Driving in Germany/on the continent for the first time: any tips?

Amtmann

I'm renting a car and driving from Frankfurt-Hahn to Bamberg on Saturday. My route is planned, but I'd just like to get some tips from people about continental driving. I've never done it before. Anything I should be aware of?

Heroditas

Don't hog the overtaking lane! :P

DWCommuter

Heroditas wrote: »

Don't hog the overtaking lane! :P

Spot on!

Unless your car can really hit the mark and you're prepared to hold her there, just stay inside on those Autobahns. In general, if its your first time just take it slow and stay attentive. Do NOT drive with the same attitude that you drive with in Ireland. Best of luck.

Tech3

Heroditas wrote: »

Don't hog the overtaking lane! :P

Yes some germans drive 200km/hr on the outside lane constantly so when switching to the fast lane be careful. I've noticed a load of these drivers when I was on a bus travelling from Nurenburg-Prague.

Might be worth looking at the autobahn section on the skyscrapercity forum too, I'd say there should be some photos on that route by posters.

Harps

Its easier that you'd think to get used to..as said above just stay on the inside lane(right side) on the autobahns and you cant go far wrong.

Its very helpful to have someone in the passenger seat to concentrate on junctions and all that sort of stuff. Also when you're on single carriage roads have someone i the front to constantly remind you as things like roundabouts can be confusing

Cookie_Monster

Really concentrate on staying on the correct side of the road for the first hour or two and it'll click after that. Be paticularly careful with roundabouts.

Don't chage gear with the doorhandle :pac:

L1011

Its been a long time since I drove an LHD car on the continent... so I'm not sure how much different it is to using my own RHD as I have the last times. I've found that having a postit on the door pillar screaming at me to drive on the right was invaluable; and that your biggest risk factor in getting on to the wrong side is large carparks with one-way systems - you get disorientated and come out on to the wrong side when a two-way road opens up in them!

Staying in the right lane on autobahns is easy enough, just remember that you stay to the verge and overtake towards the median just like here.

Prenderb

http://www.gettingaroundgermany.info/auto.htm
http://www.howtogermany.com/pages/driving.html

I found those two sites which might be of use to you, no doubt Google has more. The AA's website has a section on continental driving too. In general I'd say it's down to concentrating, being aware of the different road rules and driving styles that prevail in other countries. That and not being in a rush... If you haven't already, it'd be worth spending a bit of time reading up on the road rules etc. IMHO.

I know in France you're sposed to have a copy of your insurance cert. with you, as well as your licence and the usual hi-vis, spare bulbs and that. Might need to bring that with you?

L1011

Prenderb wrote: »

I know in France you're sposed to have a copy of your insurance cert. with you, as well as your licence and the usual hi-vis, spare bulbs and that. Might need to bring that with you?

He's hiring a car, that'll all be in it. Germany requires all that and strongly suggests a fire extinguisher and first aid kit, for reference if someone else finds this thread.

jrar

Their road signage and markings are very diff. to ours so go and google "German road signs" and/or "driving in Germany". Get familiar with any signs that carry a warningin German (assuming you don't speak the language)

Pay attention to all signs that you see and obey the speed limits

I've driven from F/furt-Hahn to Basel and as I recall, there's an amount of regular rural roads before you hit any autobahn, so take your time and stay focused.

Unless you can see 300/400 metres of clear road in your mirror, stay out of the overtakinglane on the autobahn unless you want an M3 embedded in your back window - overtaking is a serious business in Europe unlike on Irish motorways !

Lastly, they drive on the right - I know you know this but I'm not being facetious, you really do have to work at remembering this when you are on non-autobahn roads. It's the easiest thing in the world to pull out of the airport car rental yard and be distracted as you adjust your seat/mirror etc. and the habit of driving on the left suddenly means you're facing another car head-on because you've inadvertently strayed onto the "wrong" side of the road. Same goes fwhen negotiating busy urban junctions esp. ones with traffic islands - or after pulling out of a filling station / parking lot etc. Just remember, they drive on the right !

I've driven in over 20 European countries in the last 12/15 years, but I still "remind" myself for the first 20/30 mins. when taking the wheel on arrival in right-hand driving countries, and even more so if the vehicle I'm driving is a rental as it is also unfamiliar, and thus increases the "distraction" factor.

munchkin_utd

Cookie_Monster wrote: »

Really concentrate on staying on the correct side of the road for the first hour or two and it'll click after that. Be paticularly careful with roundabouts.

