Scariest roads in Europe?
 

For me it was the drive on a tour bus from Rhonda in Spain to the coast at Torremolinos. Looking at the map, the road must have been
A 397. This highway is modern and well marked but soooo precipitous with soooo many left turns! A few roads in Sicily were also nerve-racking.

What had been your experience?

the small one track road we call, "up and over".....it runs from collobrieres, france in the south, over a small mountain to near the sea not far from st tropez....sometimes we do not even meet another car...goats yes and fallen rocks...

On three diffeernt very high, switchback roads in the Pyrenees:

One of the French side, in the car I had just hours before and whose brakes I didn't trust. No guard rails, and a 10 percent or more grade going down

One on the Spanish side, which was about 40 km of winding road so high up it was like being in an airplane, creating a powerful sense of dizziness

A pass between France and Spain where I foolishy kept going even though I suspected the clouds above me were directly on my route. I ended up driving 15 km per hour over a mountain pass in fog so thick I had to roll down wmy window to see the median line, and kept asking my husband: "Is the sheer drop to the left or the right of us now?" His answer: "I think the moountain is that side, but I'm not sure."

And yes -- Sicily, where people drive with their eyes closed and pass at warp speed on blind curves.

By the way, the name of the town is Ronda.

For me, it was the bus ride from Positano to Meta on the Amalfi Coast - the bus driver seemed to think he was Mario Andretti on speed - took some of the switchback corners on two wheels I think!

All roads need be considered scary! Some Euro drivers have little experience. They pass on blind curves. They pass and expect uncoming drivers to yield. Crash in Poland - Eight deaths. Microbus driver tried to pass. Head on with car in the other lane! Other lane driver was blameless. Even your being cautious may not suffice. Alcohol is usually a factor in the accident, and it affects the sober driver. Remember what happened to Princess Diana. The odds on survival are good...

Riding in a car from the airport in Rome to our hotel at 8:30am driven by a maniac arranged by our hotel.

My sister who has traveled everywhere in the world said it was the worst ride she ever had and she got sick to her stomach. I had a headache for sure - thought I was going to die.

Good thing we paid one fee as we went through every narrow alley in Rome. We think he was trying to scare the s out of a couple of Americans. He almost did.

The most frightening taxi ride I experienced outside of New York City (where they are the norm) was in Brussels, whose urban core is carved up with speedways and tunnels. (It's also the only city I was ever cheated by a taxi driver).

I don't think there is such a thing as a pleasant taxi ride in Roma, or one that doesn't take you through alleys, already clogged with cars and people, with less than a hair to spare.

Never again. This trip we are arriving in Rome on the train and will take the train to the airport when we leave.

We learned our lesson about nice, leisurely rides from the airport to the hotel. :)

Won't you need to take a taxi from Termini to your hotel?

The road that takes to the most important monastery in Montenegro. There were a couple of stretches that people walked and the driver was the only person in the bus. Passengers didn´t have to risk their lives.

The mountain roads on Madiera. The roads are so narrow that our municipal bus had to back down a steep incline without gurad rails and let a passenger car to pass.

I'd second Madeira. The road from the plateau down to the hamlet of Rabacal is unbelievable: pot-holed, only wide enough for one car and with no safety barriers next to a sheer drop of several hundred. I've done it twice and still have the occasional nightmare, but I believe it's now closed to non-essential traffic.

We will take a taxi to Termini but that was not a long ride and the last time we had a taxi to Termini it was pleasant.

How is the weather in Venice and Rome the first half of October. We are debating whether to take our microfiber raincoats or just a sweater.

Any suggestions for us?

Here's a third vote for Madeira! Some of those mountainous roads appear to be less than a bus width wide! Would also include the switchback road from Kotor to Cetinje in Montenegro (something like 32 hairpin turns) and the switchback road to reach the Stalheim hotel in Norway. All are breathtakingly scenic - and in each case so glad we left the driving to others!

Another vote for the road from Kotor to Cetinje! I, not the driver, survived by closing my eyes for the hairpin turns.

Coming down from St.Moritz, Switzerland, 30 years ago, 2 lane road, reasonable speed limit, sheer drop on right side. A Mercedes Benz passed me on a curve going 55 mph or more. Luckily no cars oncoming.

2005 in Slovakia, crazy woman passed me on a curve on a steep hill with heavy traffic; when she encountered an oncoming, she just hauled right and tried to push me onto the shoulder.

A drive into the muntains from Nerja in southern Spain. We were following a leaflet's instructions to find an artist's studio. My mother was so scared she had to lie down in the back seat so she couldn't see out.

Tomboy, I drove down from St. Moritz two years ago and the drivers haven't gotten any better. The view was great but I kept wondering why I didn't the remains of any cars along the mountain considering how other people were driving.

Madeira - Well, that's one trip I can take off my list. I hate sheer drops and scary roads...

St. Moritz - Had my husband put the car on the train so I wouldn't have to start our vacation with cliff stress. Highly recommend it.

Amalfi Coast - Worried for weeks before about the drive but it wasn't so bad...


Not Europe, but...
Grand Canyon, USA - Where I developed my fear of heights at the age of about 9 - drove up with my parents and 5 siblings. No guard rails. Sheer drops. Only place I hate as much is US Route one in CA...

gruezi