Long Distance Hitchhiking - General Question

score:5

Accepted answer

'What are the chances': Impossible to say. Probably, if he's going in the general direction and is ok with picking up hikers, the chance of him stopping is good.

'Would it increase my chances if...': Probably.

What really increases your chances is to not hold a sign and wait for people to stop, but to make sure you hike from gas station to gas station and ask drivers for a ride in the direction you're going to. And, if you are able to start at a gas station on the outskirts of town, you're off to a good start.

It's been a while since I hitchhiked, but the above is what always worked best for me. The few times I was unlucky enough to be dropped off at an on- or offramp, getting a new ride always proved difficult. Being able to talk to a driver not only allows them to size you up a bit (and you the driver), it also makes it more difficult for them to say 'no'.

Upvote:2

I'd have a Berlin sign. Even if someone is going to a small city/town, he most likely knows it's in Berlin's direction and can take you for a short ride. Then it can happen to the next driver and so on. Also if you get very lucky someone will take you directly from Paris to Berlin. There are many possibilities of what can happen. You might have 1 driver or you might have 5 drivers on your way to Berlin.

Upvote:5

I usually don't use a signs in my hands, but rather than that I just thumb up and most of the times it works. In this case when you are not holding a sign you are giving a chance to all cars to stop regardless the destination they are going to. In my opinion it is always better to move on than to stay in one place and wait for the car that is going as far as possible.

Good luck with hitch-hiking! :)

More post

Search Posts

Related post