Driving a minibus

Now that summer has come to a close and winter is setting in we thought it’d be fitting to reminisce about our holiday earlier this year.

WrightStart recently had a works holiday in Tenerife, a lovely island just to the west of Morocco. Whilst there both Andy and I (Lewis) were driving, something we’ve both done numerous times before in foreign countries. However, this one was a little different…

Our hire vehicle was a Renault Trafic van, a large 9 seater minibus, something that both of us weren’t used to. Although we regularly drive large vans they don’t normally have the ability to carry that many passengers.

This in itself was a bit of an issue; many excited and rowdy passengers that posed as a big distraction but also inhibited the visibility throughout the vehicle.

Some of the rules of road were also different to what we’ve seen or experienced when driving in other European countries.

For example:

• When driving in tunnels (regardless of length) full dipped headlights are required
• Upon witnessing a Stop sign, you MUST Stop
• No-one signals, absolutely no-one, this makes your driving position very important
• The majority of the island had hardly any traffic lights, in fact we only witnessed one set during our week long visit.

On the whole it was a positive experience and enabled us to travel the island and visit sites more easily. I do prefer to drive aboard as the roads tend to flow more easily, mainly due to the fact the roads are quieter and usually with more space available. Of course it takes a while to get used to but when your in the know and understand the flow more it works well.

One final point to note is that if you are hiring a minibus larger than 9 seats, usually a 16 seater then you must ensure you have the relevant licence code on your driving licence.

Do you have any interesting stories of driving elsewhere?