hetismij - bit of a late response but my internet connection went on holiday for a few hours. When I said that French toll roads were the fastest I hope it was not inferred that they were without speed limits. But having driven from the Black Forest via Strasbourg to Saint Omer in one day just a couple of weeks ago I was able to go unimpeded all the way except for toll stops which take seconds and 'natural breaks'. All at the maximum speed allowed. It was delightful. A contrast to the apparently unlimited autobahn system I drove in the opposite direction the week before which had roadworks and contraflows every 15 minutes.

Sunnyshine, that site I linked to is a French government publication, so I suspect there is no English version, certainly not one produced by the government of France. It would be very handy of there were an English version; perhaps some other poster here knows whether one exists.

I haven't driven in rural Iowa, but I can give you a picture of what it is like to drive in the French countryside. Departmental roads (marked, for example, as D934 on a map) are typically two lanes. Traffic tends to be light. The speed limit is 90 kilometres per hour unless marked lower (and, as Ira pointed out, it drops to 50 at the sign that tells you that you are entering such-and-such a village).

Do not expect wide shoulders; there may only be a tiny grass strip between the edge of the pavement and a shallow drainage ditch. You will occasionally see trees growing right along the side of the road, although I have read that many of these have been cut down in recent years as a safety measure.

Learn to look for the yellow diamond sign that tells you that you have priority over the right. From my experience, that priority will rule until you see another sign that cancels it, such as the diamond shape with a diagonal black bar across it (in effect, a cancellation sign) or a sign saying "Vous n'avez pas la priorité" ("You do not have priority"). Be really vigilant of your right in towns and villages. (I had a close call on one occasion. It was very sobering indeed.)

You can pull out to pass if there is a dotted centre line, but you can't cross a solid line.

If a car catches up to you on a two lane road, do not be surprised if they follow you quite closely until they have the opportunity to pass. I must say that this is one characteristic of French driving that took some getting used to.

A final cautionary note: speed traps aren't only to be found on the autoroute. I've passed police with radar many times on entering villages, shortly after passing the sign that tells with the name of the village. Here is a photo of one of those village signs; when you pass this, the speed limit is 50 kph, unless otherwise indicated:

www.pbase.com/anselmadorne/image/46211480

Hope this helps. If I've put my foot wrong on my understanding of the rules of the road, I hope someone else will weigh in here.

AA

Thanks for all your helpful information! We will definitely use all your good advice on our trip!!

Hi Sunny,

>Would traveling rural French roads be similar to our rural Iowa roads, or more like driving on an interstate such as I80? <

Rural roads are rural roads, not interstates.
..............................
AA points out,
>You can pull out to pass if there is a dotted centre line, but you can't cross a solid line.<

This is also true in cities and towns, where you might not want to pass, but to make a left turn.

Don't cross a solid white line on the right side of the road, either. It means that it is not permitted to pull off the road.

((I))

Sunnyshine - the French roads we drove on were never like I-80. Some are like the rural roads of Iowa and some roads that we ended up on were much smaller than the farm to market roads in Iowa. Driving in France was not a problem and we stayed in some b&bs that were way out on roads like cowpaths. We(by we I mean two ladies close to 70 and our niece who is younger to keep us from getting into trouble) rented a car in Dinard and went to Mont St Michel, Omaha Beach, to the Loire Valley, to Chartres and then Vezelay and Auxerre. We drove to Fontainebleu. The last day we had the car we drove to Orly airport and left the car. We took a taxi to our hotel in Paris.
If you can drive I-80 or I-35 you can drive anywhere in France.

French autoroutes, particularly the toll roads, are comparable to US Interstates and in my experience better engineered. N-routes (national) are usually good two to four lane highways. On the other hand, some D-routes (departmental) which I have travelled on are not much more than paved cow-paths.

For an explanation of French road signs, try this site:

http://tinyurl.com/6qs5de

The British Automobile Association has a good guide to driving in France. You can find it here:

http://tinyurl.com/57jx4p


Driving and navigating in France is not difficult, as others have pointed out. However, I would certainly avoid driving in Paris unless it is absolutely necessary.

I first drove in France nearly 40 years ago when there were virtually no autoroutes and many highways had a third (suicide) lane. Things have improved immensely since then and their autoroute network is in my opinion the best in Europe.

One final tip. When navigating, don't depend on route numbers, as D-routes especially keep changing. If you simply keep in mind the next town or your intermediate destination the signing will keep you on course.

