Moldova Driving Advice and Car Hire Info
Driving In Moldova
Moldova drives on the right and you can use the photo licence of any country to drive here, providing it’s written in Roman alphabet. Drivers from other countries need their own licence plus an international driving permit. Speed limits range from 120kmh on motorways to 90kmh on other roads and 50kmh in urban areas.From 1 November until 31 March, drivers are obliged to travel with headlights on at all times. Winter tyres should also be fitted to road vehicles during this period.
Moldova has 13,000km of roads of which around 80% are paved.
Main roads within and passing through Moldova include –
M1 Romania border – Leuseni – Chisinău – Dubașari – Ukraine border
M2 Chisinău – Soroca – Ukraine border
M3 Chisinău – Comrat – Romania border
M4 Ukraine border – Dubasari – Tiraspol
M5 Ukraine border – Criva – Balți – Chișinău – Tiraspol – Ukraine border
Roads in Chisinau are in varying states of repair but most main routes are in a passable condition and it’s a fairly easy city to navigate. Some roads are in a poor state though and Moldova ex-pat blogs refer to Chisinau as the ‘Kingdom of pot holes.’ Once you get out of the capital , the roads tend to get worse, and are badly lit, if at all. Beware of unmarked level crossings with raised rails which can damage a vehicle if you hit them at speed. Driving standards may also be erratic and you’re likely to encounter animals, carts, tractors and pedestrians in the road.
A vignette is required to drive on all Moldovan roads and you will require one to drive through the country. Rental cars should already have one. More info can be found here.
It is possible to drive from Moldova to the disputed region of Transnistria (Pridnestrovie in Russian) but don’t expect a trouble free passage. There are often delays of up to an hour while vehicles are searched and paperwork checked. Foreign nationals driving their own vehicles are prime targets for border guards trying to extract bribes. If you’ve rented a car, you need an official cross border driving authorization from the rental company to cover insurance. Not all rental companies allow you to cross so check when making a reservation. In late 2019, the only entry point for foreigners was at Bendery on the road between Chisinau and Tiraspol, so check if you planned to enter via another border.
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.
Moldova Car Rental –
Sixt, Hertz, Europcar, have outlets here.Moldova also seems to be included on the main broker sites such as Argus Car Hire.
We currently have no local car rental partners in Moldova. 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
Moldova Self Drive Rules-
Sixt don’t allow cars to be taken out of Moldova. Europcar mention restrictions to certain countries but don’t say which. Hertz seems to be a franchise which doesn’t publish rules. Of the local companies the top one above is the only one which mentions taking cars across borders and says this is forbidden without permission which indicates it may be possible WITH permission.
