Driving to the Alps for a skiing trip: tyres, snow chains and the rules

You need four tyres with the snowflake symbol: the small mountain with the snowflake (3PMSF) on the sidewall. That can be a winter tyre or an all-season tyre with that symbol. A tyre marked only M+S no longer counts as a winter tyre in Germany since 1 October 2024, writes the ANWB, the Dutch motoring organisation. The ADAC confirms: all-season tyres are winter tyres in the legal sense if they carry the Alpine symbol. All four wheels must have those tyres, a 4×4 gives no exemption according to the ANWB.

For a skiing trip we recommend a true winter tyre over an all-season tyre. On steep, snow-covered roads the soft rubber with the many sipes of a winter tyre grips better. The ANWB warns that all-season tyres offer less grip on hills and in snow than winter tyres. If you mainly drive in the Netherlands the rest of the year and do not want a second set, a good all-season tyre with 3PMSF and enough tread is a workable choice, with chains in the boot. The trade-off is explained in all season vs winter tyres: which is right for you.

Check the speed rating too. If your winter tyre has a lower maximum speed than the car, Germany requires a sticker with that speed in the driver’s view, or a setting in the on-board computer, according to the ANWB. Winter tyres with rating T (190 km/h) or H (210 km/h) get you further in snow than tyres with a higher rating, according to the ANWB. In Italy you may drive on a slightly lower speed rating in winter, but from 15 May to 15 October that is banned according to the ANWB and the fine can be high.

At least 4 mm. In Austria 4 mm is the legal minimum for winter tyres, writes the ÖAMTC, which itself recommends about 6 mm. In Germany 1.6 mm is the legal limit, but the ADAC advises at least 4 mm for safety reasons and the ANWB gives the same advice. Below 4 mm the grooves fill with snow and a winter tyre loses most of its advantage. The ANWB advises thinking about replacement at 4 mm.

If a tyre has between 4 and 5 mm, you will make the outward journey, but after two weeks of mountain roads you will be close to the Austrian limit. Have that assessed before you leave. We measure the tread at every winter tyre change in Rotterdam and tell you whether the set will last the trip. If a new set is needed, we tell you one price in advance based on your registration number, including fitting, balancing and disposal of the old tyres, see tyre replacement in Rotterdam. How the inspector measures tread at the APK (MOT), the Dutch roadworthiness test, you can read in tyre tread depth and the APK.

Every skiing country has its own rules, and on the way there you often drive through two or three countries. The table gives the position on 6 November 2026 for passenger cars. Rules change every season, so check them before you leave with the ANWB or the motoring organisation of the country.

Position on 6 November 2026, for passenger cars up to 3,500 kg. Check the current rules with the ANWB before you leave.

The full overview, including Belgium, the Czech Republic, Slovenia, Denmark, Sweden and Norway, is in are winter tyres compulsory in the Netherlands and abroad. If you drive through Germany to Austria, the combination of four 3PMSF tyres with at least 4 mm of tread plus chains in the boot is in order in every country on the route.

You need chains that fit your tyre size, for the driven wheels. The ANWB writes: use snow chains that match your tyre size. The size is on the sidewall of the tyre, for example 205/55 R16. Check in the owner’s manual whether the manufacturer allows chains on your tyre size. With wide tyres on large rims the space in the wheel arch is sometimes too small and the manufacturer prescribes a narrower winter tyre size or a thin chain.

1. Practise at home. The ANWB recommends fitting the chains once at home, without time pressure. Practise on the driveway or in a car park and take them off again afterwards, because chains on bare tarmac wear quickly and damage the tyre.
2. Pack them last. That way they are on top and you do not have to empty the whole boot in a snow-covered car park. Put gloves and a torch next to them.
3. Fit them on the driven wheels. At the front on a front-wheel-drive car, at the rear on a rear-wheel-drive car. On a 4×4 the owner’s manual says which axle.
4. Drive slowly and carefully. The maximum speed with chains is usually 50 km/h. Check the packaging of your chains. In Italy 50 km/h is the legal limit.
5. Take them off as soon as the tarmac shows. Do this in tunnels too. Chains on bare tarmac wear quickly and damage the tyre.
6. Snow socks are allowed in France as an alternative to chains. Not every country accepts socks where a snow chains sign applies. If in doubt, take metal chains.

Use the value for a full load from the owner’s manual or the sticker in the door pillar or behind the fuel flap, and measure cold. The ANWB writes that the manufacturer can specify a different pressure for driving with a full load. Four people, skis and luggage usually put the car in that category. Measure when the car has not been driven that day, or no more than 5 kilometres.

