Bucharest has a reputation for traffic, and it is earned. It is also a city where a car makes sense: the most interesting day trips start at its edges, and the airport is a short drive north. A few local habits make the difference between a tiring day and an easy one.
Choose your hours
The boulevards are busiest on weekdays from about 7:30 to 10:00 and from 17:00 to 19:30. In those hours a ten-kilometre drive across the centre can take an hour. Outside them the same trip takes twenty minutes. If you are collecting a car to leave the city, we can hand it over early in the morning so you are on the motorway before the rush.
Rules worth knowing
- The speed limit is 50 km/h in towns, 90 km/h on ordinary roads outside them, 100 km/h on expressways and 130 km/h on motorways, unless signs say otherwise.
- Outside built-up areas, dipped headlights must be on, day and night.
- The legal limit for alcohol is effectively zero. Do not drink and drive at all.
- Many boulevards have bus lanes marked on the road. Stay out of them except where the markings are broken to let you turn.
- Trams have priority. Watch for passengers crossing the road to reach a tram stop in the middle of the street.
Parking in the centre
Street parking in the central sectors is paid during the day. You pay with a parking app, by SMS or at a machine, and the signs at the entrance of each zone tell you the hours. Look for the parking sign with the zone details before you leave the car, and keep the confirmation on your phone.
Public car parks under squares and next to shopping centres are the stress-free option, especially for a whole day. Hotels in the centre often have a few spaces too, but ask when you book.
A few things to avoid:
- Parking on pavements where it is not marked as allowed. Cars are towed, and getting one back takes half a day.
- Leaving bags or anything valuable in sight.
- Blocking garage entrances, even for "two minutes".
Vignette and tolls outside the city
To drive on national roads and motorways outside towns you need a rovinietă, the Romanian road vignette. Every Lindenway car comes with a valid one, so you do not need to buy anything.
A couple of bridges charge their own toll, most notably the Danube crossing on the A2 motorway to the Black Sea at Fetești. You can pay online, at the toll point or by SMS, and the receipt is checked by camera. If you are heading to the coast, we will remind you when you pick up the car.
Fuel and charging
Petrol stations are everywhere along the main roads and most take cards. Many are open around the clock on the motorways. If you rent our plug-in hybrid, public chargers are easy to find in malls and large car parks across the city; read our hybrid and electric tips first.
Bucharest rewards a little planning. Time your drives, park in a car park when in doubt, and let the car take you out to the mountains and the sea. Have a look at the fleet and send us your dates.