License and age
You need a valid driver’s license issued in your home country. An international permit is extra, not a substitute, unless your license is in a script an officer cannot read. Carry the physical card whenever you drive. Most partners rent to drivers 18 and up; a few insist on 21. Anyone else who will take the wheel needs their own license.
The posted (and unposted) speed
In town you will see 10–15 mph more often than you will obey it if you drive like a highway. Don’t. Pedestrians step off curbs. Bikes appear from alleys. Golf carts do not have the crash structure of a car. On the north road you can move a little faster, then slow again for sand, dogs, and unmarked dips.
Streets that catch visitors
- Barrier Reef Drive (Front Street) — busy, often one-way north, limited parking. Skip it at lunch if you can.
- Pescador Drive — the usual two-way alternative.
- Angel Coral / Back Street — useful, still watch for one-way stretches.
Drive on the right. Stop at the painted lines even when locals roll them. Do not park on taxi stands, in front of churches, or across a driveway you would hate to find blocked at home.
Alcohol, locks, and night
Driving drunk on a cart is still driving drunk. Officers work nights. Passengers with a drink is a local gray area; the driver should have none. Lock the cart when you leave it — insurance often ignores theft or joyrides from an unlocked column. Use headlights after sunset. Shirtless, barefoot driving is a bad look and a reason to get pulled over.
Capacity and where not to go
Four people in a 4-seater. Six in a 6-seater. No extras on laps for a Secret Beach run. Stay off docks, the airstrip, deep water, and trails that are clearly for ATVs. If an operator forbids a north radius, honor it — towing a stuck cart is expensive. More on that trip in the Secret Beach guide.