Czechia on a Canadian Licence — Zero Alcohol & the Motorway Vignette

Czechia is an easy place for a Canadian to drive — you stay on the right, the roads are good, and trams aside, city traffic is calm by Prague standards. The two things that actually trip Canadians up have nothing to do with handling the car. One is the alcohol law, and the other is a small windscreen formality that carries a real fine if you skip it.

Start with the drink-drive limit, because it is the sharpest contrast with home. Most Canadian provinces sit at 0.08, with warning thresholds below that. Czechia runs an absolute 0.0 — no glass of wine with dinner, no morning-after margin. Police breath-test routinely and the penalty climbs fast. If you’ve eaten out, don’t drive; treat it as a hard zero every time.

The second is the motorway vignette. The D-network is toll-free only if you’ve bought the digital dálniční známka, which is tied to your registration plate, not a sticker. Buy it online or at a border kiosk before you reach the first motorway — a 10-day pass is roughly CZK 290 (≈ EUR 12) — because there is nowhere to pay once you’re on the road, and a check without one means a fine. Our Czechia vignette guide walks through buying it, and the vignette calculator estimates the cost for your dates.

Speeds run 50 km/h in town, 90 on the open road and 130 on motorways — higher than the 100 you’re used to back home, so the left lane moves quickly. Cameras are common around Prague and Brno; a 10-over ticket is about CZK 1,000 (≈ EUR 40), which you can check on the speeding fine calculator. Winter tyres are mandatory when conditions are wintry (snow, ice, slush on the road) between November and March — most rentals are already fitted, but confirm it.

Fuel is around $1.55/litre, and the car needs a warning triangle, reflective vest and first-aid kit. The full local detail is on our Czechia driving guide; the emergency number is 112.