Taking a motorbike to Europe from the UK
Taking a motorbike to Europe from the UK needs four things: a photocard licence with your motorcycle category, insurance that covers you abroad, the bike's V5C, and a UK identifier on the plate or a UK sticker. Book a ferry or the Channel Tunnel, then check the rules for each country you will ride through, such as vignettes in Switzerland and Austria and low emission zone stickers in French cities. Everything here is from GOV.UK and official sites, last checked on 5 November 2026.
From your drive to the first road abroad, in five steps
- Documents. Licence, insurance, V5C, UK identifier, passport and travel insurance.
- The crossing. Ferry or tunnel, chosen by where the riding you want starts.
- Country rules. Vignettes, low emission zones and anything each country asks riders to carry.
- Breakdown cover and phone numbers. Cover that works abroad, and the numbers written down.
- The first hour. Riding on the right, at a steady pace, away from the port.
The documents a UK rider needs
GOV.UK's guide to driving abroad is the official source, and the rules apply to motorcycles as well as cars. For a UK registered bike, you need:
- A photocard driving licence showing your motorcycle category. Some countries also want an international driving permit, so check GOV.UK for each country on your route.
- Insurance that covers you abroad, and proof of it. Ask your insurer before you book, and read GOV.UK on vehicle insurance abroad.
- The V5C log book, or a VE103 if the bike is hired or leased. See taking a vehicle out of the UK.
- A UK identifier on the number plate, or a UK sticker if the plate does not have one. GOV.UK sets out which plates need a sticker.
- A valid passport, and travel insurance with medical cover. A GHIC covers state healthcare in the countries that accept it, but it is not travel insurance.
If you are riding a bike that is not registered to you, check what each country asks for. GOV.UK's advice for Germany, for example, says you may need written permission from the registered owner.
Our touring checklist puts these into a timeline for the two weeks before you leave.
Ferry or tunnel
For France, Belgium and the Alps, the short crossings are the quickest: Dover to Calais or Dunkirk by ferry, or the Channel Tunnel from Folkestone to Calais. For Spain, the long ferries from Portsmouth and Plymouth to Santander and Bilbao save two days of riding through France. For Norway, Germany and the Netherlands, compare the North Sea routes from Hull, Newcastle and Harwich.
Pick the crossing after you know where the good riding starts. The crossings page lists every ferry and tunnel route that takes motorcycles, grouped by where you land, with a link to each operator. The port pages for Calais, Caen and Santander show the routes that start near each one.
Taking a motorbike on a ferry
Bikes usually board before or after the cars and park in a marked area, often against the side of the deck. The crew show you where to go and secure the bike with straps. Leave it in gear on the side stand unless they say otherwise. Take what you need for the crossing off the bike before you go upstairs, because the car decks are closed during the sailing.
Taking a motorbike through the Channel Tunnel
On the tunnel you ride into the carriage and stay with the bike for the crossing, which is short. The first time I used it I expected something like a ferry, and found it easier: no stairs, no straps and no hunting for the bike at the other end. Follow the staff's instructions on where to stop and park.
Rules that change when you land
You ride on the right everywhere in mainland Europe. Speed limits are in kilometres an hour, and drink-drive limits in many countries are lower than in England and Wales. Beyond that, each country has its own rules. These are the ones riders ask about most:
| Country | What to know | Source |
|---|---|---|
| France | A Crit'Air sticker to ride into low emission zones in cities such as Paris, Lyon and Grenoble. The drink-drive limit is lower than in England and Wales. | Crit'Air official site |
| Belgium | Foreign vehicles must be registered in advance for the low emission zones in Brussels, Ghent and Antwerp. | GOV.UK Belgium |
| Switzerland | A motorway vignette if you use any motorway. | Swiss federal vignette shop |
| Austria | A motorway vignette if you use any motorway or expressway. | ASFINAG |
| Germany | Some city centres are low emission zones: check whether your bike needs a sticker to enter. | GOV.UK Germany |
| Italy | Milan has a congestion charge, and Rome sometimes restricts traffic in its green band. | GOV.UK Italy |
Buy vignettes and stickers only from the official sites, linked above. Some countries list kit drivers must carry, such as a warning triangle or a reflective vest, without saying whether it applies to motorcycles. Check GOV.UK's page for each country on your route. Our riding in Europe page links to the advice for every country, and there are fuller pages for France, Italy and Austria.
If you add your route to the tour planner, it builds a paperwork list for every country the route passes through, with each item linked to its source.
Breakdowns and emergencies
Not every UK breakdown policy covers you abroad. Ask your provider whether it covers every country on the route and how they get the bike home if it cannot be fixed. Our breakdown and insurance cover page lists what to ask.
The emergency number 112 works across the EU. Save your insurer's and breakdown provider's numbers in your phone and write them on paper, in case the phone is the thing that breaks.
Before you book
Work out what the trip will cost with the trip cost calculator, and pick a route from our best European motorcycle tours. Each one has a free GPX file. Our guide on how to plan a motorcycle tour covers the order to do the rest in.