6 Tips for Driving the Ring Road in Iceland

5. Get a Gas Card

Gas cards allow you to put money on a card that can be used around the country. It’s a good way to save yourself from fees when you use your ordinary credit or debit card. But it’s also essential if you’re going to gas up when no one is manning the shop.

To pay with a gas card, you just tap it against a sign on the pump. This is much more convenient than trying to navigate the pump yourself or going inside every time to pay. If you feel lost the first time you try, you can wave over one of the employees. They’ll show you how to do it. (Helps if you are a hopeless-looking American-British duo.)

Alyssa Hollingsworth / Own Work

Note for the newbies like us: Whatever station you buy the card from is the only station you can use it at. Normally this isn’t a problem because there is always more than one company operating at a gas-up location.

You can buy a gas card in the shop where you gas up. We bought ours on our way out of Reykjavik. There are different amounts you can put on, but whatever money you add to the card will not be refundable–it’s gone, whether you use the card completely or not.

However, in addition to gas, you can use the card for any items bought in the gas station. We kept track of how much we were spending, and when we came to the end of the Ring Road we started burning off the last of the card’s funds by treating ourselves to snacks and drinks.

Because we stuck mostly to the main highway and didn’t do a lot of diversions, we didn’t have much trouble finding gas when we needed it. But do always keep an eye on that, and gas up when the opportunity presents itself.

Andrea Schaffer