janruay 20, 2025

The countries with the politest drivers, according to tourists

There are so many factors that can affect how enjoyable your driving experience is, from the condition of the roads to how easy or difficult it is to navigate to where you’re going. Of course, one significant factor is what the other drivers on the roads are like! This is perhaps more important than ever when you are driving in a different country, where customs might be different to what you’re used to at home.

At DiscoverCars.com, we have conducted research using data from almost 5,000 tourists who rented a car using our services to find out which countries have the politest drivers.

Methodology

Our team questioned a total of 4,930 tourist drivers about the politeness of the drivers in the country they had just visited.

We asked our customers to score the manners of the other drivers on the road from 1 to 10.

Only countries with 50 or more ratings were included in our research and only the ratings from foreign tourist drivers were considered.

The results

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Cyprus

Cyprus had the highest score, with tourists rating the drivers here 8.83 out of 10 for politeness.

This beautiful island is full of wonderful destinations you can explore by car, from the Troodos Mountains to tiny scenic villages like Bellapais. There, you can find Bellapais Abbey, a stunning 13th-century ruin of a monastery, which also hosts cultural events.

In Cyprus, if you are driving a rental car, all the other drivers on the road will know, because all rental cars have red license plates with black text, as opposed to the standard white license plates. Maybe this has helped Cyprus attain its high score, with drivers being mindful of other drivers on the road who are likely to be tourists and maybe less familiar with the roads, and with driving customs in the country.

People drive on the left in Cyprus, meaning that traveling from countries where you drive on the right might take a little while to acclimate and adjust.

New Zealand

New Zealand landed in second place, with a score of 8.77. Tourist drivers thought the drivers on the roads here were very polite, with one saying in their review, “The traffic in New Zealand is very relaxed. Polite to let you enter a motorway, quite strict in the maximum speed. Signs on the road are clear. So driving in NZ is a pleasure!”

There are lovely places to drive all over New Zealand. The famously beautiful Coromandel Peninsula is ideal for outdoors enthusiasts, with perfect kayaking spots along the coast. Or you can explore the mountains by driving through the Arthur's Pass National Park, and stop for a hike along the way.

People drive on the left side of the road in New Zealand, and on the freeway, the etiquette is to keep left unless passing.

Turkey

Ranking in third place for politest drivers, it’s Turkey, scoring 8.73, only just behind New Zealand. One driver described their experience as “top”.

One beautiful place to drive in Turkey is the Bodrum Peninsula. Along the Aegean coast, you can find peaceful fishing villages and the lively towns of Bodrum and Turgutreis. This area is also home to the amazing ancient ruins of Pedasa, where there was once a thriving city.

In Turkey, it’s customary to use the horn to alert other drivers that you will be shortly overtaking. This may take some getting used to if you are more used to the horn being used to signal annoyance!

The rule in Turkey is that you must drive on the right-hand side of the road.

Australia

Australia has the fourth-highest score, achieving an average ranking of 8.60. One driver said, “I was very impressed with the driving culture in Australia. Posted speed limits are followed (though sometimes it's very hard to tell what the speed limit is in certain areas)” and they also observed that “people are very friendly about accommodating turn signals”.

This country is home to such a diverse range of landscapes. While there are many famous routes to drive that take you along the coastline, don’t overlook the beauty of the central Australian outback. Why not drive to the Watarrka National Park in the Northern Territory, where you can see King’s Canyon and other amazing views? The nearest airport is Alice Springs.

In Australia, people drive on the left-hand side of the road.

Portugal

Last in the top five, Portugal scored 8.54. One tourist driver described the drivers on the roads as “civilised and calm”, with another describing Portuguese drivers as “very patient” in their experience.

If you love wine, the Douro Valley is a fantastic place to explore by car, as this is where you can find one of Portugal’s finest wine regions. The valley is also home to the Douro International Natural Park, known for its dramatic, rocky landscapes.

It’s the law in Portugal to drive on the right-hand side of the road. When on the freeway, it’s advised not to “hog” the left-hand side, and return to the right after overtaking.

The rest of the top ten

Germany was in sixth place with a score of 8.45. Tourist drivers gave the Spanish Canary Islands 8.31, only just ahead of mainland Spain which achieved a score of 8.29. In joint ninth place, Poland scored 8.25, as did Mauritius.

Lastly, Italy’s mainland scored 8.02.

The five least polite

The countries that ranked at the bottom of our table didn’t necessarily get especially low scores, but they were all given an average score below 8 out of 10 by the tourist drivers who took part in our research.

Morocco was in eleventh place with a score of 7.97. One driver said, “Crazy driving in Marrakech”, elaborating, “Everyone wants to pass you and normal rules are ignored and yet good-natured with no anger. At junctions, you are surrounded by cars and bikes all trying to go first. Quite stressful.”

With a slightly lower score, France was rated 7.84 out of 10 by tourist drivers. One driver said, “They do not like people who drive slowly !”

The United Arab Emirates scored 7.80. In their review, one tourist driver said, “A lot of drivers were going over speed limits and would honk a lot.”

A full point out of 10 lower than mainland Italy, the autonomous region of Sicily was rated 7.14. A driver, who had evidently visited before, said, “Usual and expected Sicilian speeding and honking.”

That’s a draw at the bottom of our table with the state of Florida, which also scored 7.14. One driver said in their review, “Why is everyone in such a hurry?”

A common pattern in these reviews is that drivers often felt uncomfortable with the speed other drivers were going, and felt that these other drivers were not very patient with them.

Tips for driving abroad

If you’re taking a driving holiday sometime soon, here are some tips on how to adjust to the rules of the road being somewhat different.

Researching ahead of time will help you get ready for your trip - some countries need you to keep your headlights on at all times and others limit this to low light and fog. This goes beyond road laws as how drivers communicate differs between countries too. For instance, in some countries, drivers flash their lights to say thank you, if you stop to let them merge into your lane. Being more aware of how drivers communicate can help you be more aware of their responses to your driving.

Using the horn is another custom that varies a great deal between countries - as we mentioned earlier, in Turkey drivers use it to let each other know when they are going to overtake. So if you come from a country where drivers primarily use their horns in anger, being aware of this ahead of time might make driving in Turkey less stressful for you! In contrast, in the Netherlands, the horn is only used in emergencies.

Finally, if you’re traveling and not entirely sure of the customs on the road, give your fellow drivers the benefit of the doubt, and be extra mindful of situations where you feel uncertain, to make sure you keep yourself and everyone else safe.

Top Related Locations

Here's a little more about driving in the major cities of the countries that topped the list.

Aleksandrs Buraks

Head of Growth at DiscoverCars.com
Aleksandrs has over 10 years of experience in marketing with a focus on creating stellar content that provides topical insights using data. Having taken five road trips across Europe and one in the U.S., he is passionate about traveling by car. His favorite countries to visit are Denmark and Thailand. You can find him on Linkedin, Facebook, and Twitter.