Driving in France. Any advice?

corm500

We are travelling to Nice in a couple of weeks and picking up a hire car. Any hints for driving in France? Any strange rules that I should watch out for? I have heard that when driving you must let out traffic entering from the right. Is this true and if so is it on all roads? Sounds a bit bizzare.

Bigcheeze

corm500 wrote: »

I have heard that when driving you must let out traffic entering from the right.

not true, although I've heard some old people in rural villages still drive like that.

I never experienced it in at least 10 trips and thousands of miles driven.

Most signs and road layouts are very similar to here. There are a hell of a lot of roundabouts. The French are a bit more aggressive on roundabouts in that busy roundabouts do not have traffic lights so they'll jump in to small gaps. Otherwise roundabouts are the same except you obviously yield to traffic from your left, not right.

Motorways are all tolled and expensive. You take a ticket as you enter and pay at the exit based on distance travelled. Pay lanes with CB (carte bancaire) take credit cards.

On the motorway, keep right if not overtaking. You will notice the French all do this. They are intolerant of people hogging the overtaking lane.

There are lots of fixed speed cameras so pay attention to speed limits.

Pay attention to your road position until you get used to driving on the right.

Beware of over-confidence. Just when you're feeling relaxed about the whole thing is when you could exit a junction on to the wrong side of the road.

whiskeyman

an interesting one I've only heard (I've not driven abroad) is that if an oncoming driving flashes you, he's not 'letting you go' etc... (say if you've turning and crossing his route) but is warning you that he's coming through!!

schemingbohemia

Careful of your speed on tolled motorways, you can get done if you reach the exit quicker than you legally should have done.

veetwin

Bigcheeze wrote: »

not true, although I've heard some old people in rural villages still drive like that.

I never experienced it in at least 10 trips and thousands of miles driven.

Most signs and road layouts are very similar to here. There are a hell of a lot of roundabouts. The French are a bit more aggressive on roundabouts in that busy roundabouts do not have traffic lights so they'll jump in to small gaps. Otherwise roundabouts are the same except you obviously yield to traffic from your left, not right.

Motorways are all tolled and expensive. You take a ticket as you enter and pay at the exit based on distance travelled. Pay lanes with CB (carte bancaire) take credit cards.

On the motorway, keep right if not overtaking. You will notice the French all do this. They are intolerant of people hogging the overtaking lane.

There are lots of fixed speed cameras so pay attention to speed limits.

Pay attention to your road position until you get used to driving on the right.

Beware of over-confidence. Just when you're feeling relaxed about the whole thing is when you could exit a junction on to the wrong side of the road.

Not true. Loads of motorway on France is untolled. I drove from Roscoff to St Jean de Monts last year on pretty much all motorway with no tolls. Over 4 hours each way.

Fixed speed cameras shouldn't be a problem for foreign reg cars. The French Police are generally OK as long as you don't act the maggot. About 10% over the limit is tolerated on motorways but obviously less in urban areas.

Driving in France though is fine outside of Paris. Lane discipline is excellent and they are generally fairly good drivers. I was held up by 2 cars on French motorways last year sitting in the outside lane. Both were Irish:rolleyes:

Bigcheeze

veetwin wrote: »

Not true. Loads of motorway on France is untolled. I drove from Roscoff to St Jean de Monts last year on pretty much all motorway with no tolls. Over 4 hours each way.

Fixed speed cameras shouldn't be a problem for foreign reg cars. The French Police are generally OK as long as you don't act the maggot. About 10% over the limit is tolerated on motorways but obviously less in urban areas.

Driving in France though is fine outside of Paris. Lane discipline is excellent and they are generally fairly good drivers. I was held up by 2 cars on French motorways last year sitting in the outside lane. Both were Irish:rolleyes:

They weren't motorways you were on, they were Route Nationale, N roads which are generally dual carriageways but not motorway standard and have a lower speed limit. There are very few motorways in that north western corner of France.

Op is hiring a car so speed cameras are a concern. Either way, the French police, particularly in the south, can and do seize foreign cars for speeding offences if fine not paid on the spot.

coylemj

Merging lanes on motorways are much shorter than in Ireland so when merging, make sure that you're up to motorway speed before you can see the traffic on the motorway, by the time you do there won't be much road left in which to merge. If you are already on the motorway and on the inside (right) lane, it can be a bit of a shock when you suddenly see another car on your inside trying to merge so watch out for signs showing that traffic is merging with your carriageway.

The rule about people being able to barge in from a side road when passing through villages has gone as I and an earlier poster have experienced.

