Winter road trips in Europe: what the Alps and the Arctic taught us

Our best trips have been winter ones - an empty Dolomites in January, the Arctic dark of northern Sweden in February. Winter driving isn't harder than summer once you respect two things: the right rubber under you, and the discipline to drive as if you might be wrong about the grip. Everything else follows from those.

Tyres and chains: the part that's law

This is where countries diverge, and where a rental or an uninformed driver gets caught out. Some countries mandate winter tyres by date, others by conditions; several require you to carry chains on certain Alpine roads even if you never fit them. The safe move is proper winter or all-season tyres marked with the three-peak-mountain-snowflake symbol, plus a set of chains you've practised fitting once in your driveway - not for the first time in a blizzard.

The technique that doesn't change

Smoothness is everything. Every input - steering, accelerator, brake - done gently and early. Leave three times the gap you would in the dry, because stopping distances on snow are brutal and on ice almost theoretical. On a descent, let a low gear hold your speed; braking on a slippery slope is how you start sliding. And if the road ahead looks wrong, the right answer is almost always to slow down and wait, not to press on.

Get the tyres and the mindset right and winter becomes the best season to travel: no crowds, half-price campsites, and landscapes the summer crowds never see. We plan shorter days, carry a warm sleeping setup in case we stop early, and never, ever chase a schedule over a pass in bad weather.