Serbia Driving Advice and Car Hire Info
Driving in Serbia-
Serbia drives on the right and there is conflicting information online as to which nationalities can drive using their own photo licence. It seems that EU citizens should be allowed to use only their own licence while other nationalities also need an International Driving permit. If you intend to rent a car, I advise checking with the car rental company before travelling. If you’re bringing your own vehicle, I would obtain an IDP to be on the safe side. Speed limits are 120kmh on motorways, 100kmh on Expressways, 80kmh on other roads and 50kmh in urban areas. All vehicles must carry a warning triangle and first aid kit and use winter tyres between 1st November to 1st April. If bringing your own vehicle you must carry ownership papers and an insurance green card – Note that not all insurers cover Serbia so check before travelling. Headlights must be used at all times.
Serbia has 45,000km of roads and 70% are paved.Main routes in Serbia are classed as Motorways/Autoput, designated with an A prefix or Expressways/ Brzi put which are named roads eg Expressway 24 which links the A1 motorway with Kragujeva.
The country’s main road is the A1 which crosses the country from north to south, starting at the Horgoš border crossing with Hungary. Passing Belgrade, Novi Sad, Niš and Subotica and ending at the Preševo border crossing with North Macedonia. The route is part of the European route E75.
The A2 is under construction and will eventually will link Belgrade with Montenegro, passing Obrenovac, Čačak, Požega, Arilje, Ivanjica and ends at the Boljare border with Montenegro.
The A3 motorway is part of the old Belgrade-Zagreb motorway, known as Brotherhood and Unity Motorway and runs east to west across the Syrmia region, from Belgrade to the Croatia border.
The A4 begins near Niš, at the junction with the A1 motorway and runs east, to the Gradina border crossing with Bulgaria, near Dimitrovgrad
There are toll sections on all motorways. Charges can be made at toll gates on the road or by an electronic toll collection system. If renting a car, check if your vehicle has this. If driving your own vehicle, more details on payment can be found here.
The general standard of roads is fair on main routes and in cities with conditions worsening in rural areas, especially after bad weather. During winter months, fog can significantly reduce visibility. Winter fog can be extremely heavy in the Vojvodina region between Belgrade and the Hungarian border. On the motorway between Novi Sad and Belgrade some areas have two-lanes with a hard shoulder on only one side. Some drivers use the ‘middle’ lane to overtake, thus forcing the ongoing traffic onto the hard shoulder. You should drive cautiously especially at night. Try and stay under the speed limit as there is a heavy police presence, often concealed and with speed guns. Expect the usual city centre congestion in urban areas, particularly in Belgrade. Check with your car rental company if you plan on taking the vehicle to Kosovo as some won’t allow this or may charge an additional fee to do so. There have been reports of vehicles with Serbian plates being targetted in Kosovo.
Although I try and keep the information in the site updated as much as possible, in a rapidly moving world, situations can change daily. Therefore please use the site as an approximate guide, and in conjunction with other resources in order to form your view on driving conditions, roads, safety etc.
Serbia Car Rental –
Sixt , Hertz, Europcar, Alamo,Avis, Budget,National, Thrifty, Dollar have outlets in Serbia. Also usually features on Car rental broker sites and Web discount sites such as LastMinute.com.
We currently have no local car rental partners in Serbia. If you are a local car rental company who would like to feature on DriverAbroad.com please check details on our Partnering page or contact us on ADriverAbroad@Outlook.com
Serbia Self Drive Rules –
As stated above Serbian rental may not be allowed into Kosovo . There will probably also be restrictions on taking cars to Albania and Bulgaria, but most of the big companies will allow cars to be taken to other Mainland European countries though you should request this at the time of booking.
