Driving in Spain
Discussion
Ok, go gentle as I know it's 'only Spain', but I'm not well travelled, and my only experience driving abroad was in Greece years ago which wasn't great as (a) it was Greece and (b) I'd had a fairly hefty car accident the week before.
Anyway... me and Mrs CC are off to Spain in a few weeks, picking up a hire car from Madrid and driving down to Cuidad Real, possibly a couple of days in Toledo on the way back. All family stuff, so driving will be less PH and more functional so plan to stick to main routes to get there quicker.
I've read a couple of online guides, but just looking for a bit of friendly advice or pointers if anyone has anything useful? Just stuff to be aware of or bear in mind.
Anyway... me and Mrs CC are off to Spain in a few weeks, picking up a hire car from Madrid and driving down to Cuidad Real, possibly a couple of days in Toledo on the way back. All family stuff, so driving will be less PH and more functional so plan to stick to main routes to get there quicker.
I've read a couple of online guides, but just looking for a bit of friendly advice or pointers if anyone has anything useful? Just stuff to be aware of or bear in mind.
CaptainCosworth said:
Ok, go gentle as I know it's 'only Spain', but I'm not well travelled, and my only experience driving abroad was in Greece years ago which wasn't great as (a) it was Greece and (b) I'd had a fairly hefty car accident the week before.
Anyway... me and Mrs CC are off to Spain in a few weeks, picking up a hire car from Madrid and driving down to Cuidad Real, possibly a couple of days in Toledo on the way back. All family stuff, so driving will be less PH and more functional so plan to stick to main routes to get there quicker.
I've read a couple of online guides, but just looking for a bit of friendly advice or pointers if anyone has anything useful? Just stuff to be aware of or bear in mind.
In General, nothing to really worry about. The majority of Spanish seem pretty chilled, and drive at/below posted limits. Never seen any road rage (at least in the South). Not sure about Madrid/your route, but major roads in the South have pretty light traffic levels.Anyway... me and Mrs CC are off to Spain in a few weeks, picking up a hire car from Madrid and driving down to Cuidad Real, possibly a couple of days in Toledo on the way back. All family stuff, so driving will be less PH and more functional so plan to stick to main routes to get there quicker.
I've read a couple of online guides, but just looking for a bit of friendly advice or pointers if anyone has anything useful? Just stuff to be aware of or bear in mind.
Biggest watch out is general driving standards are pretty poor... seems to be more a lack of interest/awareness than anything else.
Beware of roundabouts with multiple entry lanes... many Spanish enter in the right lane and will use this for any exit (ie; they will go all the way round in the outside lane). 1st few times this happened to me I was 'WTF?'... just expect it now.
Very little, if any, use of indicators (see above!).
Lane discipline on 3 lane motorways is absolutely dire - most drivers just sit in lane 2 at <100kph (120 limit), with empty lane 1.
Some road design/road markings wouldn't pass our H&S... multiple lanes merging in to one short, single lane slip road joining a motorway for example.
If you just think everyone around you is an idiot and drive accordingly, you'll be fine.
I always hire cars in Spain and have never experienced bad driving issues.
Many roads are empty (depends where you are), most drivers are no worse than the UK - some are hell bent on overtaking but let them go.
To be honest, I have found far better lane discipline on motorways from Barcelona right down to Southern Spain. Most return to the inside lane.
Watch for toll roads as they can be expensive (sat nav useful here as non-toll rioads can meander a bit, confusing the hell out of you).
The only real issue that caused my jaw to drop is the way some people, when parking, will happily shunt cars to get into a space, after all, that is "what bumpers are for" so always park conservatively. Most Spanish treat their cars as dodgems and many are dented, certainly never polished and are largely "commodities that transport".
They can be pushy, in cities but that will be because you will be the one driving like a numpty (take a sat-nav, repeat...) and getting out of a city can be difficult (I once got hopelessly lost in Malaga... take a sat-nav)
I do advise a sat nav as the motorways may have an off-ramp but not necessarily one to get back on again (I know...) and they all look the damn same so motorways can run parallel to one another and it can be miles to the next junction and you still won't know which direction you're heading as the Spanish helpfully signpost major cities that can be 200km away but not 2km away.
Anyway, my two cents worth.
Many roads are empty (depends where you are), most drivers are no worse than the UK - some are hell bent on overtaking but let them go.
To be honest, I have found far better lane discipline on motorways from Barcelona right down to Southern Spain. Most return to the inside lane.
Watch for toll roads as they can be expensive (sat nav useful here as non-toll rioads can meander a bit, confusing the hell out of you).
The only real issue that caused my jaw to drop is the way some people, when parking, will happily shunt cars to get into a space, after all, that is "what bumpers are for" so always park conservatively. Most Spanish treat their cars as dodgems and many are dented, certainly never polished and are largely "commodities that transport".
They can be pushy, in cities but that will be because you will be the one driving like a numpty (take a sat-nav, repeat...) and getting out of a city can be difficult (I once got hopelessly lost in Malaga... take a sat-nav)
I do advise a sat nav as the motorways may have an off-ramp but not necessarily one to get back on again (I know...) and they all look the damn same so motorways can run parallel to one another and it can be miles to the next junction and you still won't know which direction you're heading as the Spanish helpfully signpost major cities that can be 200km away but not 2km away.
Anyway, my two cents worth.
