My husband and I are staying in Salzburg, and really want to take a day trip to Hallstatt. We are hoping to rent a car and drive so we can stop and take in the scenery at our own pace. Neither of us has driven in a foreign country, and we just had a few questions...
Is it difficult to navigate with road signs etc?
Are vehicles typically manual or automatic? One of us (no names here :) have never driven a stick shift.
Will our driver's license and/or insurance cover a rental car in Austria?
Driving in Austria is not more complicated than in US, but it is different, of course.
You will need an international driver's license; that is mandatory. As far as I know your insurance will not cover a rental car overseas, but it depends on the fine print in your contract. I suggest to pay for full coverage when renting the car. Ask explicitly for a car with an automatic gear.
Navigation is not very complicated, road signs pointing to towns are very clear, all major roads have numbers.
Other road signs for enforcing the traffic code are very different. Only three signs are identical to those in US: STOP, yield, and One Way street.
Traffic signs are grouped by color and shape, which define the general meaning. In a nutshell:
red/round DO NOT ...
blue/round DO ...
red/triangular DANGER or WARNING
blue/square/rectangular INFORMATION
black/round DO NOT cancelled
Look here: http://www.adcidl.com/pdf/Austria-Road-Traffic-Signs.pdf
Hi Alicia,
Great tutorial, as always, by WMT1. We made that drive last September (leaving from Mondsee, close to Salzburg). You'll have no trouble on the roads, as long as the driver can resist high-speed gawking at the views. We picked up the IDLs at AAA. (Our Chase Bank credit card covered foreign rental car insurance. We alerted them in advance and obtained a coverage letter from Chase to produce, if requested, by the rental company. As I recall, there were no questions asked [Hertz at Frankfurt airport] but it seemed like a good precaution if one is declining the rental company insurance.) Others may comment: I think there are day--trip bus tours from Salzburg to Hallstatt. Still, I think you'll appreciate the flexibility of driving yourselves.
A few gratuitous suggestions:
There's a handy pull-off on the left side of the road, just when Hallstatt comes into view. Great for a few long-distance photos. Also -- based on a tip read here on the Forum -- we took the 10 minute boat ride across the lake to the little RR station, and right back. It's used primarily to transport rail travelers across the lake. The views of the village from the Lake are terrific and it's a cheap cruise. An early start will pay off if you can do so; the town does fill up quickly when the buses start arriving.
What every driver needs is an International Driver's Permit (IDP). It translates your license into different languages. You must also keep your own drivers license with you while driving. They are available at AAA. You don't have to belong. You will need 2 passport sized pictures. If you don't have any they can take them for you.
Most vehicles are manual transmission. You can pay more for an automatic if necessary.
Driving in Austria is quite easy. I always have a paper map, but primarily used my iPhone and google maps to navigate around Austria in 2016. Laws vary from country to country, so do look online before driving to learn what signs mean and learn the driving laws.
The information posted by Andrea is correct. There is no such thing as an "International Driver's License. The correct term is International Driver's Permit and these must be used in conjunction with your home D.L. These are easily available at any AAA / CAA office for a small fee, and are valid for one year. According to this website, an IDP is compulsory for driving in Austria so you'll need to have one - http://www.austria.org/driving-a-vehicle/ . Each driver listed on the rental form must have one.
If you decide to drive, I'd suggest packing along a good map or preferably a GPS unit. If you have an international roaming plan with your cell network, you can also use a smartphone and Google Maps or whatever. It's not likely your home auto insurance will cover rental vehicles in Europe, so you'll either have to pay for insurance from the rental agency or check to see if one of your credit cards provides insurance for rentals. You may find it helpful to download the free car rental guide from this website - https://www.gemut.com/ . If you have any questions, give them a call on their toll free number or send an E-mail. I've always found them to be very helpful.
Vehicles are usually manual shift, so you'll have to specifically request an automatic. Even with a request, the rental agency may not have an automatic available.
If you'd prefer to travel by road and have someone else do the driving, you could also look at a day tour. This is one company operating out of Salzburg - http://www.bobstours.com/tours.php .
One other option you could consider would be to travel to Hallstatt by train, and spend a few nights there. That would allow you time to see the Salt Mine and enjoy the incredible beauty.
glückliche Reise!
Thank you all for your replies! This information is super helpful!!!