Don't chage gear with the doorhandle :pac:

On and off motorways is different as the acceleration lanes are shorter than Ireland. Coming on drop her to third gear and bail to 120 before swinging in. Coming off get down to 60 before taking the sharp curve.

And there are shag all roundabouts in Germany as they only legally exist since about 5 or 6 years ago. Rule in Germany is stay to the right at all times so you can't go wrong. None of this Anglo Irish swerving through the roundabout like a black art. Just stick to the outside and indicate when turning off.

There are other nuances but they could be summarized into take it handy in towns and villages and keep your eyes open for a lot more signs than at home.

Hagar

Pretend you are in Ireland, stick in the right hand lane and drive as slow as you like.

Ronan|Raven

For the autobahn, mirrors, mirrors, blind spot! especially the blind.. they come up the outside lane faster than jesus himself on a rocket.

Tech3

Furet, I dont know if you have seen this page. It has a rake load of photos of the A5 and the A3 :

A3

A5

Colm R

Furet. Remember to enjoy it.

professore

You'll be grand, just relax and use your head. And enjoy the autobahn it's cool. Do use your mirrors all the time as those 6 litre mercs and beemers appear from nowhere.

Amtmann

Thanks very much folks. I'll be taking the E42, E41, E43, E45, E48/A70 and finishing at junction 12 on the A70.

I hope my car has satnav. Looking forward to driving the back roads as well.

dobsdave

Furet wrote: »

I hope my car has satnav. .

Rental company will be very pleased to hire one out to you.

Amtmann

dobsdave wrote: »

Rental company will be very pleased to hire one out to you.

Any idea how much extra that would cost? As things are I'm paying €505 for an Opel Corsa for 21 days.

angelIRL

Lived in Stuttgart for a year with work, and took the car over.

Keep your passport with you at all times in the car as there are plenty of Polizei checkpoints. Got caught twice without the passport and I got fined 25Euro the 2nd time.

Also, you need to have some reference that the car is yours. I carried around my road tax book and my insurance policy document so that was enough for the Polizei when they asked for it.

Take note as well, that if you are driving into a city, some Germany cities (Cologne & Stuttgart definitely) have become "Unwelt Zones" ("Enviroment Zones"). You need to have a sticker on your car to say it is a certain grade (green being the cleanest). If you are caught driving in the city without this sticker you can get fined. Again there are Polizei checkpoints to check for these. You can get one in advance. 7 Euro.

Edit: Just read that you are renting a car, so all the info I gave is not relevant, bar the passport part

helimachoptor

Hi Op, I rented a car recently and drove from Charleroi to Aachen then to Dusseldorf and back again.

For the first few minutes its a bit odd its good if you have someone with you to remind you to keep on the correct side of the road when in residential areas! On the motorways its fine, as said above probably best to keep to the inside lane. The continentals actually use the overtaking lane as that, so your in the inside lane and someone comes up behind you they will expect you to move.

good luck!

munchkin_utd

actually, was thinking about other stuff that can catch you out and basically the biggest is speed limits.

Biggest trap nearly is that towns do NOT have signs like in ireland saying they are 50kmh.
The yellow sign at the entrance to a town IMPLICITLY means a 50kmh limit though. And that means be doing 50 as you pass the sign. (it was quite hilarious my first lesson in germany when i was obvlious to this and did about 100 into a village whilst on the lookout for a roundy limit sign like in ireland. The instructor near had a heart attack!)

If there are no speed limit signs up, then on normal roads outside towns you can do 100kmh. Just be careful though. Theres sh1t loads of limit signs and the police in Germany are out in numbers with their radar guns.
The fines are on a sliding scale so the more you are over the more it costs.

re sat nav. Over 21 days you would be as cheap to buy one and then you have it for again. I got one in Aldi in cork and it has full maps for ireland and Germany (along with nearly every country in europe) for only 150 euro.

helimachoptor

Furet wrote: »

Any idea how much extra that would cost? As things are I'm paying €505 for an Opel Corsa for 21 days.

