subject: What You Need To Remember About Driving On The Continent [print this page] If you're taking a break in Europe soon and are contemplating driving, no matter how experienced of a driver you are, if you're driving on the continent for the first time, it can be a slightly daunting experience.
Once you've arranged your car hire, it's advisable that you carry out some research into driving in Europe, as although many of the basic principles are the same as in the UK, there are some notable differences, as well as additional pieces of information you need to keep in mind.
For example, whilst in the UK most breakdown companies advise that you keep a reflective jacket and warning triangle in your car in case you break down, did you know that it is required by law in the majority of European countries to carry a reflective jacket and in countries such as France you can be fined up to 100 pounds if you fail to have one? Most European countries also require you to carry a warning triangle with you but this varies depending the country but if you're travelling through Spain for example, you will need 2 warning triangles so make sure you check the road safety regulations for each country you're intending to visit.
Whilst most cars will have a warning triangle available, it's worthwhile keeping in mind that car hire companies aren't obliged to provide reflective jackets. Therefore, either contact the car hire company before you leave for your holiday to find out or invest in and pack a reflective jacket in your suitcase.
It's also worthwhile keeping in mind that in a lot of European countries, the use of devices that show where speed cameras are located is prohibited.
Available as a feature on a lot of satellite navigation systems, there's no need to not take your SatNav with you, you just need to make sure that you've disabled the feature that displays where all fixed speed cameras are.
One of the parts that people find most daunting about European driving is trying to convert KPH (Kilometres per hour) into MPH (Miles per hour), if your speedometer doesn't display KPH alongside MPH as some models do, a good thing to remember is that 100 KPH is roughly 62 miles an hour and most recommended speed limits on European motorways are 130 KPH which is 80 MPH, 10 MPH above the UK motorway speed limit.
However, it's important to remember that this doesn't mean you should drive faster than you normally would in the UK and if you're not comfortable driving at speed, don't, just drive in the inside lane or avoid the motorways completely.
And you can't forget the fact that every European country other than the UK drives on the right side of the road. Fortunately, it's a lot easier to get to grips with than you would think, as you generally just follow the traffic in front of you and the markings on the road.
To show just how easy it is, next time you get into your car, try driving by either following the car in front or by the road markings. With the latter, they're painted on the road in such a way that it would be difficult to, for example, go around a roundabout the wrong way without driving over the lines first.
Driving on the continent can be a daunting but extremely exciting experience and as long as you've done your research properly and are a safe and considerate driver at all times, the driving part of your holiday should be particularly enjoyable.
