Left to right is the real adjustment — plus the temporary permit everyone needs.
Bottom line: Two things matter for New Zealand drivers: you need a Chinese temporary driving permit (an NZ licence alone is not enough), and you are switching from left-hand to right-hand traffic. Build confidence on quiet rural roads before tackling town centres.
New Zealand visitors are usually experienced drivers, and that helps — but the two adjustments here are specific and worth planning for. One is administrative and catches people at the rental counter; the other is physical and catches people at the first junction.
China does not recognise a New Zealand licence on its own, and an International Driving Permit is not accepted either, since China is not a signatory to the Vienna Convention. You need a temporary motor vehicle driving permit issued by the local vehicle management office with your passport, visa, NZ licence, a certified translation, and photos. It is normally issued the same day.
This is the substantive change. Three habits need rebuilding:
A useful trick is to ride as a passenger for the first leg and watch the pattern, or to start on a quiet rural road where errors are recoverable. Most drivers adjust within a day, but the first few junctions deserve deliberate attention.
| Aspect | New Zealand | Guilin region |
|---|---|---|
| Traffic density | Light outside cities | Dense in towns, heavy scooter presence |
| Side of road | Left | Right |
| Horn use | Rare | Frequent, as a courtesy signal |
| Speed enforcement | Patrols and cameras | Widespread camera enforcement |
| Rural roads | Long and open | Narrower, winding near the terraces |
Our car rental guide covers deposits, insurance, and age rules.
Route detail is in the road trips collection, with permit and rules background in the self-drive guide.
Written by the TripWayes editorial team, based on the questions we most often receive from visitors from this country. This is a planning guide, not a traveler review, and it contains no user-generated ratings. Last updated: 2026-10-16
Not by itself. You need a Chinese temporary driving permit issued locally, using your passport, visa, New Zealand licence, and a certified translation. Apply before you plan to pick up a car.
Manageable with care. New Zealand drives on the left, so the change is real: you look the wrong way at junctions, roundabouts circulate the opposite direction, and your lane position needs constant reminding for the first day.
Much denser. Expect heavy scooter traffic in towns, more frequent horn use as a signal, and tighter urban lanes. Rural roads are quieter and are the best place to build confidence first.
An IDP does not substitute for the Chinese temporary permit, as China does not recognise IDPs. Bring your NZ licence for the application, but plan around the temporary permit itself.