Op mine was €10 per day from Charleroi, I presume your getting the 1.3cdti corsa? A nippy car I had the same while over there

Amtmann

helimachoptor wrote: »

Op mine was €10 per day from Charleroi, I presume your getting the 1.3cdti corsa? A nippy car I had the same while over there

Yup, that's the one. That's very steep...I had assumed in my naivete that satnav would come as standard in rental cars these days!

helimachoptor

Furet wrote: »

Yup, that's the one. That's very steep...I had assumed in my naivete that satnav would come as standard in rental cars these days!

We should be so lucky!!
I was planning on borrowing a friends but on the day before I travelled he realised it was only Ireland the UK it covered.

murphaph

munchkin_utd wrote: »

The yellow sign at the entrance to a town IMPLICITLY means a 50kmh limit though. And that means be doing 50 as you pass the sign.

...except where these signs are positioned on an Autobahn or Dual carriageway Bundestrasse (like the pic I took the other day on the A113);

http://www.sabre-roads.org.uk/gallery/displayimage.php?album=68&pos=0

Speed limits/signage is deffo the hardest thing to get used to. The sign which cancels the urban speed limit (name of town with red line through it and distance to next urban area) can sometimes (often) be on the other side of the road and you may miss it and end up driving 'too' slowly for the conditions.

You need to have a list of control cities in your head when you navigate the Autobahn. The system relies less on the number and more on the destination!

Be careful about who has priority-know your german roadsigns-they are quite different. There are false friends too ie, signs you think you know what they mean but they don't.

If driving behind a tram and it stops in the middle of the street you may not pass it!

There are friggin loads of speed cameras here, both fixed and mobile and they even conceal them in dustbins and ordinary parked cars completely unattended and quietly catching loads of people for a few quid. Speed cameras are also to be found at traffic lights to catch you jumping them ;-) and forward facing cameras are the norm around here but can be on either side, don't know about Bamberg.

When parking you must leave your side lights on if the streetlights are going to turn off late at night (indicated by a red/white stripe around the lampposts).

PLAN your route carefully and check google maps for the junction layouts-they can be complex. Bring food-the Rasthoefe (MSA's) are expensive (got a sambo the other day and it was 3 euro! (Ok, expensive by Berlin standards ;-)

Enjoy the best roads in Europe though!

Amtmann

Thanks for all the tips lads; I arrived alive. Great experience - they don't half fly along in the overtaking lane. I am also shocked by how short the merging slips are...I think our motorways are better in this respect.

Hagar

I hope you're not posting via iPhone while driving at warp factor 7 on some autobahn.

Amtmann

Hagar wrote: »

I hope you're not posting via iPhone while driving at warp factor 7 on some autobahn.

Nope, safely ensconced in my hotel room. I'm just in the door after having spent the past half hour strolling around the town. Dead quiet here, but lovely and quaint. Like something from the 1700s!

Chris_533976

Go NOW and put a sign on the steering wheel saying "DRIVE ON RIGHT". First thing in the morning is when you'll make the mistake.

AlekSmart

Wayne2107 posted on another thread....

I have to get this off my chest because it pisses me really off day in day out. I work for one of the biggest courier companys in the world (not Ups) and I use the M50 every day. The amount of people in the Fast lane (Outside) that hold up miles of traffic driving like owlones if amazing. Get in the inside lane you selfish muppets, these are the people that come from the outside lane, cross 2 lanes and exit the motorway while braking at the last minute. Most people in Ireland havent a clue how to use motorways, god bless us when the m50 is complete because were all fecked. If I had my way these morons would have to resit their tests and would be banned from using motorways. On a seperate note Ive noticed a lot of HGV,s and buses also hogging the 3rd lane, this is a major accident waiting to happen folks...

Now furet,in the context of your ongoing experiences on Germany`s Motorway system would you agree or disagree with the sentiments expressed....

I am also shocked by how short the merging slips are...I think our motorways are better in this respect.

Hmmm,perhaps "Better" is a tad OTT....Our merging slips are that length because our definition of Merging may be somewhat at varience with the German one....?

Chris_533976

Yeah our idea of 'merging' is potter along to the end of the merging lane and pull onto the mainline regardless of whats there at the time.

Amtmann

AlekSmart wrote: »

Wayne2107 posted on another thread....

Now furet,in the context of your ongoing experiences on Germany`s Motorway system would you agree or disagree with the sentiments expressed....

