Driving in Spain

If you go on vacation to another country and wish to drive a car while there, one must know the main rules for driving.

When visiting another country by car, whether for business or holiday, the first thing we have to consider are the traffic laws in said country. If you’re travelling to Spain, it is useful to review in advance the most important rules of the road.

What do I need to drive a car in Spain?

• As in most European countries you will be driving on the right hand side.
• To drive it is necessary that you have a valid driving license in the EU. All those who are not EU or do not have special agreements with Spain should apply for a special driving license that allows you to drive in the EU for up to 6 months. Once expired you will need to apply for a Spanish license. 
• EU citizens can drive for an unlimited time, and if the license expires you could opt for by a Spanish license. 
• Seat belts are compulsory both for front and rear passengers. 
• The use of a baby seat or a booster is mandatory depending on the age and size of the child. Children under the age of 12 years are not allowed to go in the front seat. 
• You may not use mobile phones at the wheel, unless they are connected to an approved hands-free device. 
• Before you start driving you must make sure you have all the correct documents such as driver's license, personal identification and the car documents. 
• You should have a reflective vest, a first aid kit and, although not mandatory, it is advised you carry a small fire extinguisher. Likewise, you must ensure that all the lights work properly. 
• It is illegal to drive under the influence of drugs and/or alcohol (maximum rate allowed 0.25mg / l) 

How fast I can go?
Speed limits in Spain generally are located in highly visible locations. These limits are:

•  Motorways; 120km / h
•  National roads; 100km / h
•  Country roads; 90km / h
•  In most populated areas; 40-50km / h, depending on the town. 

Recently in some provinces the limit on the motorways has dropped, in Barcelona for example, the limit has been reduced to 80km / h.

  

Other tips ... 

If you are not a resident in Spain, and should you commit any offense you will have to pay an on the spot fine. Otherwise, the enforcement officer will block/remove the car until the fine is paid.

Make sure that your vehicle doesn’t get towed, for the removal and subsequent payment of the fine has a fairly high cost.

Respecting the rules of the road is the safest way to happily finish your trip as planned.

Do you think these laws are too strict compared to other countries?

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How about a vacation after August?

The holidays need not only be in the summer months. We can also enjoy them just as well in September and October accompanied by the sensational weather.

Almost everyone is willing to travel during the summer months. They have always been most popular month for vacations. However, some have to work during the summer covering for those who leave; others prefer to travel when it’s a little cooler; or some simply want to enjoy holiday to the fullest whilst spending as little as possible.

In September and October, when warm temperatures and sun still bathe the cities and towns on the Spanish coast; at this time comes another kind of tourist, completely different from the holiday makers, but with the same desire to enjoy their vacation.

Why do many people prefer to travel during the mid season?

One of the main reasons is the tranquillity offered by the destination. With fewer people taking holidays at this time of year, the streets are not as crowded; the shops are quieter and you can almost always find a sot at your favourite restaurant.

When going out to breakfast, lunch, dinner, or just to drink a coffee, them having a lower occupancy will often result in a more personal and familiar service.

The weather is nice this time of year. At this time you can spend many hours on the beach, swim and take long walks and enjoy the scenery accompanied by a very warm climate. Of course, having a couple of sweaters never hurts, just for the cool nights ...

During the mid season, there are many deals to be found in almost all touristic businesses. Beginning with the price of airline tickets to any destination, such as Mallorca, Barcelona, Malaga; the price of accommodation in any part of Spain and also the price of car hire in Barcelona, Mallorca ... everything is much cheaper than in high season.

For those who do not like being too overwhelmed, September and October is the ideal month for a holiday. Relax, be calm and at the same time enjoy all the facilities of a tourist site in full operation.

September and October are perfect months for those who dislike the intense heat of August or their body just simply doesn’t permit it. This is the case for major portion of people of a certain age in northern Europe.

Where can we go on vacation during mid-season in Spain?

In general, virtually any place that is available during the high season is also available in September and October. However; during October in particular, the rainy season starts, especially in northern Spain. Best thing to do if we want to avoid a wet holiday is go south and/or east of the peninsula.

