Turkey on a Swiss Licence — IDP Required & Istanbul's Traffic Reality

Turkey throws up an unusual mismatch for a Swiss driver: almost everything technical is familiar — you stay on the right, the 120 km/h motorway limit matches home, and the 0.05 alcohol rule is the same — yet the paperwork is stricter and the driving feels nothing like Switzerland.

Start with the document. Turkey requires an International Driving Permit for foreign visitors, carried alongside your Swiss licence, which is itself accepted for up to six months. Both Switzerland and Turkey sign the 1968 Vienna convention, but rental firms and traffic police here expect to see the IDP regardless, so sort it before you fly; you cannot obtain one once you arrive. Carry the IDP, your licence and passport as a set.

The real adjustment is behavioural. Turkish driving is assertive by Swiss standards — lane discipline is fluid, gaps close fast, and indicators are treated as optional. Istanbul in particular is in a class of its own: dense, fast and unforgiving, with multi-lane junctions where hesitation causes more trouble than commitment. If it is your first day, do not collect the car in the city centre; pick it up at the airport and head straight out, or start your trip somewhere calmer on the coast. Our Turkey driving guide is honest about which roads and cities demand the most.

The toll motorways are genuinely good and fast, but older intercity routes vary in quality, and mountain roads in the east can be rough. Speeds are 120 on the otoyol, 90 rural and 50 in town, with camera enforcement concentrated near cities. A 10 km/h overshoot is steep — around TRY 2,000 (about €70) — so it pays to model penalties with the speeding fine calculator, and to understand how hire-car tickets are billed via who pays driving fines abroad.

The car must carry a warning triangle, reflective vest, first-aid kit and fire extinguisher. Confirm your IDP requirement with the driving permit checker, and note the emergency number is 112.