There are a lot of unmanned petrol stations in France where you swipe your credit card at the pump where you get your fuel, you may need someone with basic French to read the instructions of which the specific order in which you do things is the main element.

podgeandrodge

corm500 wrote: »

We are travelling to Nice in a couple of weeks and picking up a hire car. Any hints for driving in France? Any strange rules that I should watch out for? I have heard that when driving you must let out traffic entering from the right. Is this true and if so is it on all roads? Sounds a bit bizzare.

Not a driving tip per se, but hope you get a chance to visit Villefranche sur mer, Beaulieu sur mer port, and Eze village (high up the mountain) if heading in the direction of Monaco.

jameshayes

another tip is to rent a really small car, the smaller the better, I've noticed that they are all excellent drivers except when it comes to overtaking, holey jezuz they take some chances! Rent a small car for going up the mountains beside Nice, you'll find it easier to navigate and avoid the other drivers overtaking buses around blind corners!

jameshayes

its been a few years since I was in Nice, I dont remember a lot of carparks? You might want to check there is somewhere you can park the car..

stimpson

veetwin wrote: »

Not true. Loads of motorway on France is untolled. I drove from Roscoff to St Jean de Monts last year on pretty much all motorway with no tolls. Over 4 hours each way.

That's where I'm going this year. Did you go via Rennes/Nantes or via the coast? Google maps seems to think there isn't much in it.

Gloomtastic!

As with all driving abroad, for the sake of your marriage, get a Sat Nav!

corm500

Gloomtastic! wrote: »

As with all driving abroad, for the sake of your marriage, get a Sat Nav!

As luck would have it the sat nav I have at home is a Europe wide one. Have updated the maps and it found our campsite no worries

corm500

jameshayes wrote: »

its been a few years since I was in Nice, I dont remember a lot of carparks? You might want to check there is somewhere you can park the car..

We will be staying in campsite La Baume just outside of Frejus. I don't think we will be going to Nice apart from the airport. On a side note we plan on going to Cannes as we will be there for the last day of the Film Festival. I expect parking to be madness there so if you know of any car parks in the town please let me know

P. Breathnach

The rule about giving way to traffic from the right still applies in France - but there are so many exceptions that it might never affect you. The places to bear it in mind are in towns and on small rural roads. Urban roundabouts can be particularly challenging: unless the signs say otherwise, vehicles entering the roundabout have priority over vehicles already on it.

Learn the signs. Some useful stuff here: http://www.giteinbrittany.com/driving.html

jameshayes

corm500 wrote: »

We will be staying in campsite La Baume just outside of Frejus. I don't think we will be going to Nice apart from the airport. On a side note we plan on going to Cannes as we will be there for the last day of the Film Festival. I expect parking to be madness there so if you know of any car parks in the town please let me know

There is a train that goes around the coast to cannes, it might be your best option.. it also goes through monaco which is pretty amazing to see... how the other half live!

P. Breathnach

Why not use public transport for your visit to Cannes? Or park well out of town and use PT for the last bit of the trip? I'm sure that somebody at your campsite or in the local tourist office would be able to advise you on the options.

veetwin

stimpson wrote: »

That's where I'm going this year. Did you go via Rennes/Nantes or via the coast? Google maps seems to think there isn't much in it.

Go via Rennes/Nantes. Despite what bigcheese says the road is motorway standard. The road along the coast is not and much slower.

MidlandsM

Back on Topic -

A set of beam benders fitted to the headlights.

The vehicle must be equipped with a warning triangle and a luminous safety vest must be kept inside the car – not in the boot. A set of bulbs is no longer compulsory but you can be fined for driving with a broken light.

French law has prohibited drivers from carrying any device capable of detecting speed cameras. If you haven't disabled camera alerts you can be fined at the roadside – up to a maximum of €1,500 (£1,250) – even if the device is not in use. The authorities are also taking down warning signs on the approach to fixed speed cameras.

Drivers and motorcyclists must carry a breathalyser kit with the French certification mark NF. The breathalysers cost £2 and can be bought at ferry and tunnel terminals.

The legal limit in France is 50mg per 100ml of blood (the limit in Britain is 80mg), which is little more than one small 125cl glass of wine

coylemj

MidlandsM wrote: »

Back on Topic -

Who went off topic? The OP is hiring a car when he gets there so most of your advice doesn't apply.

