Driving abroad
Driving in New Zealand means driving on the left, with a drink drive limit of 0.05 percent, zero under 20 and motorway speeds of 100 to 110 km/h. Everything below is the practical version, the things that actually cost visitors money or time.
Distances take far longer than the map suggests. One lane bridges are common and the sign tells you who gives way.
Once the paperwork is sorted, this is what you came for. Milford Road, Crown Range Road, Haast Pass are among the highest scoring roads we hold in New Zealand, and all of them are open to any road legal car.
Motorway limit
100 to 110 km/h
Outside towns
100 km/h where posted, often less in practice
Built up areas
50 km/h
Drink drive limit
0.05 percent, zero under 20
Checked by the Drivers Atlas desk
Scored and written by the Drivers Atlas editorial desk, drawing on driven routes across the UK and Europe, mapping data and member road reports. A planning summary, not legal advice. Check the national road authority before you travel. How we score roads.
Last reviewed 28 April 2026
The detail
Three tolled roads in the North Island, paid online.
Chains are required on some South Island alpine roads in winter.
None.
A foreign licence in English is accepted for twelve months.
Nothing mandatory
111
Now the good part
Fiordland
A glacial valley run to the Homer Tunnel and a fiord surrounded by vertical rock.
Otago
New Zealand's highest sealed road with a hairpin stack above the Cardrona valley.
West Coast
Rainforest and waterfall canyon roads link the lakes to the wild West Coast.
Canterbury
Braided rivers, beech forest and the dramatic Otira viaduct across an alpine fault.
Otago
Golden tussock hills and long, high speed sweeps through empty high country.
Nelson
Marble mountain switchbacks between Tasman Bay and Golden Bay.
Common questions
Motorways 100 to 110 km/h, main roads outside towns 100 km/h where posted, often less in practice, and built up areas 50 km/h. Lower limits are posted and always take priority.
Three tolled roads in the North Island, paid online.
0.05 percent, zero under 20. Roadside testing is routine and the safest approach on a driving tour is nothing at all before you drive.
Chains are required on some South Island alpine roads in winter.
Nothing mandatory. Emergency number is 111.
A foreign licence in English is accepted for twelve months.