Tools
Driving in Brazil
The rules of the road as our desk recorded them, native unit first.
Right
60 / 100 / 110 km/h · 37 / 62 / 68 mph
urban / rural / motorway
Recommended · Vienna 1968
EU licences are valid for tourist stays up to 180 days; carry the IDP (Vienna) alongside - it settles any roadside discussion about translation.
0.0% - "Lei Seca" zero tolerance; criminal offence above 0.06%, random breath checkpoints
Extensive toll plazas on the São Paulo, Rio and southern networks - cash or tag (Sem Parar/Veloe); rentals can include a tag on request.
Low beams mandatory by day on highways (Lei 13.290) and always at night and in rain.
Strictly staged by age/height: infant carrier, then child seat, then booster until 10 years or 1.45 m, always in the back - enforced, and rentals stock seats.
Speed cameras (lombadas eletrônicas) are everywhere and radar-enforced limits change abruptly. Avoid driving in São Paulo and Rio themselves; the coastal roads (Rio–Paraty, the Serra do Rio do Rastro) are the reward.