Cold lowers the pressure. According to Continental, tyre pressure changes by about 1.6 psi (about 0.1 bar) for every 10 °C difference in outside temperature, and in winter the pressure can end up as much as 5 psi (about 0.3 bar) lower. If you inflate the tyres in Rotterdam at 8 °C and the car spends a night at minus 12 °C in Tyrol, you are about 0.2 bar short. So check the pressure once more after arrival, cold, for example at a petrol station in the valley. A tyre that is too soft takes longer to brake, wears on both shoulders and, according to Continental, uses about 1.5 percent more fuel at 0.3 bar below the prescribed pressure. According to the ANWB, the TPMS warning light only comes on at more than 20 percent below the prescribed pressure, so do not rely on the light alone.

Plan the check two to three weeks before departure, so there is time for new tyres or a battery if that turns out to be necessary. This is what we check in a pre-trip check before a skiing holiday:

The full list, including for an electric car, is in getting your car ready for winter: the checklist. Call +31 10 479 00 00 with your registration number (kenteken) and your departure date, and we will schedule the check and tell you in advance what any repairs will cost. We only repair after you agree. Driving abroad in the summer as well? Read what we check in a holiday check before a long trip. We are open Monday to Friday from 8.00 to 17.30 and on Saturday from 9.00 to 15.00.

After you get back, have the tyres and the wheel alignment checked if you had a hard knock in the mountains, for example against a kerb hidden under the snow or in a pothole on a pass. The ANWB names a hard knock against a kerb or a deep pothole as a reason to have the alignment checked. Without such a knock, alignment after a skiing trip is not needed. If the car pulls to one side or the steering wheel vibrates, come and see us.

Rinse road salt off the rims and the wheel arches. Salt speeds up corrosion on the rim edge, a well-known cause of a tyre that slowly loses air. When you change back to summer tyres at the end of March, we measure the tread of the winter tyres and tell you whether the set can handle another skiing trip next season. That way you know in March whether you need new winter tyres in October, and you do not have to buy them in the November rush.

No, not as standard. Snow chains are compulsory in Austria where a round blue sign says so, usually on mountain roads. Apart from that, from 1 November to 15 April in wintry conditions, winter tyres with at least 4 mm of tread are compulsory. According to the ÖAMTC, chains may only be used on an unbroken layer of snow or ice. The ANWB strongly advises taking chains with you in winter.

Yes, if the tyres carry the snowflake symbol (3PMSF) and, in Austria, have at least 4 mm of tread. In Germany, all-season tyres with that symbol count as winter tyres according to the ADAC. In the French mountain regions you comply with four 3PMSF tyres, or with chains or snow socks on board. Take chains with you in every case, because on steep, snow-covered roads an all-season tyre grips less than a winter tyre.

Yes, if you drive in wintry conditions on tyres without the snowflake symbol. On 8 October 2026 the ADAC quoted a fine of € 60 for the driver, € 80 if you obstruct other traffic, plus a penalty point in Flensburg. The ÖAMTC reports that € 28.50 in costs are added and that the fine also applies to foreign drivers. In an accident, the absence of winter tyres can count as gross negligence according to the ANWB.

Yes. Germany has no fixed period, but a requirement in wintry conditions, and those are normal in southern Germany in December. Austria requires winter tyres with at least 4 mm from 1 November to 15 April in wintry conditions. With four 3PMSF tyres with enough tread and chains on board you comply on the whole route.

At least 4 mm, and preferably more. In Austria 4 mm is the legal limit, the ÖAMTC recommends about 6 mm. According to the ANWB, a new tyre has around 6.5 to 8.0 mm. A set with 5 mm will make the trip, but after two weeks of mountain roads it is at the end of its useful life. Have the tread measured before you leave.

No. The Dutch government writes that you may not drive with snow chains on public roads in the Netherlands, except in exceptional individual cases after contacting the road authority. So practise fitting them at home on the driveway and take the chains off before you leave the motorway in the Netherlands on the way back.

Yes. Call +31 10 479 00 00 with your registration number and your departure date. We check tyres, tread depth, tyre pressure, battery, coolant, lights and wipers, and change to winter tyres if needed. For new winter tyres we tell you the price in advance based on your registration number, including fitting, balancing and disposal of the old tyres. You buy snow chains yourself, to match your tyre size.

We supply the tyres ourselves. That way we are sure the size, load index and speed rating are right, and we sort it out if anything is wrong with the tyre. Do you already have tyres? Call us with your registration number and we tell you what we can do for you.

• ADAC: Winterreifenpflicht: Wann Sie in Deutschland Reifen wechseln müssen (8 October 2026, in German)
• ÖAMTC: Winterausrüstungspflicht in den Nachbarländern (5 November 2026, in German)
• ÖAMTC: Situative Winterausrüstungspflicht ab 1. November in Österreich (22 October 2025, in German)
• ANWB: Winterbanden in het buitenland (in Dutch)
• ANWB: Sneeuwkettingen omleggen en rijden (in Dutch)
• Rijksoverheid: Mag ik in Nederland sneeuwkettingen gebruiken? (in Dutch)