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How to Plan a Road Trip in Europe, One Milestone at a Time

8 stops, in the order you meet them. Each one asks a single question, gives you a short list and links the page that settles it. Tick what you have done, mark what is not for your trip, and a stop turns green when nothing is left.

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Stop 1 of 8 · Route

Draw the Route and Count the Borders

Every border you cross brings a new set of rules, and sometimes a vignette. Pick the countries first; everything below follows from them.

  • Pick every country you will drive through, in order How to do it
  • Choose any famous road you want on the way, and read its page How to do it
Route checklistPick your countries and get one list, with calendar remindersRoutesPlan a drive, and road trips with the rules for each borderScenic drivesFamous roads, with the season, toll and booking for each

Stop 2 of 8 · Dates

Check the Calendar Before You Book

Mountain passes close for the winter, winter-tyre rules start on different dates in each Alpine country, and the Amalfi plate rule runs by the calendar.

  • Look up your travel month on the 12-month calendar How to do it
  • Check that the passes on your route are open on your dates, and look again the morning you drive How to do it
  • Leaving between November and April? Read the winter-tyre rules for each country How to do it
  • Amalfi Coast on the route? Check your plate's last digit against the date How to do it
12-month calendarWinter-tyre dates, pass seasons and plate rules, month by monthAlpine passes: open or closed?Season, hours and the live status page for 19 passesWinter tyres and chainsSix Alpine countries, six different rulesAmalfi CoastThe odd/even plate calendar

Stop 3 of 8 · Budget

Add Up Tolls, Charging and the Hire Car

The road often costs more than the fuel: vignettes, barrier tolls, a card hold on a hire car and parking at each stop. Add them up before you go.

Tolls and vignettesWho sells time, who charges by the kilometreEV trip calculatorWhat charging costs on your routeDeposits and card holdsWhat each hire company blocks on your card

Stop 4 of 8 · Rules

Learn the Rules for Every Country on the Route

Speed limits, what to carry and the fine for each mistake change at every border. Read one page per country, then sort out the stickers and registrations below.

  • Read the rules page for each country on the route How to do it
  • Check the low-emission zones in the cities you will drive into How to do it
  • What to buy, register and check in each country on your route is on the route checklist.
Rules by countryFrance, Germany, Italy and SpainLow-emission zonesWhich cities want a sticker or a registered plateDriving from the UKPapers, the UK sticker, no green card

Stop 5 of 8 · The car

Get the Car Ready, Hired or Your Own

A hire car brings border fees and an excess; your own car needs the right kit and, above 3,500 kg, a different licence and toll. Sort it out before the first motorway.

    The rental-desk checklistFive minutes before you drive offCrossing borders in a hire carThe fee, the penalty and the cover you loseMotorhomesWhat changes above 3,500 kgPlugs and cablesFor an electric car

    Stop 6 of 8 · On the road

    Pay the Road as You Drive It

    Buy each vignette on its official site before the border, pay the motorways with no barrier on time, and know how a charger takes your card.

    • Before you set off, check every vignette on your Rules list is bought for the right dates How to do it
    • Buy every vignette on its official site, not from a reseller How to do it
    • Know which motorways have no barrier, and the deadline to pay them (72 hours in France, 15 days in Italy) How to do it
    Austria: the 18-day trapWhich vignette is valid at onceFree-flow tollsFrance and Italy: no barrier, a deadline to payPaying for charging by cardWhere a bank card works

    Stop 7 of 8 · The sights

    Check the Sight's Hours, Booking and Car Park

    Famous roads and viewpoints keep hours, slots and fees of their own: the Tre Cime road needs an online booking, the Grossglockner shuts at night.

    • Check the hours, toll and booking of each famous road on the route How to do it
    • Grossglockner: check the barrier times for your month How to do it
    • Tre Cime: book the road slot online (€40 a car) How to do it
    • Staying in an Italian old town? Ask the hotel to register your plate for the ZTL How to do it
    • Find where to park in each city you stop in ParkingInEurope ↗
    Grossglockner High Alpine RoadToll, barrier times and the night banDolomites and Tre CimeThe booking, Braies hours, pass closuresParking in the cityParkingInEurope: rates, zones and what to see

    Stop 8 of 8 · After

    Watch the Post for Fines After You Get Home

    Camera fines can reach your home months after the trip, and a hire company adds its own fee when it passes one on. Pay inside the discount window.

    • Know which fines can follow your plate home, and pay inside the discount window How to do it
    • Check what a missed vignette or toll costs, and how to settle it How to do it
    Traffic fines comparedWhich country costs most for the same offencesFines on a hire carWho pays, and the admin fee on topDriving without a vignetteWhat it costs, country by country