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International driver's licence required in Spain?
hi there
Planning to rent a car for a week to explore Andalucia in March. Would a Canadian driver's licence be okay or an international driver's licence required? cliff |
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International driver's licence required in Spain?
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International driver's licence required in Spain?
"cliff" wrote in message m... hi there Planning to rent a car for a week to explore Andalucia in March. Would a Canadian driver's licence be okay or an international driver's licence required? Hi. We have been sucked into that Intl Drivers Lic thing a few times and after multiple trips to all over Europe renting cars all the way, finally decided not to get one again. To answer your question, I'd be surprised. We rented a car recently in Malaga which might be where you're flying into. My Calif license was fine with them. I can't imagine a Canadian licence giving them a problem. Just to be sure, you might try to get a straight answer from the company you're renting from--possibly easier said than done.. Cheers. Bruce |
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International driver's licence required in Spain?
On Tue, 6 Jan 2004 08:43:18 -0800, "Bruce in Calif"
wrote: "cliff" wrote in message om... hi there Planning to rent a car for a week to explore Andalucia in March. Would a Canadian driver's licence be okay or an international driver's licence required? We have been sucked into that Intl Drivers Lic thing a few times and after multiple trips to all over Europe renting cars all the way, finally decided not to get one again. What, you fell for that big $10 scam perpetrated by Triple A? Seriously though, several European countries, including Italy, require international driving licenses ALONG WITH your American license unless you come from one of the countries that has a license format conforming to EU requirements. That doesn't mean that a rental company will ask to see it, because basically your American license is the valid document for driving and the IDP is just an official translation of it. However, if you get stopped by a policeman, you may very well be faced with a big fine or worse if you just have that California license. Also, I saw on this newsgroup recently an account that a rental car agency in Italy had required the IDP along with the American license to rent a car. I don't know what the Spanish law is, but an Austrian poster here reported that an IDP is also required in Austria. ----------- Barbara Vaughan My email address is my first initial followed by my surname at libero dot it I answer travel questions only in the newsgroup |
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International driver's licence required in Spain?
You are going to spend a ton of money to fly to and explore parts of
Spain and are too cheap to pop for the $10? I don't know about Spain, but we rented cars in Greece and Croatia and the agencies all required an IDL. Besides, it's a fun little souvenir of the trip (all those languages!). (cliff) wrote: Planning to rent a car for a week to explore Andalucia in March. Would a Canadian driver's licence be okay or an international driver's licence required? cliff |
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International driver's licence required in Spain?
Bon Giorno Barbara,
2 points: First: If the IDL was available from a government agency, (like your regular drivers license) or at least openly available from a competitor at your corner convenience store, then I would find it more acceptable... the fact that a FOR PROFIT corporation {AAA} seems to hold a monopoly on that market, borders on the un-American! Second: In my last 25 trips to Europe, I have rented cars numerous time in Austria, Czech Republic, France, Germany, Italy, Netherlands, Portugal, Slovakia, and Spain, (and been pulled over by the police in half of those countries, including Italy ;-), and not once have I ever required an IDL. So I usually just advise people to go with their own comfort level (or, whatever their rental car company's policy may be...) Ciao, Glenn B wrote: On Tue, 6 Jan 2004 08:43:18 -0800, "Bruce in Calif" wrote: "cliff" wrote in message . com... hi there Planning to rent a car for a week to explore Andalucia in March. Would a Canadian driver's licence be okay or an international driver's licence required? We have been sucked into that Intl Drivers Lic thing a few times and after multiple trips to all over Europe renting cars all the way, finally decided not to get one again. What, you fell for that big $10 scam perpetrated by Triple A? Seriously though, several European countries, including Italy, require international driving licenses ALONG WITH your American license unless you come from one of the countries that has a license format conforming to EU requirements. That doesn't mean that a rental company will ask to see it, because basically your American license is the valid document for driving and the IDP is just an official translation of it. However, if you get stopped by a policeman, you may very well be faced with a big fine or worse if you just have that California license. Also, I saw on this newsgroup recently an account that a rental car agency in Italy had required the IDP along with the American license to rent a car. I don't know what the Spanish law is, but an Austrian poster here reported that an IDP is also required in Austria. ----------- Barbara Vaughan My email address is my first initial followed by my surname at libero dot it I answer travel questions only in the newsgroup -- Glenn -- Reply addresses should be corrected for Auntie Spam! |
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International driver's licence required in Spain?
