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Buying petrol in Germany

Posted by (Richmond, Virginia, USA) on

For our next trip to Germany, we are thinking about renting an auto in Frankfurt and driving the Romantische Straße and also visiting Bamberg. We will end up in Füssen, but stay in Berchtesgaden. My question is - what is the norm on the methods for paying for petrol along the way - should I assume I will need to pay in cash most of the time? How common are pumps that accept, say, VISA?

I do not anticipate driving the Autobahn much, if any, so I am guessing that Tankstellen along the local roads will require cash?

Posted by
2779 posts

Steve, living in Germany and having to pay for my gas (actually it's Diesel) I always use my credit card. Every brand-name gas station accepts Visa, MasterCard, Amex, Diner's Club (I think they're about the only places in Germany where DC is accepted)."No-name" Tankstellen usually don't accept CCs (except for the ones called "Oil") but do take your Maestro or Visa Electron debit card besides cash. Watch for the EC (eurocash) logo which means that either Maestro or the Visa debit is accepted. When renting a car do insist on a Diesel (they come with automatic, too) as the price for one liter of gas currently is €1.40 and for Diesel around €1.09. Also Diesel cars consume much less liters per 100km than regular ones. Sixt always give me BMW 325d or 530d's, Mercedes C220cdi or E220cdi's.

Posted by
345 posts

Thanks, Andreas. It sounds like I just need to make sure I have a bit of "emergency" fuel money in case I need to use cash.

I appreciate your help.

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