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this is why i want the UK to switch which side they drive on. It make life so much easier.
Do you really? How about you guys switch to our side, make our life easier?
Obviously I’m kidding, maybe you are too.
We drive on the left, you drive on the right, we can both drive, what’s the problem?
If you can drive, you can drive anywhere, I can get off a plane in Tampa FL, find my way out of the parking lot, get on the Sunshine Parkway, and drive to a rented vacation pool home near Brooksville, with no trouble.
Conversely, I can head south on I.75 to Punta Gorda FL, and do the same.
There’s only one time that I have pause for thought, that’s when I visit family in France, driving my wife’s car, which is naturally RHD.
Driving on the right, with the steering wheel on the right, makes overtaking an 18 wheeler a tad trickier than at home, fortunately I only drive to France if I’m visiting family in the north, Lille, Lens, Arras, etc.
If I’m headed for Toulouse, Bordeaux, or Annecy, then it’s ride the silver bird in the sky, and then rent a car.
I pick up a French car, with steering wheel on the left, and I drive it on the right hand side of the road.
Pas problème.
Hardly my card. My card is issued by Lloyds and this is a Galaxy not iOS.
Regardless, the Play store is region based like the appstore, in which case you won't be able to buy UK store android apps without using a third party app, assuming you set up your Play account in a region other other than the UK. I don't think it matters who issues your card, just what country its billing address is attached to. If your Lloyds card is issued in the UK and you have a UK billing address then yeah, not sure what's up with still having region based issues.
I couldn't buy apps in my new country until I switched over using a credit card issued in that country.
This may not be your issue but it's going to effect 99% of everyone else travelling with a US/whatever based phone and wanting to use local apps - even if you change sims.
Last edited by FinsterRufus; 05-06-2018 at 12:31 AM..
I am basing this advice on personal experience renting a car in Germany and the UK within the past couple of years.
Using your own cell phone in a foreign country can be very expensive. More expensive than renting a vehicle with navigation installed already, or a GPS with the car. Of course, this depends on your plan but it's hard to gauge how expenses are adding up when you're in the midst of a trip.
If you bring your own GPS system (not the one on your phone) and update it with foreign maps, well, I haven't had good luck with that.
Renting a vehicle with the GPS already included, or a separate GPS system that's native to the country the car rental is from just isn't very expensive.
I agree that a standalone GPS is not as accurate as Google maps, but it's possible to rent vehicles with navigation systems that rely on Google Maps and that would be my advice rather than relying on US cell phones with international rates that can really, really stack up.
I disagree.
- Most rented cars come with a GPS.
- Using a phone in a foreign country can be very expensive <<< is not, if you know what you're doing.
OP, most of your question are answered and explained - just click on links I have provided.
- "If you bring your own GPS system (not the one on your phone) and update it with foreign maps, well, I haven't had good luck with that." <<< I never had any problems with that.
- "I agree that a standalone GPS is not as accurate as Google maps" <<< TomTom Go, CoPilot, HERE WeGo, Waze works perfectly there. Voice instructions couldn't match those of TomTom and CoPilot, and Google’s traffic alerts couldn't keep up either.
You only need to remember one rule. Your driver side should be always next to the yellow line/divider. Work everytime.
Which is white in the UK. Yellow lines are found next to the kerb, and indicate parking restrictions (check the signs, a double yellow line usually means no parking/stopping).
I lived there for almost 30 years, with much of my time spent at the Celtic Ray pub. I love that place.
I remember it well, Irish pub on Marion, probably East Marion, very minor drawback, it seemed a tad dark in there, could have used a little more light, but we used it a couple of times.
We entered a trivia quiz there one night, came third, and won a $15 bar tab token, but were flying home next day, so gave it to some locals.
I felt a swell of pride when I knew an answer that mystified my wife, brother-in-law, and his wife, “Which Major League soccer team plays their home games at Century Link Field?”
A) Seattle Sounders.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Walshie79
Which is white in the UK. Yellow lines are found next to the kerb, and indicate parking restrictions (check the signs, a double yellow line usually means no parking/stopping).
Parking on a double yellow gets you a fine of maybe £150, ($200), parking on a single or double red, (bus route), gets you the electric chair, or similar.
Buy a UK road atlas when you arrive at the airport you're flying into. Even if you're going to use GPS/satnav, a physical map gives you backup, and helps you plan your days out.
If possible, your husband could find it helpful to take a taxi trip before first driving himself. If he sits in the front passenger seat he'd get some experience of being on the left side of the road - this wouldn't be possible in a black taxi cab (no front passenger seat, as far as I'm aware), but even in the back he'd still be on the left, and can watch what the taxi driver does.
As previously mentioned, some roads are narrow. If you visit rural areas, some country roads, or lanes are not wide enough for two cars, so when driving on narrow roads always keep an eye out for 'passing spots.' If you meet another vehicle one of you may need to reverse to a passing spot. And if you meet a tractor there's no way that it will make way for you.
This is an example of the roads you can encounter in the British countryside, it's what's known here as a minor road. It's for two-way traffic, so this is why drivers always need to be aware of where the passing spots are as he/she drives along.
This is an example of the roads you can encounter in the British countryside, it's what's known here as a minor road. It's for two-way traffic, so this is why drivers always need to be aware of where the passing spots are as he/she drives along.
I’d be inclined to call that snow laden thing a path, or track, maybe a lane, it definitely isn’t big enough to be called a road IMO.
Although Berenice says it’s for two way traffic, in actual fact IT IS ONLY a possibility that someone could be coming the other way, but it’s just a possibility, emphatically not a slam dunk certainty.
In around 50 years of driving all over the U.K, from Cornwall in the far South West, to Caithness in the far north of Scotland, I’ve found myself in something like this maybe twice, fortunately I got away with it.
If any of our American friends came over here and rented a car, they’d be VERY unlucky to find something like that, in fact, about as unlucky as Honest Abe was on that Friday night in April 1865.
He said to Mary, “Dinner at Willard’s, or the theatre?”
Mary said, “The theatre I think.”
On the subject of International Driver's Licenses. I got one years ago, and could of gotten away with not having one since I wasn't stopped by the police and the car rental took place in the UK and The Netherlands where they could understand the english on my license.
That said, I would of also advised not getting one for the UK, until I read this.
"Do You Need an IDP to Drive in the UK?
If your US driver's licence is issued in English, you probably don't need an IDP for the UK. However, in these days of heightened security, car rental companies and insurance companies may require one. And if you are planning to drive across the channel.
crossing by either Le Shuttle or a ferry, you will need to have one.
And, you'll need one for the UK as well if your own driver's licence is not in English"
I don't think I'm allowed to link the site where I got this, but it's from TripSavvy.
So I would check with the company you are hiring a car from...just to be sure. Me, I always err on the side of caution. Also, as you probably know, an International Drivers License isn't really a license but a translation of your own, which you MUST bring with you.
As for driving, yes it takes a bit of getting used to. Looking up the wrong way for the rearview mirror, looking the wrong way when pulling out into a road etc.
My advice to your husband, is that even after you feel like you have it all under control and it's easy peasy, don't let your guard down. Your years of driving on the other side of the road, don't go way quickly.
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