We are flying from Tampa to Heathrow and returning to Tampa three weeks and six countries later. We will obviously have our passports with us at all times, and photocopies of them as well. We will not be driving.
Is there a reason to take our US DL's to Europe? Will Delta require US ID's in Tampa if we have passports?
Hi Riley. No, your DL won't be required anywhere. Some people take them just in case they change their mind and decide to rent a car, or to leave as a 'deposit', for instance when renting bikes. I sometimes take an old expired DL for the 'deposit' purpose or as an alternate ID. In those case, I often end up never using it. Enjoy your trip!
I always take mine along as as sometimes you are asked to leave an ID when entering an historic site or museum. I prefer to leave my driver’s license instead of my Passport.
I am another one who brings a drivers license along, even though I usually don’t use it for anything. It’s more of a just-in-case scenario.
Gail, excellent observation.
A few weeks back in Budapest i went to buy a 30 day public transportation travel card. They require an ID number on the card to prevent sharing it. So, since the first thing in my pocket was my passport I handed that to the clerk. Carrying a passport, not a copy but THE PASSPORT is a requirement in Hungary and most (many) countries in Europe. The clerk looked at it and said, "you dont want to carry this around, do you have your driver's license?" Of course he isn't the police officer that pulled me aside when I accidently walked into the middle of a protest rally.
I have found my drivers license useful as an ID on many occasions. Not for driving in Europe, I travel only trains,bus and the occasional taxi.
I also have a copy of my passport and keep the original at my accommodation.
Been doing this for 15 years at least.
Hmm, I don't have a drivers license. This is not something I have ever been asked to show, except when in the USA. There, they sort of freak out when you show them your passport. Have been had told that this is not a valid ID????
Lots of people in many countries in Europe do not drive because they don't need to. We have great public transportation. Sort of like those who live in NYC. I do have other ID though that I can use at museums, etc. because I also do not carry my passport except when traveling.
I never take my DL unless renting a car. I am trying to observe the tenets of lighter packing. And the DL is just too much to fit.
We always drive to the Tampa airport so DL is necessary. Also carry it separately from our passports for reasons listed above. An extra pair of underwear weighs more than the DL. Lol
I always take my drivers license even if I have no plans to drive. It sits in my money belt with my Passport Card, extra credit cards, insurance cards, etc.
It doesn't weigh much and in case of an emergency and I need to rent a car, having my D/L will allow me to do this
Frank II makes a good point about the possibility of having to rent a car in case of emergency. I had to do that once when my train from Hannover to Frankfurt wasn’t running because of a train strike and I had to get there to fly home early the next morning. Thankfully I had an IDP because I had driven earlier in the trip, but it wouldn’t have been the end of the world to not have that in this situation. Without the drivers license I wouldn’t have been able to rent the car to begin with.