Stone Deaf 4evr

It might be just me, but I find the roadsigns in france are a little less informative compared to here, for example, anywhere in Ireland, you'll see signs to the next big city, and pointing out the main roads to get there, E.G. in mallow you'll see signs for cork, limerick, dublin and waterford. but in france, it tends to only show the next town thats on the road. so If you dont know the sequence of towns you'll hit on your way to a place, it can be difficult.

Fred Swanson

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pajor

Fred Swanson wrote: »

This post has been deleted.

The fine has been 'suspended'. It's still an offence to not have them, but there's no penalty for it either.

Unless you have the yellow diamond sign, be very careful.

P. Breathnach

Fred Swanson wrote: »

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Another sign meaning the same thing:

P. Breathnach

And this sign (which I think is the one pajor meant) tells you that the road you are on has priority over side roads.

Fred Swanson

This post has been deleted.

P. Breathnach

Fred Swanson wrote: »

This post has been deleted.

Thanks. Just as well I'm not driving in France at the moment!

coylemj

I have driven all over Normandy and Brittany and never saw the yellow box with the black bar. Anywhere that might have involved 'priorite a droite' in the past is now a roundabout, probably to protect the tourists from local nutters.

If you're hiring a car (from the majors anyway), you'll find a pair of NF breathalyzers in the glovebox along with the reflective jacket and if you're bringing your own car, Halfords sell them at the checkout. I believe they're a lot more expensive on the ferry.

MidlandsM

coylemj wrote: »

Who went off topic? The OP is hiring a car when he gets there so most of your advice doesn't apply.

jayney, I'd say you're great craic with your pedantic'ness

and lots of my advice stands.

coylemj

MidlandsM wrote: »

jayney, I'd say you're great craic with your pedantic'ness

The word is 'pedantry'

Dia1988

By Law , you need an emergency kit in your car including reflective Triangle, First Aid kit etc

MidlandsM

coylemj wrote: »

The word is 'pedantry'

yep, but I love making up new words, and seeing grammer nazi's get their panties in a bunch.....:pac:

like I said, I'd say you are great craic altogether....lol

coylemj

MidlandsM wrote: »

yep, but I love making up new words, and seeing grammer nazi's get their panties in a bunch.....:pac:

Careful with the spelling and the grocer's apostrophe, that would be grammar Nazis

MidlandsM

coylemj wrote: »

Careful with the spelling and the grocer's apostrophe, that would be grammar Nazis

lol you'll get a ban yet for it!

munchkin_utd

coylemj wrote: »

I have driven all over Normandy and Brittany and never saw the yellow box with the black bar. Anywhere that might have involved 'priorite a droite' in the past is now a roundabout, probably to protect the tourists from local nutters.

If you're hiring a car (from the majors anyway), you'll find a pair of NF breathalyzers in the glovebox along with the reflective jacket and if you're bringing your own car, Halfords sell them at the checkout. I believe they're a lot more expensive on the ferry.

indeed, I cant remember ever seeing one in Germany either after living there for the past 14 years now.
Probably because the priority road stretch automatically ends when you hit a crossroads or t junction and then you are on a "new" stretch of road.

ollaetta

coylemj wrote: »

I have driven all over Normandy and Brittany and never saw the yellow box with the black bar. Anywhere that might have involved 'priorite a droite' in the past is now a roundabout, probably to protect the tourists from local nutters.

Very familiar with northern France myself and I agree that you don't see them as much there. It's more common in the south and I remember a few years back being almost creamed by a truck flying out of a side road in a small town not far from Nice (can't remember the name). The rule has definitely changed but it still pays to be careful.

gandalf

coylemj wrote: »

I have driven all over Normandy and Brittany and never saw the yellow box with the black bar. Anywhere that might have involved 'priorite a droite' in the past is now a roundabout, probably to protect the tourists from local nutters.

If you're hiring a car (from the majors anyway), you'll find a pair of NF breathalyzers in the glovebox along with the reflective jacket and if you're bringing your own car, Halfords sell them at the checkout. I believe they're a lot more expensive on the ferry.

That's not true about Normandy there are still an awful lot of 'priorite a droite' in the small villages around Caen and the sign is the warning one with the X in it. It's not a major problem once you keep your wits about you.

corm500

Thanks for all of the advice guys. Plenty to chew over there. Has anyone driven the route Napolean? I am planning on doing the drive from Cannes to Dignes. Is it worth it ? I have heard it is one of the top 10 drives in the world. Also planning on driving to Monaco. There are three corniche roads I can take in at three different heights lower, middle and upper. Which is the best road from a scenery point of view?

