Every July, millions of drivers from Germany, Austria, Czechia, Hungary and Poland head south to the Croatian coast. Most of them fill up at the wrong moment, because fuel prices along the route differ far more than people expect.
As of 20 July 2026, petrol averages 2.16 €/L in Germany but only 1.61 €/L in Slovenia. On a 55-litre tank, that is a difference of about 30.49 €. Here is the current picture across the whole corridor, computed from live prices at Petromap's tracked stations:
| Country | Gasoline (€/L) | Diesel (€/L) |
|---|---|---|
| 🇩🇪 Germany | 2.16 | 2.15 |
| 🇨🇿 Czechia | 1.65 (40.05 CZK) | 1.54 (37.24 CZK) |
| 🇦🇹 Austria | 1.81 | 1.93 |
| 🇭🇺 Hungary | 1.64 (595.43 HUF) | 1.69 (615.30 HUF) |
| 🇸🇮 Slovenia | 1.61 | 1.74 |
| 🇭🇷 Croatia | 1.73 | 1.93 |
| 🇮🇹 Italy | 1.98 | 2.12 |
Cheapest price per fuel in bold. Live averages in €/L; non-euro countries also shown in local currency.
The classic route: southern Germany → Austria → Slovenia → Croatia
If you're starting in Munich, Stuttgart or Frankfurt, the rule is simple: cross the border before you fill up. Petrol in Austria currently averages 1.81 €/L versus 2.16 €/L in Germany, a gap of 0.35 €/L, or roughly 19.14 € per tank.
Then hold out for Slovenia. At 1.61 €/L for petrol and 1.74 €/L for diesel, Slovenia is currently the cheapest stop on the entire classic route, cheaper than Croatia itself. Arrive at the Karawanks tunnel with a near-empty tank, fill to the brim, and you'll cross into Croatia without needing the more expensive Croatian motorway stations at all.
Via Vienna and Budapest
Coming from Vienna, Bratislava or further north through Hungary: Hungarian petrol currently averages 1.64 €/L (595.43 HUF/L), noticeably below Austria. Diesel drivers coming through Czechia get the best deal of the whole map: Czech diesel is currently the cheapest in the corridor at 1.54 €/L (37.24 CZK/L).
From Italy to Istria
Italy is currently the second most expensive country in the corridor (1.98 €/L for petrol). If you're driving from Milan or Venice towards Istria, fill only what you need to reach Slovenia, top up there, and enter Croatia full.
Three rules that survive any price change
- Never fill up on the motorway if you can avoid it. Motorway service stations carry a premium in every country on this list; supermarket and independent stations a few minutes off the exit are consistently cheaper.
- Compare before you cross. Border regions know about fuel tourism, and stations right at the border are sometimes priced accordingly. Check live prices around your actual route instead of assuming.
- Diesel and petrol don't follow the same map. Austria and Croatia are currently nearly tied on diesel (1.93 €/L vs 1.93 €/L), while on petrol Croatia is clearly cheaper. The right country to fill up in depends on what you drive.
Check your own route
All figures in this article are computed from the live prices Petromap tracks at over 90,000 stations in 19 European countries and refresh automatically. The numbers you see are today's, not last month's. Open the live map to see prices along your exact route, or explore the country pages for Croatia, Slovenia and Austria. Developers can pull the same data from our free API.
Cover photo: Marek Ślusarczyk, CC BY 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
