You come to Europe for a roadtrip. You rent a car, happily hop in it and at some point you’ll go through Germany. Being used to gas stations on every mile/few kilometers, you don’t expect this could be different in this modern country with no high-speed limit on the highway.
But that’s outright wrong! Although the German highways, or Autobahn as they call them, look very sophisticated, on some parts the fuel stations can be pretty rare! Imagine you drive a few hundred kilometers (enjoying the no speed limit) only to sweat through the last kilometers unable to spot a gas stop!
I must say this is a controversial topic. I might be the first one to write about it. But there’s nothing wrong with not too many gas stations on the highway, if you know that you can find them easily around the highway!
The magic word is… Ausfahrt! On almost each exit (Ausfahrt), you can find some sort of a gas station. Almost each village/city of at least few hundred inhabitants has one or more and they are usually positioned conveniently close to the Autobahn.
If you use GPS (highly recommendable) you can see fuel station icons around the highway without spotting any signs notifying you there’s fuel around! I suspect the competition plays a role, they prefer you to squeeze out the last drops of your fuel till you bump into the next Autobahn gas station, which charges a lot more and whose amenities are plentiful.
Driving on German Autobahn is a pleasure for any driver. Just be aware of your fuel level and once the little hand gets closer to zero, head to the nearest Ausfahrt! It’s going to cost less and you might even like the little change of environment from 2-4 lanes to nice little village roads.
Let us know in the comments what your experience has been..!
Denison Santos
Friday 27th of August 2021
I had this very exerience as a foreigner who had rented a car in Germany, in a trip from Munich to Strasburg and back. I had half a tank when I left Strasbourg and was completely confident I would find a gas station on the way back. No way, I just saw the gas level going down and thought that there had to be some station ahead but no one appeared. The reserve gas light had been red for a long time when I finnally arrived in Munich and found a gas station. There must be some law there that prohibits this kind of service in highways but it is insane that no one tells you that when you rent a car and that there are no signs on the highway.
Veronika
Sunday 29th of August 2021
@Denison Santos, Exactly! It's impossible to know if you drive through Germany for the first time. I was in a frustrating experience like that myself. We need to spread the word!