Hmmm,perhaps "Better" is a tad OTT....Our merging slips are that length because our definition of Merging may be somewhat at varience with the German one....?

Well, I'm not sure what the original poster meant by hogging the third lane, but I would have to agree that many Irish drivers do not know how to use a motorway. I would also have to say that our motorways are of the same standard, if not higher, than almost all of the Autobahns that I used to get from Frankfurt-Hahn to Bamberg.
The A70 takes you from Schweinfurt to Bamberg - it is quite similar to the M8 in terms of its landtake and lane widths, but it takes an awful lot more traffic. One daren't use the overtaking lane for anything other than overtaking - people race past you at up to 190 km/h. It is quite possible for traffic on the 'normal' lane to travel at anywhere between 100 and 140 km/h.
I would stand by my comments regarding merging lanes, especially on the busier autobahns. To facilitate merging I've noticed a lot of drivers here like to pull temporarily into the overtaking lane, so that the incoming traffic can merge. But when some lunatic is roaring up the overtaking lane at 200 km/h (and that is no exaggeration), that becomes impossible. Now, don't get me wrong - I love the autobahns. But they're not flawless.


Here's a nice quiet country road. I tipped along here at about 60 km/h. Nothing behind me so it was grand. My steering wheel camera clamp was a bit wobbly at the beginning, hence the jerkiness - and watch in HQ:

Sportacus

Keep your pasenger beside the footpath!! A tip that works for me!!

Chris_533976

I've always admired the way that all those small roads near a town are kept immaculately well, and all lined properly (and have no litter!). Compare that to Irish roads near our larger cities and its just embarassing.

Amtmann

Chris_533976 wrote: »

I've always admired the way that all those small roads near a town are kept immaculately well, and all lined properly (and have no litter!). Compare that to Irish roads near our larger cities and its just embarassing.

Yes indeed - immaculate. There's something else they don't have too: one-off houses. Many of the oldest roads (I'm talking medieval here) have been converted into cycle tracks. Everything between small towns is nicely maintained. The towns here are very pedestrian friendly. They're also quite idyllic. Heck, I even saw kids today by the riverbank in their Sunday best playing hopskotch and using skipping ropes. Not a hoodlum (or a hoodie) in sight.

Chris_533976

Heh I always think a lot of Germany. So many British people dont go there because its not advertised really due to the whole "UK BEAT THE GERMANS IN THE WAR" mindset that still remains. Irish people generally dont go there either as its not advertised. But really its one of the best countries in the world. Really well maintained, absolutely beautiful place and some of the friendlist people you can meet.

I always remember one thing I saw in Munich and one thing I saw in Wilton, Cork as being the best example of Germany vs Ireland.

Munich: Some council workers were gently removing fallen leaves from the top of a hedge in the middle of the city and putting them in a bag to keep the hedge neat.

Wilton: Some council workers were removing fallen leaves from the side of a car park with a shovel and throwing them onto the top of the hedge to get rid of them.

TBH the worst thing about Germany is how Britain/America bombed the hell out of it and the Germans reconstructed those beautiful buildings very poorly or not at all.

Amtmann

Chris_533976 wrote: »

Heh I always think a lot of Germany. So many British people dont go there because its not advertised really due to the whole "UK BEAT THE GERMANS IN THE WAR" mindset that still remains. Irish people generally dont go there either as its not advertised. But really its one of the best countries in the world. Really well maintained, absolutely beautiful place and some of the friendlist people you can meet.

I always remember one thing I saw in Munich and one thing I saw in Wilton, Cork as being the best example of Germany vs Ireland.

Munich: Some council workers were gently removing fallen leaves from the top of a hedge in the middle of the city and putting them in a bag to keep the hedge neat.

Wilton: Some council workers were removing fallen leaves from the side of a car park with a shovel and throwing them onto the top of the hedge to get rid of them.

TBH the worst thing about Germany is how Britain/America bombed the hell out of it and the Germans reconstructed those beautiful buildings very poorly or not at all.

