MOBILITY
Getting Around Abroad by Car.
Living abroad long-term — what about your car? Bring it, or rent locally? The honest answer: it depends. On your destination country, your nationality, and how long you’re staying — and on details almost nobody has on their radar until they get expensive.
“We’ve driven this road ourselves — with import deadlines, insurance switches, and the ferry to Kos.”
Renting Locally
With Contacts, at a Monthly Rate
Renting locally often works more easily than people expect — if you have local contacts. Then you’re not paying standard daily rates, but can negotiate monthly rates instead. Without those contacts, a long stay quickly turns into an expensive, ongoing vacation rental.
Bringing Your Own Car: Import Deadlines
Country + Nationality Decide
If you want to bring your own car, things get individual fast: every country has its own rules for how long you’re allowed to keep your car there — and these deadlines also depend on your nationality. What’s completely fine for one person can become a problem for another within a few weeks. You can read exactly how this played out for us in our Journal: Driving Our Own Car to Turkey.
The Insurance Question
Lived It: Switched Insurers
Stay too long, and your car insurance may simply stop covering you. For us, it went so far that we had to switch insurers — our existing policy, for example, didn’t cover the Asian side of Turkey once we stayed that long. That’s in the fine print, not the marketing brochure.
The Underestimated Trap: Re-entry
A Short Trip With Consequences
Some countries have rules that once you leave by car, you’re barred from re-entering with it for a set number of days or months. A short car-and-ferry trip to Kos can quickly turn treacherous: you come back to the harbor, but your car isn’t allowed to come with you.
Your situation is unique.
Nationality, destination country, length of stay — the options and pitfalls look different depending on your situation. This is exactly where an experienced partner who’s already been through this process helps — instead of you paying for every lesson yourself.
Experience report, as of July 2026 — regulations change; please check what’s current for your situation. Not legal advice.
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