On Wed, 07 Jan 2004 06:15:12 GMT, Glenn
wrote: Bon Giorno Barbara, That's "Buon giorno". 2 points: First: If the IDL was available from a government agency, (like your regular drivers license) or at least openly available from a competitor at your corner convenience store, then I would find it more acceptable... the fact that a FOR PROFIT corporation {AAA} seems to hold a monopoly on that market, borders on the un-American! There is no monopoly; there are other ways to get an IDL than going to AAA, but they're all more expensive. You could even go to an Italian consulate and get an official translation of your American license, which would also satisfy the requirement but would be a lot more time-consuming. Second: In my last 25 trips to Europe, I have rented cars numerous time in Austria, Czech Republic, France, Germany, Italy, Netherlands, Portugal, Slovakia, and Spain, (and been pulled over by the police in half of those countries, including Italy ;-), and not once have I ever required an IDL. I've had liability insurance on my car for over 30 years and never once had to use it. I live in Italy and when I came here I inquired about getting an Italian license and using my American license in the interim. I was told that I could use my American license PROVIDED it was accompanied by an IDL. I was never stopped during the time that I was using the American license, but I know other American expatriates who HAVE been asked for the IDL. You were just lucky, but there has been a recent tightening up of all Italian driving laws and I wouldn't advise anyone to drive without complete legal documentation. So I usually just advise people to go with their own comfort level (or, whatever their rental car company's policy may be...) Which just confirms that there's lots of bad advice circulating on the internet. ----------- Barbara Vaughan My email address is my first initial followed by my surname at libero dot it I answer travel questions only in the newsgroup |
#8
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International driver's licence required in Spain?
Thanks for all the advice and comments. I think I'll cough up thirty
Canadain dollars to get the IDL's for the missus and myself - one fewer thing to distract us from enjoying the pleasures of Spain. cliff |
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International driver's licence required in Spain?
"cliff" wrote in message m... hi there Planning to rent a car for a week to explore Andalucia in March. Would a Canadian driver's licence be okay or an international driver's licence required? cliff I would definitely save that 30 bucks and treat yourself to a slap up meal for two in a good restaurant in Andalucia. Money much better spent IMHO. And Andalucia is not Italy. |
#10
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International driver's licence required in Spain?
B wrote:
On Wed, 07 Jan 2004 06:15:12 GMT, Glenn wrote: Bon Giorno Barbara, That's "Buon giorno". Grazie for the correction... I can be polite in almost a dozen languages, but can't spell worth a darn in any of them ;-) 2 points: First: If the IDL was available from a government agency, (like your regular drivers license) or at least openly available from a competitor at your corner convenience store, then I would find it more acceptable... the fact that a FOR PROFIT corporation {AAA} seems to hold a monopoly on that market, borders on the un-American! There is no monopoly; there are other ways to get an IDL than going to AAA, but they're all more expensive. You could even go to an Italian consulate and get an official translation of your American license, which would also satisfy the requirement but would be a lot more time-consuming. Mea Culpa ... Just did some research and found that there are "2" places that a U.S. citizen can get an IDL..(see "http://www.aaasouth.com/travel_drivers.asp"). All the other places that can be found online are just charging $20 (or much more) to pass the application on thru for the $10 AAA IDL. Apparently, I also have to retract my statement about AAA being a for profit corporation (even though their national headquarters building up the road here in Lake Mary, Florida sure shows a lot of conspicuous profits at work, imho). But, I still believe that charging $10 to renew an IDL each year is a monopolistic rip-off. Since my drivers license has not changed in 17 years, I don't see how the translation of the fields is going to change from year to year.? Second: In my last 25 trips to Europe, I have rented cars numerous time in Austria, Czech Republic, France, Germany, Italy, Netherlands, Portugal, Slovakia, and Spain, (and been pulled over by the police in half of those countries, including Italy ;-), and not once have I ever required an IDL. I've had liability insurance on my car for over 30 years and never once had to use it. Point taken :-) I live in Italy and when I came here I inquired about getting an Italian license and using my American license in the interim. I was told that I could use my American license PROVIDED it was accompanied by an IDL. I was never stopped during the time that I was using the American license, but I know other American expatriates who HAVE been asked for the IDL. You were just lucky, but there has been a recent tightening up of all Italian driving laws and I wouldn't advise anyone to drive without complete legal documentation. Actually, remembering the bureaucratic nightmare I had dealing with the police in Grado (near Aquileia) a couple of years ago, and that you had with your citizenship paperwork last year, I think I will take your advice and carry an IDL with me next time I'm in Italy. But.. I still refuse to pay AAA, so I'll probably just dig out the only IDL that I bought back in 1989 before my first trip to Europe... since the translations haven't changed, it should still be acceptable. So I usually just advise people to go with their own comfort level (or, whatever their rental car company's policy may be...) Which just confirms that there's lots of bad advice circulating on the internet. Whadya mean "lot's of bad advice"? With all the great advice out there, I'm all fired up to go to Salzburg... aren't you??? ----------- Barbara Vaughan My email address is my first initial followed by my surname at libero dot it I answer travel questions only in the newsgroup -- Glenn -- Reply addresses should be corrected for Auntie Spam! |
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