Are you taking a video camera?

If you're driving a not too bumpy rural road in pretty countryside, prop your camera on top of the dashboard and let it record the drive (clean the windshield first).

Have a nice French station playing on the radio. (Keep the air conditioner on low because it will sound really loud on playback.)

We did that for our backroads drive through parts of the Loire Valley and Berry and the resulting videos--with their scenic moving images, music and our conversations--are among our favorite souvenirs.

I'll echo what many have said above.. an absolute joy driving in France for the flexibility it gives you and the ability to explore those fabulouse villages in the countryside. And one huge reason I like driving there is because French (and European drivers) don't have that maddening American habit of slow cruising the inside line of the highways. Inside lane is for passing only

What great responses and links you gave! We are planning on France next summer, right now thinking about how we want to get from point A to point B. Train has been first thought, but after reading all your superb responses, I'm thinking maybe a car may be doable. Always so nice to hear from people who have experienced things firsthand. Thank you!!!

We have found the following rules very helpful:

1. Navigate by destinations, rather that highway numbers, especially on the smaller roads. (The Expressway is very well marked). In other words, be aware whether you are heading in the direction of Lyons rather than Avignon. Most signs have destinations not highway numbers (although this is improving).

2. If you have a human navigator, have s/he say "nine o'clock" or "12 o'clock" when you hit a roundabout (rond point), rather than "go there." The latter is confusing.

3. If you have been directed in a particular direction by a sign, keep going in that direction until you see another sign even tho it "looks odd."

4. To get into the center of a city, follow the signs for "centre ville." To leave, follow the signs for "toutes directions" (all directions). You may see a sign for one direction (say, Lyons) and another for "autres directions." This means that if you are going anywhere OTHER THAN Lyons, follow "autres directions."

This sounds more complicated than it really is, and very soon you will learn to really enjoy the experience.

Now that you all say driving is fun in France, where do I get to rent a car for the Least $ amount?
Thank you

You don't need to join another thread, envoyage. You'll just confuse yourself and everyone else. You're getting plenty of advice already.

Two good car-rental sites are sixt.com (a major European organization) and autoeurope.com, which is a consolidator that arranges rentals with various agencies. Be sure to read the fine print in all cases, as terms and conditions vary considerably.

I'm not sure if this is the right thread for this question, but, here it is. We're flying into CDG, and will need to rent a car, we will be going to Burgundy first. Should we rent at CDG, or at Orly? I had heard the traffic was much easier from Orly. Is this true? Any tips? Thanks, Margaret.

Hi MT,

Will you be going directly to Burgundy upon arrival? Where will you be going? It might be better to train to your starting point.

((I))

MaggieT,

Unless you have some stops you want to make on the way to Burgundy I suggest that you take the train to Dijon and rent the car there. You'll save tolls and gas, probably time, and probably trouble navigating on your first day after an overnight flight. There should be several auto rent companies in the Dijon train station as there are in stations throughout France. It is best to reserve ahead.

Traffic lights take getting used to. If you are the first one stopped at an intersection with a traffic light, you must look to the right to see the light change, unlike the States where the traffic light is usually across the street, hence within your field of vision when looking straight ahead. The eye-level light is frequently blocked by the windshield post.

MaggieT We returned our rental car to Orly - we had been in the south of France and the Loire Valley. It is very easy to get into Orly Airport from the south. That is why we decided to leave the car off there when we were going to be in Paris for a few days.

Hi Maggie T:

If you are landing at CDG I would just rent the car there. The rental is easy-if you are coming into any of the terminal 2 gates they have centrally located lots and the terminal 1 lot has its rentals in a lot on the roof. It is easier than here at LAX-no little vans, etc. And if you have to get to Orly-you are looking at schlepping luggage at least an hour on the RER. We picked up friends at CDG and drove to Beaune and it took about 3 1/2 hours. One caution however might be to not drive it yourself just getting off a transatlantic flight. I never sleep so wouldn't trust myself to drive that far straight off the flight. So you might consider getting a hotel in Paris near the B line overnight (like near St. Michel or Denfert) and then pick up the car at Orly-which would save you an hour's drive.

Have a great trip-we love that region!

I love driving in France although I'm really not a great driver. I find it easiest to train away from Paris and rent at the train station near my destination. The only stress I've ever had in a rental car was trying to drive into and out of Paris.