You'll be driving through some lovely countryside. Enjoy your trip.

Driving on the left, driving on the right...driving is driving. Yes, it takes a little while to get used to, but it really isn't that difficult.

The only problem I ever had was doing the round-abouts. 1) We don't really use them in the States and 2) they go to the left instead of the right. Also, for some reason, left hand turns would mess me up for a short time.

But by the second day, it was very natural. Now, driving in London? Nope. Rome? Nope. NYC? Nope. However, I've had to do them all and hate them all. Heck, I drove my 34' motor home across the BQE on Friday afternoon. Not only was the road a horror, but I was so happy to learn that my RV was about 2 inches lower than the bridges. Yippee.

Driving in the UK is great in most places. The motorways are fantastic. Just remember to not pass on the wrong side.

dave

Its just not that bad folks. You do need to pay attention but don't we do that anyways.

<i>You do need to pay attention but don't we do that anyways</i>

Unfortunately a lot of us don't, and that's what causes accidents.

Driving anywhere as a stranger increases risk because of unfamiliarity with the area, as a tourist because of the temptation to look at the scenery rather than the road, and as someone who is used to driving on the other side of the road from the other side of the car because confusion can be caused by everything being the wrong way round.

As you say attention: lots and lots of it. And no jet lag.

The most important equipment if you are unfamiliar with sitting on the right side of the car and driving on the left side of the road is to have someone sitting in the passenger seat constantly saying &quot;keep left&quot; particularly every time you go around a corner or a roundabout.

I'd argue against practicing at home driving on the &quot;wrong side&quot; of a deserted road but with a regular left hand drive car. That means nothing. The easiest thing to remember when driving in England is that in two way traffic, the driver keeps himself towards the center of the road.

Having driven &quot;the left way&quot; in Northern Ireland for the first time last summer, I agree with and urge special attention especially to janis and johngerard's comments-I found driving on the opposite side of the road not nearly as difficult as sitting on the opposite side of the car! Having my wife warning me in the passenger seat and eventually learning to watch the lane positions in the mirrors really helped that. The automatic transmission also made it easier as well. The countryside in the UK is beautiful; enjoy it as much as possible!

Driving in the Bahamas. Now THAT is difficult. Haven't done that for years, but unless it's changed they have only US style left hand drive cars, but you drive on the left. It really takes some getting used to, driving from the sidewalk side of the street and not from the center of it.
I've always thought people taking UK cars to &quot;the continent&quot; or vice versa would be more difficult than people adjusting to driving on the &quot;wrong side&quot; but in cars that were made for doing that.

<i>I've always thought people taking UK cars to &quot;the continent&quot; or vice versa would be more difficult</i>

My experience of 'wrong side' has only been in my own car and, in general, I think it is perhaps easier because you are used to driving your own car. It's just like driving in a one-way street in the right hand lane. You also have the advantage of being able to drive closer to the edge than you might do normally so can see down the inside of traffic very well.

The big problem is seeing to overtake. The other one that did worry me was on single track roads where the natural instinct would have been to steer left if meeting something suddenly. Concentration and keeping speed down a bit are the answers.

W/ all the US servicemen who have been stationed in the UK over the years - lots of American have driven left hand drive cars in the UK. The bases always recommend they leave the cars home - but around East Anglia, and in the old days around Oxfordshire, you'd see all these mustangs, and other US cars. And they would be poking along, stuck behind farm vehicles because the drivers couldn't see clear to overtake. (or they'd be dead on the side of the road because they DID try to overtake)

Out of curiosity, is there any American driver here who will claim he has never gotten into a rental car in Britain on the passenger side by mistake?

I've opened the passenger door a time or two - but NEVER gotten in

(several of my passengers have sat in the drivers seat before noticing though)

This doesn't really answer NeoPatrick's question and is off-topic, but it does have some relevance.

A friend of mine (a maturing male) was about to go out in the car with his wife on a hot day. Their young female neighbour was gardening in a bikini. My friend engaged her in neighbourly conversation before eventually getting into the car, winding down the window, shutting the door and continuing the conversation.

After a couple of minutes his wife reached over, tapped his knee and said &quot;I think you'll find it easier to drive if you sit in the front&quot;.

I never got in the passenger side, but my 75 year old mother (the passenger) tried to get in the drivers side every single time!

&quot;I've always thought people taking UK cars to &quot;the continent&quot; or vice versa would be more difficult&quot;

According to DH you are right - and he's done both in the same holiday (after we set off in our car and switched to a hire car after an accident) ! As Janis points up, the main advantage of having a car to match the roads is it makes overtaking easier. But even in our car he seems to find it no big deal.

Maybe you should try the train, they even have somebody else drive it for you.;-)

valleyk, this post goes back to March - they may well have been &amp; gone by now.

yeah, but maybe they should anyhow.