And there are two trains per hour from Bari to Ostuni - Italian trains are a joy!

http://www.trenitalia.com/cms/v/index.jsp?vgnextoid=ad1ce14114bc9110VgnVCM10000080a3e90aRCRD

Vicky

Italians are the worst drivers in the world but as long as you weren't driving in cities or towns too much you'd probably be ok.

You couldn't pay me to drive in Italy!

Sicily had the scariest drivers I've ever seen! 

Are you aware that Ryanair fly from Stansted to Bari and to Brindisi? That would cut down on your driving!

Yep but only 2 flights/week, plus I dont think all that much of Ryanair these days.

I was just about to say that. And there are two trains per hour from Bari to Ostuni - Italian trains are a joy!

http://www.trenitalia.com/cms/v/index.jsp?vgnextoid=ad1ce14114bc9110VgnVCM10000080a3e90aRCRD

Vicky

If we fly to Naples, it would be 2 trains but I guess we can revisit flying to Bari 

Much of Italy is fine but Naples is horrendous.  My husband was posted there for a while and whenever we visited I flatly refused to drive (and I've driven in the Netherlands, France and the US (for three years)).  I've never seen anything so scary in my life! 

Once you're out of town you should be okay  but in Naples don't expect anyone to obey any of the street signs (eg one-way, red lights etc) - they seem to treat them all as 'advisory'!  I'll always remember the three lane motorway we drove on which had five lanes of traffic!

Once you're out of town you should be okay  but in Naples don't expect anyone to obey any of the street signs (eg one-way, red lights etc) - they seem to treat them all as 'advisory'!  I'll always remember the three lane motorway we drove on which had five lanes of traffic!

Yep, my taxi ride in Naples shaved a few years off my life. The only thing scarier was my taxi rides in India!

Much of Italy is fine but Naples is horrendous.  My husband was posted there for a while and whenever we visited I flatly refused to drive (and I've driven in the Netherlands, France and the US (for three years)).  I've never seen anything so scary in my life! 

Once you're out of town you should be okay  but in Naples don't expect anyone to obey any of the street signs (eg one-way, red lights etc) - they seem to treat them all as 'advisory'!  I'll always remember the three lane motorway we drove on which had five lanes of traffic!

Somehow I can believe all of this!

Taking Bari and Brindisi together there is one Ryanair flight per day. Well there will be in June. And one of the "benefits" of low cost airlines is that you effectively book each leg of the journey separately, so not a problem flying into Bari, and out of Brindisi, or vice versa, if you want to do that.

Basic details on this webpage.

My aunt and uncle drove in Italy and their car had sat nav. It didn't always work and often had them going the wrong way. They switched back to the ol' map in the end!

http://www.albinoblacksheep.com/flash/italy 

Personally, I like driving in Italy.  I've driven in Naples, Milan, Padua and other places.  I like how all the laws and traffic signs are for advice only.  That's because I don't have a clue what to do myself.  Therefore, I am less liable to get a ticket.  What I don't like is an extremely orderly country with redlights cams, speed cams, strict lanes and other rules that I do not have knowledge of.  Then I get tickets mailed to me from the rental agency when I get home...I still remember receiving a ticket from a Zurich speed cam (1 km/hr over) a couple of weeks after I got back to the States.  Yup...I'll take Italy or Mexico or even Guatemala first.