All the Mediterranean areas during these months still maintain all the advantages of a tourist area whilst avoiding the disadvantages of the crowds they bring in the high season.

Finding the cheapest airfare to Mallorca, to reserve the best hotel room in Marbella, hire a service of car hire in Alicante airport, enjoy a meal beside the sea with the best quality products ...

If you have to go on vacation these days you just need to point your finger at a map and choose your favourite place to spend unforgettable days.

And you? Where will you go on vacation the next few months?

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Planning a vacation without leaving home with Google Street View

The Google Street View tool can help us planning our holiday as it allows us to view the exact location of our destination with just a couple of clicks.
In 2007 Google introduced Google Street View, a tool that has changed the way we see our streets on Internet.

What is the tool Google Maps Street View?

Street View is a tool that allows users to view, through real images, the streets of many cities around the World.

Basically several cameras installed on a vehicle was taking pictures of our streets. After that, pictures were uploaded in panoramic format, 360º Vertical and 290º Horizontal, after deleting the car number plates and the faces of the people who were at that time in the streets.

First country where it was released was in USA, than followed by many others, being present nowadays in 24 countries plus Antarctica, out of which 16 are from Europe. The Frech were the first Europeans presented with this service, arriving in Spain only at the end of 2008. The last update was on the 2nd of July 2011.

In our country, images were taken already in most of the cities and a large number of main and secondary streets.

How does this works?

Using this software is very easy and handy.

One of the main advantages is that the users do not have to download anything, they just need to have an internet connection and enter in Google Maps.

Google Street View is also available as free app for Android Mobiles.

To visualize the images as if you where there in that place, the user will have to click and take the small orange man at the point of the map that he wants to see. The streets with Street View images are marked with a blue colour (1).







To rotate the view you can use whether the wheel from the control panel, or the arrows of the keyboard or with the mouse dragging over the image (2).

For the movement along the street we have to click on the white arrows overlaid the street or using the arrows of the keyboard (3).

To enlarge the image of a certain point we should go with the arrow where we will see a rectangle or a circle. If there is a lens within that rectangle than we can enlarche the image (4).

How can Street View help me?

Allows me to explore places around the world that I always wanted to visit but had no chance to do it yet.

For the travel agencies, Street View has been a revolution. If we wish to go on holidays to a specific destination and the travel agency give us the exact address we can view all the area, the views, distance to the sea, services… This can be a very important factor whyle making the final decision.

You can show your friends or family the exact place where you live or work, the gym where you are going or you favourite restaurant.

If you are searching for a house to rent or buy, with Street View you will save many useless visits. It allows you to see the location of the property, how the building looks like aso. without even moving from the sofa.

Street View can be very useful for education, being an excellent tool to help those difficult classes of geography or history.

Can you think of another original application for Google Street View?

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Google maps launches a new service of traffic information and forecast.

Google launches in Spain and in other 12 European countries a traffic information and forecasting service which can help us to avoid traffic jams.

"I have an emergency and I have to get urgently to the airport, which route shall I take? I take my cell phone and call to the Traffic Information Centre and ask them for the shortest route that has no traffic jam. Let me know once you have the information, or "I´ve just arrived at the airport, I´ve hired a car in Madrid and I need to go to the centre of the city, will there be any traffic jams? will I get on time to my meeting?"

From now on this want be necessary anymore. Goolge Maps launched in Spain and in other 12 European countries a traffic information service almost in real time. Just need to make a small query and we will know exactly which is our best route.

At the moment this service is not yet "in real-time", but the information that you receive is updated every 5 or 10 minutes, so you can alomost consider it as a "real time information".

Another interesting option is when we are planning our trip we can make a traffic forecast. This option is based on collected and filtered past information at the same date and time, so it can gives you this way a similar prediction.

Information can be viewed through our personal computer or through any mobile device that supports Google Maps, only by selecting the Traffic option. Immediatly there will apear on the motorway different colour marks like green, orange red and dark red meaning the flow of the traffic in that particular area.

Every day that passes by, the software giant is more familiar to us and it provides us more and more aplications that makes our daily lives more easier.

VictoriaCars
Car Hire Alicante Airport

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