Lebanon Driving Advice and Car Hire Info
Driving In Lebanon
Before driving abroad in Lebanon, check your Government’s website for the latest information on the country as there may be travel advisories in place for some areas.
Lebanon drives on the right and you either need an International Driving permit plus your own licence, or a temporary local licence to drive here. Speed limits are 100kmh on highways, and 50kmh on other roads.
Lebanon has an efficient and generally well maintained road system comprising of 8000km of roads, 95% of which are paved. Main numbered highways in Lebanon are the Mashreq international routes stretching across the Middle East –
M51- Eastern Mediterranean Coast Road- Enters Lebanon at the Syria border at Adabboussieh, passes through Triploi , Byblos, Beirut, Tyre and follows the Mediterranean coast to the South and re-enters Syria South of Naqoura.
M30- Western Iraq-Eastern Mediterranean Highway – Runs from Iraq into Syria, passing Damascus to enter Lebanon at Al Masnaa, passing Chtoura, crossing the mountains then onto Beirut. This is the main route between Beirut and Damsacus.
There is an additional important North-South route running North East along the Bekaa valley through Zahle and Baalbek to enter Syria south of Homs.
Sections of road which are dual carriageway and classed as motorway are-
Beirut – Tripoli M51. Length: 81 km.
Beirut – Kfar Badde M51. Length: 65 km.
Beirut – Mdeyrej M30. Length: 33 km.
Tripoli – Khane M51. Length: 20 km.
There are currently no toll roads in Lebanon. Main roads and roads in cities are in a reasonable condition. In mountainous areas in winter, some roads can close temporarily after heavy snow, including the M30 heading towards Damascus. In 2019 and 2020 anti-government protests have caused road closures which can affect main routes at short notice.
Driving style in Lebanon is fairly typical of Middle Eastern countries in that road rules are often ignored and driving style tends to be fast and sometimes aggressive. This is certainly true of dual carriageway roads around Beirut, which, if not congested with traffic can be very fast, requiring total concentration, with vehicles passing on all sides and moving between lanes. In fact, driving in Beirut was probably the nearest I’ve come to F1 Racing! Away from towns there will be less traffic and driving becomes a more enjoyable experience.
Coverage on many satnavs and navigation apps may be patchy in some rural areas- an open source app such as Maps.me may have more detail. Some areas of Lebanon should be avoided such the Syrian border regions, Palestinian refugee camps and Beirut’s Southern suburbs, known as Al-Dahiye. You should plan your route carefully to avoid straying into a potentially dangerous area.
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.
Lebanon Car Rental –
Sixt, Hertz, Europcar, Alamo, National, Avis, ,Budget, Thrifty, have branches here.
We currently have no local car rental partners in Lebanon. 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
Lebanon Self Drive Rules-
None of the companies appear to allow cars to be driven outside Lebanon
