There are two ways to travel to Australia, one, with a group; two, self-driving.
With the popularity of China's national private cars, more and more young people prefer to travel by themselves. I went to Australia three times, almost 15 to 20 days each time, fell in love with this first time, has now settled in Australia, since then the corner of the country is not famous but also very beautiful places, Both have my footprints and car tire tracks, as a senior self-driving enthusiast, today I sorted out some self-driving need to pay attention to, I hope to give some friends who want to come to Australia self-driving help.
1. How can a Chinese driver's license rent a car legally in Australia and drive?
* if you have a Chinese car license and are 3 years old, and you are 25 years old, congratulations, you can rent a car legally in Australia. Before traveling, use the original of your Chinese driver's license to find a translation of the NATTY level III certification or find the Chinese notary office to be fair, and then you can legally hire a car in Australia to drive.
* take your original driver's license, related translation, and my credit card, and you can rent a car at any car rental company in Australia.
2, as a qualified self-driving driver, what equipment do you need to prepare?
* Australia's sun is very strong, and there are few tall buildings, on the endless road, if the sunset, the eyes can not see, so sunglasses are necessary.
* if you want to travel by yourself, you want to enjoy the freedom to stop where you go, so prepare an oversized picnic pad, small size, easy to carry, where to drive, stop down, you can lie down and sit down, and you can sit around and eat. Of course, if you rent a RV, many of them are ready to carry tables and chairs, and find out if there are any of these in the car you rent, and if so, this can be ignored.
3, hire a car in Australia, do you need to rent another GPS?
* Rental cars in Australia will find many additional rentals, such as GPS, child seats. I have never rented a GPS, to drive on a GOOGLE map, but what I need to say is that there is no network and no signal in many parts of Australia. If you use the GOOGLE map on your mobile phone, you will have to consider this problem. When there is a network, set the navigation first, otherwise in the signal area, there is no way to set navigation.
4. Is it necessary to purchase additional full vehicle insurance for rental cars?
* I haven't basically taken full insurance. As a matter of fact, the car you rent already includes insurance. But not all risks, it means in a certain amount (usually 2000 Australian dollars), need to pay their own bill, more than the part, the insurance company bear. For example, some small scratches are basically their own responsibility, but really have a major accident, insurance companies bear. Here is a special note. The only time I bought all risks was to rent a car with two other strangers for 12 days. At that time, the total insurance was more than $600, and the total insurance was 1200 Australian dollars, which almost doubled. But considering that the other party is a stranger, I don't know the driving habits of the other party, so I bought the whole insurance, and two things happened later. The insurance company didn't have any company to accompany. 1, the car drove to the beach and got stuck in the sand. The towing fee was not borne by the insurance company. The reason is that you do not drive the vehicle into the legal lane, the cost must be borne by yourself; 2, hit the kangaroo at night, causing damage to the vehicle, this insurance company will not bear, the reason is that the insurance regulations, hit animals in the sun after the sunset, the insurance company is exempt from responsibility, need to bear your own responsibility. In general, is a deliberate human error, insurance companies are not compensable. The main reason is that we Chinese people do not understand, see that there are cars by the sea, they drive past themselves, do not know that people drive down the car is a four-wheel drive, there is also a sign on the side of the road, only four-wheel drive can drive, but the Chinese are not sensitive to English. So he drove in. As for driving at night, this insurance contract is clearly not allowed, but because it is also English, so it is not sensitive, did not see.
5, Australia drives left and right rudder, contrary to China.
* many friends are afraid to think of the left rudder and the right rudder, after all, the opposite is true in China. Many of my friends have come to Australia because of this reason, had to give up driving with the group. At first, I was afraid, not at all, but as long as I sat in the cab, familiar with a 3-5 minutes, I can be on the road immediately. On the other hand, on the contrary, it is just a psychological thought that everyone drives in this way on the road. Normally, you will not drive the wrong way. Of course, I mean, the driving standard in China is normal, oh. If you are shaking at home the kind of unreliable driver, then do not drive harm.
6, must keep in mind the Australian driving rules.
In Australia, be sure to keep in mind the rules of driving.
A, never run a traffic light. There is hardly any traffic police here. Even if the road is any larger, we all drive consciously, and our own right of way will pass quickly, and other people's right of way will have to stop and wait. So if there's a traffic accident at the red light, it's definitely a big accident!
B, when you turn around in Australia, you also need to look at traffic lights, but some of the larger sections of the road, when turning small, will open another road. There will be a sign in front of the road, suggesting that you can turn but pay attention to the direct traffic. At this time, You can turn, but you need to pay attention to the traffic on the sidewalk and the straight lane that turns into the lane, and if so, you have to wait until all of this is over before you can turn. Be careful, don't think you're in front of him. Can pass quickly, straight lanes and pedestrians will not let you when there are road priorities, do not use the domestic driving habits here, patiently wait until it is safe to drive over.
C, with regard to priority road rights, it is not just about running a red light. For example, you are making a big turn and now it is a direct green light. If you are at the traffic light, you should pay attention to whether there is a direct traffic across the street, if not, fast passage, if there is, Even if the other person far away, you have to let the other person go first, they will not let you, unless you here show a big turn is also a green light, otherwise straight always has priority over the turn, not others do not let you, they will not consider you do not let him. No one will slow down, if there is an accident, it will be very big! At the Australian intersection green light, no one will slow down, everyone is fast.