_Brian

In general the French are better disciplined drivers than here.. We've driven throughout France and through Paris and really once you don't become distracted then you'll be fine..

As for getting used to driving on the other side of the road.. Personally I found the busier areas easier and only on quiet country junctions would I ever have found myself tempted to go Irish on the French roads..

Lane discipline on motorways is important, they have very little tolerance for lane hoggers or people who cut back in too soon.. The police patrolling the main roads and tolled motorways aren't to be taken lightly, you'll quickly be escorted to a rest stop and they are less than pleasant - claiming ignorance or a law or being a tourist cuts no mustard. I've been at a rest stop where they brought an Irish family in and they took no excuses.

We find signage excellent, informative but not to the stage where its littering the place either. We managed for 4 trips to France with no sat-nav, just a good map and a strong marriage.. but if you can, use one. I'd still recommend having a good map as the sat-nav can take strange routs which add time and distance for no apparent reason.

The roads have plenty of well equipped rest stops, many have picnic areas and playgrounds where you can let the kids blow off some energy as you enjoy a coffee.

Beautiful weather, nice country and I actually like the french people, never found them rude as some would say, but my Mrs has near fluent French and it helps alot if you can get a few words out... If it weren't for my brain's inability to learn a second language we considered moving there a few years ago before the kids got settled here in school .

whippet

_Brian wrote: »

The roads have plenty of well equipped rest stops, many have picnic areas and playgrounds where you can let the kids blow off some energy as you enjoy a coffee.

Just remember that the petrol / diesel on the motorway service stations is very expensive compared to the costs off motorway .. in supermarkets etc.

_Brian wrote: »

Beautiful weather, nice country and I actually like the french people, never found them rude as some would say, but my Mrs has near fluent French and it helps alot if you can get a few words out... If it weren't for my brain's inability to learn a second language we considered moving there a few years ago before the kids got settled here in school .

i'd echo these sentiments; I have only started going in the last couple of years and have developed quite a gra for the country and it's people. I spent 5 years in secondary school and two years in college studying french and could say anything apart from my name in french until I started holidaying there; now I would be confident enough in most everyday situations conversing in french.

I prefer the more rustic rural parts of france than the mainstream tourist areas now .. as the kids are still too young to enjoy the larger parks etc.

gandalf

whippet wrote: »

Just remember that the petrol / diesel on the motorway service stations is very expensive compared to the costs off motorway .. in supermarkets etc.

This is a top tip, never ever get petrol on the motorway service stations you are getting ripped off totally by them.

Look out for Carrefour, HyperU (?) or Leclerc signs they are normally a few minutes off the motorway and they have much cheaper fuel just be careful some are not manned and are prepay by card only (automated on the pump).

i'd echo these sentiments; I have only started going in the last couple of years and have developed quite a gra for the country and it's people. I spent 5 years in secondary school and two years in college studying french and could say anything apart from my name in french until I started holidaying there; now I would be confident enough in most everyday situations conversing in french.

I prefer the more rustic rural parts of france than the mainstream tourist areas now .. as the kids are still too young to enjoy the larger parks etc.

Funnily my wife is French and she lasts at most two weeks before she realises why she moved to Ireland from France. The French way of doing things does her head in.

keithclancy

The give way to the right thing is rare, where it catches Irish and people from the UK out is that they think the bigger road has priority when there is no road signage at all.

This is not the case, you have to stop and give way to cars coming from the right.

Here in Holland for example, not giving way to the right is a 296 euro fine, 280 fine and 16 euro admin fee.

CelticRambler

Bigcheeze wrote: »

Motorways are all tolled and expensive. You take a ticket as you enter and pay at the exit based on distance travelled.

Not entirely true. I live beside a toll-free motorway (about 300km's worth of it) and there are several other stretches of genuine motorway with no charge. There are also motorways that have toll gates like in Ireland where you pay a fixed price regardless of where you join or leave the motorway.

But, yes, they're expensive (and getting more so every year).

Bigcheeze wrote: »

Beware of over-confidence. Just when you're feeling relaxed about the whole thing is when you could exit a junction on to the wrong side of the road.

Very true. Being in a LHD car helps, but when you're starting to get tired and especially if you're joining a road from a place with lots of one-way lane control or non-standard rules (carparks, petrol stations, town centres, etc) you can lose focus for a moment.

Also, some boulevard junctions can be huge and have all kinds of weird lanes and signage that doesn't seem to make sense till you're right there. That's one time to definitely keep your eyes off the GPS.

schemingbohemia wrote: »

Careful of your speed on tolled motorways, you can get done if you reach the exit quicker than you legally should have done.

