Drive safe on La Palma

Traffic information for La Palma24 guests

Dear Guests,

For your safety we have compiled some advices about stress-free driving on La Palma.

Please note after takeover the car, that the Formula 1 enthusiastic islander have sometimes a daring driving style. Therefore, you should drive defensively and always as far as possible on the right side of the road!

Attention! On your way from east to west of the island, you pass the tunnel and then you'll drive in direction of El Paso. Please note the signs just before the visitor centre, the speed limits allow a maximum of 50 kilometres per hour. If you drive too fast you can be recorded from a well-hidden speed camera behind a rock and you have to pay later a high ticket.

Other speed cameras are located in Los Llanos de Aridane. One speed camera is situated in the Av. Carlos Francisco Lorenzo Navarro in the direction out of the town, the other on the corner at the Av. Tanausú and Calle Joaquín Turina (diagonally opposite the restaurant Salta Si Puedes), also in the direction out of the town.

In addition to these fixed speed cameras, also mobile speed cameras as well as vehicles with radar measuring devices are used on La Palma.

The rules are easy to remember: As in most other countries too, the city speed limit is 50 km/h – and you can drive up to 90 km/h with your car or motorcycle outer roads.

As soon as the speedometer shows 8 km/h too much the Spanish penalty catalogue provides for a fine of at least 100 euros.

Traffic offenders who drive faster than 50 km/h than the speed limit will be fined with at least 600 euros.

Be careful when it rains. Because sometimes there is no rain for a long period of time, the roads are full of dust. With the first rain, the road's surface will be „as slippery as soap“. If this happens, please drive more „tranquilo“ – as we say here – especially on the curves!

Be careful with parking! Never place your car on a straight white or yellow line! Police will charge you high „Multas“, as the parking violation tickets are called on La Palma.

Some words about driving after drinking alcohol: the legal alcohol limit is 0,5 per mill for experienced drivers – for the other ones, who do not have their drivers permission longer than 2 years, the legal limit is 0,3 per mill. If the Police catches you with more, the „Multa“, will be very painful.

If you are caught with more than 0,5 mill during a traffic control, you have to expect a fine of at least 500 euros according to the penalty catalogue in Spain. The more often you are caught due drink-driving, the more expensive it becomes. Criminal consequences are also possible under certain circumstances.

If you find a fine notice from Spain in your letterbox after your holiday, you should definitely not throw it in the waste bin.

A special enforcement agreement within the European Union gives the Spanish authorities the right to collect fines for traffic violations in other countries. Therefore, only a limit of 70 euros has to be exceeded.

However, there is another reason why you should pay Spanish fines as soon as possible: If you pay the amount within 20 days, the Spanish authorities grant a 50 % discount.

Important: Even though fines from Spain can be enforced in Germany or other countries of the EU, this does not automatically apply to all sanctions from the Spanish penalty catalogue!

A Spanish driving ban, for example, only applies to driving in Spain and does not extend to roads of your country. The points system is also different from that in Germany or other countries (points are deducted, not given). Therefore, as a for example German holidaymaker, you cannot get points in Flensburg for offences in Spain.

Have a save trip – sincerely your La Palma24 Team!