International Driver's Liscense for Greece
 

Does anyone know if you need an international driver's liscense to rent cars or mopeds in Greece? Or is a valid US driver's liscense enough? I've heard that you need one but none of the guidebooks I've looked at mention it.

In countries where an IDL is required, it's the police who are interested in it, not the car rental agencies.

There have been a lot of messages about the need/non-need for an International DL on this board..you might try doing a search under the subject to get some other ideas.

I rented a car in Greece when I visited in 2000 and did not need an Int'l driver liscense.

I asked the EuropCar agent in Athens (Jan00) if an IDL was required in Greece, he said "No".
I then asked him if it was *legally* required by the government/police.
He said "Yes, but nobody cares and we don't require it". The section below is from the Greek Embassy website
www.greekembassy.org/tourist/index.html
"Driver's License
Visiting foreign motorists should possess an international dricer's license. The AAA in the US and the CAA in Canada, will issue an international driver's licence". Regards, Walter

The Intl license may not be *strictly* required but I think it's a good idea.

Two years ago in Athens, I was pulled over by a traffic policeman for an admittedly illegal left turn.

He did not speak english, but after he looked at *both* my Calif license and Intl License, he eventually waved me on without penalty ("Stupid tourist"?)

I'm not sure I would have gotten that treatment if I had presented him with only a Calif license ... for only $15-20, it seems a cheap backup.

The whole point of the IDP (it's a Permit, not a License, I slipped up earlier) is to translate your official license, so it seems like yours functioned exactly as it was supposed to.

Prior to leaving for Greece, we called AAA to find out if we needed an IDL and we told we did NOT. However, when picking up the car from Hertz, they asked to see it.

When we explained why we did not have one, they said they'd rent us the car anyway but to just be extra careful driving. If we were stopped by the police, we were supposed to just say we left our IDL at the hotel and show our passport and US license instead.
We got extra insurance, and were fine, but for peace of mind, I'd invest in an IDL next time :)

Happy driving!