D, what do you think of the priority right of way at a small intersection without traffic lights? There will be many crossroads or T-junctions in Australia and no traffic lights are installed, and most first-time Chinese people are blinded by this time. Remember, there is a main road and a side road, if you put a sign on the intersection, also with "GIVE WAY", it means that your road is a by-road, you need to let other cars pass before you can pass. There are also signs that say "Stop," so you have to stop at this junction for 3 seconds, make sure it's safe, and then pass. There are some smaller roads, which may not even have a sign. When you are at an intersection, you can take a look at the line drawn on the road. If you have a horizontal line at the intersection, it shows that your road is a bystander, and you have to make way. If there is no line, Show that your road is the main road, can pass quickly.
E, at the roundabout. In Australia, there will be a lot of roundabout, no traffic lights. Some roundabout traffic continues to flow, many Chinese people are at a loss. In fact, as long as you look at your right-hand side, as long as your right-hand side of the car does not come, you can drive. The car on your left will always make way for you. Still, in Australia, when it's time for you to drive, you drive quickly, not when you drive, don't rush, because everyone is very conscious, and they all believe in each other's consciousness, no one will slow down and slow down.
F, there's a motorcade on the highway. Drive to the highway, limit 110, you've been driving to 105, but you may be driving, and there are a couple of cars following you. In Australia, many expressways are two-way, once and for all. So if you can, pull over and let those cars drive first. If you line up for a long time, the police uncle will come to you.
Seven, about driving speed.
Australia is a federal system, different continents may have small differences in traffic management, I know Victoria's traffic management is the strictest, sometimes speeding a kilometer, may take tickets. Drive in the city or small town, pay attention to the section near the school, usually there will be a sign, at a specified time (time for students to and from school) speed limit. Just drive according to the requirements on the sign. Speeding in Australia, in addition to being fined by the police, but also will be deducted points, so be careful.
Remember, don't slow down at the intersection. If it's your right of way in Australia, please drive fast.
8. Accommodation for self-driving tours
In Australia, most hotels have accommodations, but some backpackers' hotels in big cities may not have parking, so when booking rooms in the city center, be sure to see. There are several types of accommodation in Australia, A, a common star hotel in China;
B, a motel with a kitchen, I personally prefer this, I can cook something, I don't know how other people's stomach, anyway, I even eat two days of western food, even if I can have some porridge or order soup noodles have become a dream. If you are the same, remember to buy some noodles, pickles, salted vegetables and so on at Chinese supermarkets in big cities. If you like to eat steak, if you have a kitchen, it is convenient to go to the supermarket and buy some steak for yourself. Generally, these hotels have kitchens. Will have pot bowls and other props;
C, cabin. I personally like cabins very much, usually cabins are a complete suite, there are kitchen, bathroom, living room, bedroom. These cabins are on the fast side of the road, around town, by the sea, the advantage is well-equipped, the downside is far away from the crowd, shopping needs to drive a long way out.
D, Econo Lodge. This hotel is usually in the center of town, town center, surrounding restaurants, supermarkets, easy to buy, if you do not plan to cook, this kind of house is more economical and convenient.
E, residential accommodation. Recently, I went on a trip and began to like to live in residential accommodation. There is a house with the owner of the same house, but also a single house. This according to their own needs, just find the right one.
9. About driving at night
As I mentioned earlier, the insurance company is not responsible for driving into kangaroos at night. Kangaroos are often encountered in Australia's countryside. Especially at night, kangaroos will look at the lights of the car and jump directly at your car, so it's hard to avoid. Australia's labor is expensive, repairs will also be very expensive, if hit needs to move sheet metal, then it needs at least 5,000 Australian dollars, so, if there is nothing urgent, still do not rush the night road, repair is small, safety is the big deal.
10. The question of parking
In Australia, apart from the downtown areas of CITY, most of the parking is free. When parking, pay attention to the sign on the side, it will indicate whether or not to charge, and the time to stay. Parking on the side of the road is the same as domestic parking. If there is no yellow line, no parking is allowed. If there is no yellow line, and there is no sign indicating that you cannot stop, then you can stop.
11. space for rental vehicles
In front of the insurance area, also mentioned, many Australian seaside, sand dunes can drive in, but it will only drive a four-wheel drive, if you rent a car is not a four-wheel drive, do not lightly enter. This kind of place is also not a good signal. If you really get stuck, even if you want to call a trailer, you may look at the sky because there is no signal.
12. notice for country driving tou
Australia has a variety of national parks, long coastlines and so on, driving from the car, scenic places have "lookout", convenient for tourists to park and view the scenery, if your line is extended to the seaside, generally easy to enter the town, can find a coffee shop, The restaurant or refueling in time. If you drive from the east of Australia to the west, there may be no small towns in the zone, especially some of the oversized national parks that drive out in the morning from where you are staying, and may not open to where you stay in the evening. There is no business at all, and there is a need to prepare enough food at this time. Businesses in small towns in Australia are very weak. After 5 pm, the supermarket may be closed, and after 7 pm, even the restaurants may be closed. So where you go, be sure to make a good introduction and bring with you enough food. Otherwise, you may be hungry. Drive out, and always pay attention to your tank. If you expect to drive for a long time, fill the tank. The country signal is not good, if there are 2 cars travel, you can take the walkie-talkie, in the absence of the signal convenient contact.
