Main pros of hitchhiking:
– It is an inexpensive trip, and if you're lucky, it's even free. Of course, you must be extremely lucky to meet such a kind person. But such exceptions exist on the roads. However, traveling in Argentina and Nigeria will never be free. Travelers in Mexico and Indonesia decide themselves whether to pay for the ride. This is somewhat reminiscent of booking a tour on the website intercity.by, where the tourist sets the parameters of their trip.
– It is a great chance to meet new interesting people or even gain new friends or good acquaintances.
– If you plan to cover a certain distance by hitchhiking for your own pleasure, you are guaranteed a feeling of complete freedom.
But the following are considered disadvantages of such travels:
– It is impossible to accurately calculate the time of arrival at the destination. To stop a passing car, you have to spend from a few minutes (if you are very lucky) to several hours.
– A hitchhiker has to be patient, because in some situations it is impossible to stop a car at all.
– Such a road trip is associated with many risks that many would never take. For them, it is much easier to book a tour to the Czech Republic at a travel agency than to get there by hitchhiking.
– There is always a risk of ending up in a car with a driver who picked you up with not entirely good intentions, so you need to carefully look at the driver before getting into their cab. And female hitchhikers are strongly advised not to travel alone.
– Sometimes it happens that a driver drives off with a hitchhiker's belongings in their trunk. This often occurs at gas stations or near stores. So it's better not to part with your own luggage.
– There is a high probability of ending up in a deserted place where passing cars are rare. So it's better to find out in advance from the driver where you can go with them, so that you can get off at least in a busy area. Otherwise, you will have to cover that distance on foot. And that's a different kind of travel.
In general, hitchhiking trips are so romantic, because you can't even guess where you'll end up tonight or tomorrow afternoon. But still, you cannot neglect basic safety rules.