What amazes me is that despite the bombing, so much has survived. And what has survived is cherished. Almost every town has a Stadtarchiv, many of which house records going back to the late middle ages. Many of the Fachwerk houses (which I LOVE) date from the seventeenth century, while there are still cities like this,

which I can't recommend highly enough. People, go see it! Other similar towns are Dinkelsbuehl and Bamberg. Being the heart of the Holy Roman Empire, and the scene of the Reformation, The Peasants' War of 1524/25 (Der Bauernkrieg), the Witch Craze, the Thirty Years War and the second world war, Germany is an amazingly liminal place. I came across a tower standing forlornly in a wood today, and the first thing that came into my mind was the Brothers Grimm Rapunzel story. And as I walked down from the wood (which was deep and dark, by the way!) and back into the little town with its quaint Fachwerk houses, I saw a garden full of herbs and flowers and - yes! - rapunzel.



I went into the bakery later on and there were the most amazing cakes and such. They even had a cake that was studded with pieces of orange, berries, chocolate buttons and jellies, which was shaped like an old cottage - a Hexenhauskuche, a la Hansel and Grettel. Kassel, which was the home city of the Brothers Grimm, is only a few hours up road. It was from around this area that they collected their tales - the famous Maerchen - from peasants and governesses in 1810.
Every street here reminds you of the guilds that plied their trades in the sixteenth century, and every path makes you think of the journeymen and pedlars who chanced their fortune from place to place. In the Stadtmitte of a nearby town there's a monument to the people burned in the Hexenverfolgung - the 'Witch Hunt' of the 1600s. The main street of Hassfurt is guarded by two old towers, former entrance 'doors' or gates to what was a thriving centre of artisanry and trade from the 1200s until industrialisation.
And you're right Chris, the people here are very friendly, polite and helpful. When you can find them, that is! Sometimes it feels like you're on the Mary Celest: you know the people must be there, because eveything is so well maintained. The towns are SO quiet - you have to wonder where all the people are. The answer must be that they're on the Autobahns, because these are all unbelievably busy!

Great country alright.

(Sorry for veering off topic Victor and Callina )

mdebets

And remember, if you go over 130 km/h on an Autobahn without a speed limit and have an accident, you might end up with being partly liable for the cost, even if you have no blame in the accident.

mikedragon32

What amazes me about driving on Autobahn is how quickly you can end up going from 200kph on a nice stretch of unrestricted to zero thanks to roadworks.

Agree with all the comments re moving out to overtake, it's scary stuff the first couple of times, but you do get into the rythm of it quite soon.

Glad you're enjoying the visit. My very first spell of driving in Germany was alone going from Baden Baden to Ansbach, it all went well until it got dark and then a fog descended and you could barely see the car in front, so I stopped at the next services I came to and stood at the edge of the autobahn absolutely stunned at the speeds (it's a totally different sensation to when you're in amongst it). A couple of double espressos later, back on the road and that was that.

It's always the first junction when you come off the Autobahn or the first junction of the day that can put you off so just be careful and take nothing for granted.

Amtmann

Today I got to know the meaning of the word 'Stau' in German - traffic jam. The A7 (which runs from the Danish border south almost all the way to Austria) was manic southbound. I got stuck in three prolonged jams and there were roadworks to contend with, too. My destination was the Neuschwanstein Castle in southern Bavaria. By the time I left the Autobahn, four hours after I'd set out, the sky had blackened and the heavens had opened, and I was stuck in yet another Stau on a single-carriageway road. After about 40 minutes of going no where fast I'd had enough: I did a U-turn and headed back for Bamberg, quite pissed off. I'll see the castle some other time. The journey northbound was much more pacific. I managed to take some photos and to record a few videos:

Firstly, a simple parking bay off the Autobahn:




German motorways can be quiet very occasionally:


Confirmation Sign:


Lots of roadworks:






An interchange ramp:

Amtmann

David John Drum

Spent years truck driving all over Europe, in particular Germany .Beautiful country but over-policed ( and we are going the same way ). Biggest gripe is the road tax for trucks using autobahn. This can be prepaid and make a mistake and you are in trouble.I put wrong exit and it cost me 230 euros on the spot.

Chris_533976

Neuschwanstein is actually quite disappointing IMO. Went to it a year ago and didnt think that much of it. Its in a nice location and its not where you'd expect to see a castle but thats about it. The rooms are nice but they herd you through it so fast its not worth it.

I havent been there, but from people who have been to all of Lugwigs castles, Linderhof is the best.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Linderhof

Also if youre bored (and want more driving ) go up to Regensburg. Its the only major German city that wasnt demolished in the war so is a bit of a hidden gem.