Ireland Motorhome 2026: Local Roads Are Now 60 km/h
Motorhome & Campervan Guide
Motorhomes under 3.5 t follow car limits in Ireland: 120 on motorways, 100 national, 80 regional and 60 on local roads since February 2025. The M50 toll is due by 8pm the next day.
A motorhome under 3.5 tonnes follows car limits in Ireland — and those limits changed underneath this page. Since 7 February 2025 the default on local roads is 60 km/h, down from 80 (Road Traffic Act 2004 as revised, s.6), and local roads are precisely the class that carries most of the Wild Atlantic Way’s coastal detours. Regional roads stay at 80, national roads at 100, motorways at 120.
The other number worth fixing in your head before you arrive is the M50 toll: barrier-free, camera-read, and payable by 8pm the day after you pass (eFlow) before penalties start stacking. The M1, M4 and Dublin Tunnel are ordinary plazas where you pay at the barrier.
Motorhome Speed Limits in Ireland
Speed limits for motorhomes often differ from car limits, especially for vehicles over 3.5 tonnes:
| Road type | Motorhome under 3.5 t | Over 3.5 t |
|---|---|---|
| Built-up area | 50 km/h | 50 km/h |
| Local road (since 7 Feb 2025) | 60 km/h | 60 km/h |
| Regional road | 80 km/h | 80 km/h |
| National road | 100 km/h | 80 km/h |
| Motorway | 120 km/h | 90 km/h |
Under 3.5 tonnes there is no separate motorhome regime at all — you are a car for speed purposes. Above it, the lower limits for heavy vehicles apply, which is the point at which a large American-style RV becomes a different vehicle in law as well as in width.
Wild Camping & Overnight Parking
Ireland has no right-to-roam tradition for vehicles, so overnighting outside a site is a matter of permission and local by-laws rather than a general entitlement. Several coastal councils — Clare, Kerry and Donegal among them — have responded to pressure at popular spots with height barriers, no-overnight signage and by-law enforcement, so a layby that worked five years ago may now be barred.
The practical network is campsites and caravan parks, which are concentrated on the west and south-west coasts and heavily seasonal. Aires in the continental sense barely exist.
Size & Weight Restrictions
Single-track roads are the norm on the west coast, and the new 60 km/h local-road default is a fair description of what they can take. Anything over 7 metres will find passing places rather than corners to be the limiting factor, and the Healy Pass, Conor Pass and the Sky Road are the classic places to discover that too late.
Gas & LPG Availability
LPG available at Flogas dealers. Less common at regular petrol stations.
Waste Disposal & Service Points
Service points at caravan parks. Municipal dump points in some larger towns.
Toll Roads & Vignettes
The M50 is barrier-free: cameras read the plate and you pay afterwards, by 8pm the following day, online or at a Payzone outlet. Miss the deadline and a penalty is added on top of the toll. Rental and hire motorhome operators usually pass both straight to your card. Other tolled roads — M1, M3, M4, M6, M7/M8, the Dublin Tunnel — have conventional plazas, and motorcycles are the only category exempt from the M50 charge.
Emergency Numbers
| Service | Number |
|---|---|
| Police | 112 |
| Ambulance | 112 |
| Fire | 112 |
| General | 112 |
Recommended Apps
These apps help you find overnight spots, service points and reviews from other motorhomers:
- Park4Night
- CamperContact
Driving on the Left
Ireland drives on the left. If your motorhome is left-hand drive, take extra care at junctions and when overtaking. Use stick-on mirror deflectors to avoid blinding oncoming traffic.
More Resources
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Frequently Asked Questions
There is no general right to it. Ireland has no allemannsrett equivalent, so overnighting outside a site depends on the landowner or the local authority, and a growing number of coastal councils have by-laws and height barriers aimed squarely at motorhomes. Quiet rural laybys are tolerated rather than permitted.
Car limits apply under 3.5 tonnes — but the car limits themselves changed. Since 7 February 2025 local roads default to 60 km/h rather than 80, and that is the class most of the Wild Atlantic Way's coastal lanes belong to. Regional roads remain 80, national roads 100 and motorways 120.
No vignette exists. The M50 around Dublin is barrier-free and read by camera, and the charge must be paid by 8pm the day after you pass; other tolled roads such as the M1, M4 and the Dublin Tunnel use conventional plazas where you pay at the barrier.
Service points at caravan parks. Municipal dump points in some larger towns.