...and pedestrian crossings!!! There are LOADS of them in Cities and Towns. You MUST prepare to stop on every occasion as pedestrians will just walk out with the complete assumption that you have seen them. Yes of course this is understandable and quite correct of them to do so however when you're new to a road system and jockeying for the correct lane (in our case, a 7m+ motorhome!) in a City, you really need an extra set of eyes to keep you (and everyone else) safe.
Have fun. Toledo is lovely!
Have fun. Toledo is lovely!
)I bet when you come back, you will wonder why you asked the question. Driving is very similar to the UK, perhaps with the majority of drivers more mindful of speed limits.
A slight odd one is that drivers on the Autovia tend to drive like Fernando - you know, the one that is faster than you. They will draft up onto your boot, pop out, and then cut back hard in front of you, for no apparent reason.
Compared to France where you have odd things like PaD, Spain is quite sensible. I am driving down to Marbella on Friday, its a Bank Holiday, and driving through the centre of Madrid on Saturday morning will be uneventful. Passing arround Madrid, and from the airport, there are 3 ring-roads, with tolls, so spotting any traffic will be difficult enough. Make your intentions plain by signalling well in advance and the locals will just drive around you.
A slight odd one is that drivers on the Autovia tend to drive like Fernando - you know, the one that is faster than you. They will draft up onto your boot, pop out, and then cut back hard in front of you, for no apparent reason.
Compared to France where you have odd things like PaD, Spain is quite sensible. I am driving down to Marbella on Friday, its a Bank Holiday, and driving through the centre of Madrid on Saturday morning will be uneventful. Passing arround Madrid, and from the airport, there are 3 ring-roads, with tolls, so spotting any traffic will be difficult enough. Make your intentions plain by signalling well in advance and the locals will just drive around you.
As others have said, watch the speed limits. I got fined last year for doing 130Kph in a 120 limit - something that wouldn't have happened in the UK. No tolerances are applied. Plus, you'll probably get an extra admin charge from the hire company for all the paperwork they have to do.
Having said obey the speed limits, you'll find a lot of people on the Autopistas and Autovias driving at Warp Factor 7 in the outside lane. They will come up very fast and then sit inches off your back bumper until you move over which can be a bit frightening. It tends to happen more on the pay motorways, which have an awful lot less traffic on them than the carreteras nacionales.
Enjoy yourself. Spain is a great country, and some of the scenery can be spectacular, especially in the National Parks.
Having said obey the speed limits, you'll find a lot of people on the Autopistas and Autovias driving at Warp Factor 7 in the outside lane. They will come up very fast and then sit inches off your back bumper until you move over which can be a bit frightening. It tends to happen more on the pay motorways, which have an awful lot less traffic on them than the carreteras nacionales.
Enjoy yourself. Spain is a great country, and some of the scenery can be spectacular, especially in the National Parks.
LuS1fer said:
The only real issue that caused my jaw to drop is the way some people, when parking, will happily shunt cars to get into a space, after all, that is "what bumpers are for" so always park conservatively. Most Spanish treat their cars as dodgems and many are dented, certainly never polished and are largely "commodities that transport".
The first flat I had in Madrid was in an area with a lot of bars. Cars would park three deep outside the entrance to the building. All left their handbrakes off, and if you were parked on the inside you just pushed them around until you had enough space to get out. Good times.IIRC you must carry a warning triangle, hiviz vest.
ETA: As per the RAC website http://www.rac.co.uk/drive/travel/country/spain/
ETA: As per the RAC website http://www.rac.co.uk/drive/travel/country/spain/
Whoozit said:
IIRC you must carry a warning triangle, hiviz vest.
ETA: As per the RAC website http://www.rac.co.uk/drive/travel/country/spain/
One thing that is mentioned on that link, and which is a big difference from the UK, is the 'priority on the right' rule. It doesn't seem to be as much of an issue in the bigger towns now as it used to be because there are more 'Stop' and Give Way (Ceda el Paso) signs than there were before, but it can still catch you out on an unmarked junction.ETA: As per the RAC website http://www.rac.co.uk/drive/travel/country/spain/
One other thing that I remembered as I drove round Madrid last Saturday is the slightly odd method of signing forward destinations.
Passing arround the East side routes go something like Zaragoza, Airport, Valencia, Córdoba. You will probably want Córdoba. While you might expect Zaragoza signed to the right and all the others straight ahead, you only get the next destination ahead I.e. Airport. It is also possible to get Valencia to the right exit and Valencia straight on. One will be via a Peage. Red circle with black horizontal bar, white background.
It is not as bad now we all have SatNavs, but it was very confusing the first time I did it back in 2000. This seems unique to Madrid, other city ring-roads are normal.
Passing arround the East side routes go something like Zaragoza, Airport, Valencia, Córdoba. You will probably want Córdoba. While you might expect Zaragoza signed to the right and all the others straight ahead, you only get the next destination ahead I.e. Airport. It is also possible to get Valencia to the right exit and Valencia straight on. One will be via a Peage. Red circle with black horizontal bar, white background.
It is not as bad now we all have SatNavs, but it was very confusing the first time I did it back in 2000. This seems unique to Madrid, other city ring-roads are normal.
As others have said, adopt the 'locals' way of negotiating roundabouts (go round in the outside lane even if going straight on or turning left) because if you do it the 'UK' way you might have difficulty in exiting.
Also, where there is a 'stop' sign make sure you do come to a standstill. If you are seen by the Guardia not stopping you will be fined.
I think two warning triangles are required to be in the vehicle.
Also, where there is a 'stop' sign make sure you do come to a standstill. If you are seen by the Guardia not stopping you will be fined.
I think two warning triangles are required to be in the vehicle.
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