Italy & San Marino

Translated by: John Agrafiotis

Last updated: Nov 23, 2024 @ 11:28 am

Currency: €
Driving license:EU citizens just need the European driving licence. Non EU citizens must have an International Driving Permit (IDP).
Visa – Passport: Since Italy belongs to the European Union, all EU citizens may enter the country without any additional paperwork, provided they have a valid national ID or passport. If your country is not part of the EU and you are not a citizen of Norway, Iceland, Liechtenstein, San Marino, Switzerland, or the Vatican City, you must apply for a visa. For further information please check this site.
Border Crossing: Borders with all neighbor countries are open.
Insurance: EU citizens just need a Green Card. For non EU citizens, make sure that your International Motor Insurance Card is valid for Italy.
Fuel: Unleaded gasoline is called benzina sensa piombo, super bleifri or super senza. Fuel stations on highways are open 24h per day. Credit cards are widely accepted. There are lot self service pumps that work with cash or credit card. Those pumps are cheaper (about 10c). Unleaded 95 costs about 1,42€ per lit at self service pumps (12/2020). At Republic of San Marino fuel is somewhat cheaper than in Italy (~10c).
Equipment: Drivers and passengers must wear helmets.
Time Zone: GMT +1
Maximum Allowed Blood Alcohol Level: 0,05%
Speed limits: Motorway 130 km/h (if wet 110 km/h), Dual carriage way 110 km/h (if wet 90 km/h), Open road 90km/h (if wet 80 km/h), In town and villages 50 km/h (if wet 50 km/h).
Specificities: Motorcycles must have their lights on all day long. On a two-way street where there are 3 or 5 lanes, the middle one is used for overtaking from both directions.
Fines: On the spot fines are issued. Ensure an official receipt is issued by the officer collecting the fine.
Parking: Motorcycle parkings can be found almost everwhere.
Tolls: On entering the motorway, if you are not using the Telepass payment system, take the ticket issued by the automatic ticketing machine by pressing the button. The ticket is required for calculating your toll upon your exit from the motorway. Keep it in a safe place so as not to lose it. When you are about to pay the toll, follow the signs and enter the lane with the toll payment method you have chosen. You can see the amount you are required to pay on the display located outside the toll collector cabin. You can pay in cash (in Euros or major foreign currencies) or by using any kind of credit or debit cards at the tollbooths equipped for this service as indicated by the signs. If you have any trouble during paying at the booth, do not leave your vehicle for any reason whatsoever, but call for assistance by pressing the specific button. Toll prices can be found in this page.
Signs:
Centro Paese: Town center
Entrata: Entrance
Incrocio: Junction
Lavori in corso: Attention roadworks
Parcheggio: Parking
Passaggio a livello: Rail crossing
Rallentare: Reduce speed
Senso Vietato: No entry
Sosta Vietata: No parking
Stazione Di Polizia: Police Station
Svolta: Diversion
Tutte le Direzioni: All directions
Uscita: Exit
Vietato Ingresso Veicoli: Forbidden entrance for vehicles
Sing looking like a target’s center indicates the center of the city.
Autostrada is marked with green plates. Superstrada is a fast road without tolls, strade statali = main road, strade provinciali = secondary road and strade comunali = regional road.
Useful Phone Numbers:
European emergency number: 112
Police: 112
Fire Department: 115
Ambulance: 118
Automobile Club d’Italia: 116

Useful links:
Wikitravel Italy
Wikitravel San Marino
Tourism in Italy official page
Visit San Marino official tourism page
Lonely Planet Italy
Lonely Planet San Marino

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* If you are from Italy or San Marino or have been recently those countries and you would like to add some information or correct some of the above listed, do not hesitate to contact us.

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