Slovakia

Driving in Slovakia

Slovakia has a zero alcohol limit for all drivers — no allowance, no exceptions — which catches out visitors arriving from Austria, where 0.5‰ applies, on what feels like the same afternoon's drive. Motorways and expressways need a digital, plate-linked e-vignette, sold in 10-day, monthly and annual bands and bought online or at petrol stations and kiosks. There is no sticker to display. One genuinely useful quirk: Slovakia uses the euro, unlike its immediate neighbours the Czech Republic, Poland and Hungary, all of which keep their own currencies. If you are touring the region, this is the one leg where you will not be hunting for local cash. Winter tyres are required from 1 November to 31 March, but conditionally — the obligation bites when the road is snow-covered, icy or frosty, not on every day inside the window. Headlights are mandatory day and night, year-round. Limits are 50 in towns, 90 on rural roads and 130 on the motorway. There is no nationwide low-emission zone network, though Bratislava restricts traffic in parts of its historic centre.