Urban myth. The toll companies are not allow divulge that information.

coylemj wrote: »

There are a lot of unmanned petrol stations in France where you swipe your credit card at the pump where you get your fuel, you may need someone with basic French to read the instructions of which the specific order in which you do things is the main element.

If you use an Irish card, the instructions will come up in English. If they don't, it's probably a really old machine and the card won't work.

Something to be aware of with these automated machines: every time you use them, a fixed amount is pre-authorised on your card. The amount depends on the pump and can be relatively low (say 69€) which will just about let you fill the tank; but it can be really high too if the forecourt has a lot of big-tank vehicles. I've come across machines that pre-authorised 159€ and 239€. :eek:

This can cause two problems: first, if you're close to your limit, the pre-authorised amount might not clear, so you won't get a drop of fuel; and secondly, the pre-authorised amount is not unblocked for several days, so if you make regular purchases, you can end up with hundreds, even a thousand or euros pre-authorised even though you think you've only spent (say) a couple of hundred. Then your card is refused when you try to pay for a restaurant bill ...

Stone Deaf 4evr wrote: »

It might be just me, but I find the roadsigns in france are a little less informative compared to here, for example, anywhere in Ireland, you'll see signs to the next big city, and pointing out the main roads to get there, E.G. in mallow you'll see signs for cork, limerick, dublin and waterford. but in france, it tends to only show the next town thats on the road. so If you dont know the sequence of towns you'll hit on your way to a place, it can be difficult.

Yep. And for extra fun, as soon as you get close to the place you want to be, the name of the town can disappear and be replaced with one or more of the urban districts it's made up of. If you're aiming for somewhere specific, get used to identifying what commune it's in. E.g. if you're asking for directions to somewhere with the post-code 36200 SAINT MARCEL, there's no point telling someone (French) that it's in Argenton (right next door, same post-code, ten times bigger). On the other hand, your GPS might only know how to take you to the ville with the same name - the commune can be a much bigger area.

As others have said, priorité à droit still exists but is an endangered species. Naturally that means some drivers of a certain age haven't got used to changes to the rules ...

And watch out for the dinkly little sans permis cars (not on motorways) - they're restricted to 50kmh and (by definition) only driven by people who are not fit to drive Expect the unexpected ...

CiniO

corm500 wrote: »

We are travelling to Nice in a couple of weeks and picking up a hire car. Any hints for driving in France? Any strange rules that I should watch out for? I have heard that when driving you must let out traffic entering from the right. Is this true and if so is it on all roads? Sounds a bit bizzare.

This rule of yielding to vehicle coming from your right, applies only on junctions of roads of equal importance - exactly the same as in Ireland.
Nothing really strange about it.

CiniO

Just to add my 3 cents in relation to this rule of yielding to traffic coming from the right in France, and possibly all over the Continent.

This is general main rule of driving. On junctions give way to vehicle coming from your right. This also applies to T junction, even if you are travelling straight away, and there is only a side road on your right.

But this rule doesn't apply on junctions where main and secondary road is distinguished.
In general - exactly the same like in Ireland.
If you arrive at the junction, and you have "yield" or "stop" sign, it means you are on secondary road, and must yield to traffic on main road.

If you are on main road, you don't need to yield to traffic coming from secondary roads, even if they come from your right.

You will know you are on the main road after seeing this sign:

Usually this sign is not repeated too often, so once you see it, it means you are on main road, until you either see "end of main road sign"

or see yield or stop sign.

Very often junctions of roads of equal importance are only in small roads like in housing estates or narrow city centre lanes.
Before such junctions you might see this sign, which just warns you about junction of roads of equal importance (so you have to give way to vehicles coming from your right).


Also in residential areas marked by those signs:

all roads junctions are of equal importance.

So in short.
If you are on the main road, you just keep going as you have the right of way.
If you see yield or stop sign, give way to traffic on main road.
If you are on road which is neither main road nor secondary road, then you might encounter junctions of equal importance and you must give way to vehicles coming from your right.
If you are in residential area, you might be sure that all junctions are of equal importance.

CelticRambler

Sorry CiniO, I don't think you understand the rule as it applies in France. You can be on a perfectly straight road with clear visibility for 200m, and unless otherwise indicated (or if indicated by the sign in post #22 above, traffic can cut across you from a T-junction on the right-hand side, or an angled junction that you can't possibly see until you're passing it.

Edit: okay, you expanded while I was writing, but the point remains that priorité à droit can be very dangerous when the junctions are not marked (frequently the case in rural France) and one road is obviously more "significant" than the other, even if it's not officially so designated.

CiniO

CelticRambler wrote: »

Sorry CiniO, I don't think you understand the rule as it applies in France. You can be on a perfectly straight road with clear visibility for 200m, and unless otherwise indicated (or if indicated by the sign in post #22 above, traffic can cut across you from a T-junction on the right-hand side, or an angled junction that you can't possibly see until you're passing it.

Yes - that's how I understand it, and that's what should be a conclusion from what I wrote above.
If you are on the road which is not a main road, then every junction not marked at all or marked by sign you mentioned, is a junction of equal importance, and that includes T-junctions.
So unless you are certain that you are on main road, just slow down by every junction.

However situation where you are certiain you are on main road, should be nearly always, as I mentioned - road with junctions of equal importance, are mostly only in residential areas on city centres.

two wheels good

Even if a speed limit sign is not displayed, on entry to a town\village the town name sign (rectangular, black letters on white b'ground) counts as a 50kph limit.

Fred Swanson

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ManonRiv

Bigcheeze wrote: »

not true, although I've heard some old people in rural villages still drive like that.

I never experienced it in at least 10 trips and thousands of miles driven.

Most signs and road layouts are very similar to here. There are a hell of a lot of roundabouts. The French are a bit more aggressive on roundabouts in that busy roundabouts do not have traffic lights so they'll jump in to small gaps. Otherwise roundabouts are the same except you obviously yield to traffic from your left, not right.

Motorways are all tolled and expensive. You take a ticket as you enter and pay at the exit based on distance travelled. Pay lanes with CB (carte bancaire) take credit cards.

On the motorway, keep right if not overtaking. You will notice the French all do this. They are intolerant of people hogging the overtaking lane.

There are lots of fixed speed cameras so pay attention to speed limits.

Pay attention to your road position until you get used to driving on the right.

Beware of over-confidence. Just when you're feeling relaxed about the whole thing is when you could exit a junction on to the wrong side of the road.

Omg obviously you need to let people enter from the right !!! I am a french person and i'll pass my driving lesson in 2 day ! Not letting people pass from your right can be very dangerous ... I would advice you to be very careful when driving in france, some are crazy drivers !

brandon_flowers

corm500 wrote: »

Thanks for all of the advice guys. Plenty to chew over there. Has anyone driven the route Napolean? I am planning on doing the drive from Cannes to Dignes. Is it worth it ? I have heard it is one of the top 10 drives in the world. Also planning on driving to Monaco. There are three corniche roads I can take in at three different heights lower, middle and upper. Which is the best road from a scenery point of view?

Take the Moyenne one way and then the Basse the other, the Grande (highest) is just a little higher than the Moyenne and doesn't have too many places to pull in. Definitely stop in Eze Village (on the Moyenne) and walk up into the old village. In Beaulieu sur Mer (Basse) there is one of those dodgy right have way junctions, located here... It is marked but honestly you will not notice the sign.

https://www.google.com/maps/@43.70971,7.334823,3a,75y,208.02h,62.85t/data=!3m4!1e1!3m2!1s88BBqIYH2tfy0NGtvi88uA!2e0

Some of the above applies but to be honest there is nothing rural about driving along the Riviera roads, in summer traffic doesn't move very fast around here. Scooters or more importantly scooter drivers will be your main worry, they (including me) drive like lunatics around here. Just leave a bit of space between you and the white line and they won't bother you.

Zebra crossings are everywhere, often 30 metres apart and the French are thought in school that the pedestrian is the driver so they will shoot out without looking sometimes.

Other than that you will be fine, don't worry if someone beeps or shouts expletives in French at you. They shout like that at their mothers!

Other tips...

Police in Monaco love pulling people in, there is a policeman every 50 yards but generally there is never any hassle. They just need to look busy so don't worry if it happens you.

One thing I would advise is that you take the extra insurance on the rental car and I know this first hand from driving rentals all the time over here. It is allowed to bump (therefore scratch and dent) cars when parking in towns and cities. The locals won't discriminate between a Ferrari and a rented Renault Clio either, and for a minor scratch you'll be handing over €300.

Cannes to Digne is a very nice spin but to be honest most of the mountain roads around here are good spins, you don't need to go all the way as far as Digne either.

Enjoy your trip.

Edit: There is no silage around here to bother you either!