Hitchhiking opportunities in Europe vary greatly depending upon the country. As a general rule it is much easier to get rides east of the former Iron Curtain than it is in Western Europe. Having said that, Germany has a good reputation, although it’s best to hitch from petrol stations as hitching from slip-roads is illegal. The UK is difficult to hitch in although it can be done, especially in more out-of-the-way places. France is ok, Spain can be tricky… The Nordic countries are not the easiest countries to hitch in but if you get a ride it could be for a long way. I once got a ride in Lapland with a Swedish trucker who took me 300km -quite a long ride in Europe. Again, petrol stations are a good place. For me the best places to hitch in Europe are Russia (some would say that’s not Europe and in many respects they would be right) and the Balkans. You generally won’t wait too long and the people are incredibly friendly as a rule.

A couple of points: In Romania you are usually expected to chip in for petrol, and this sometimes happens in Russia too. Apart from those two countries, I’m not aware of anywhere else where it may actually cost you something to hitch. There are some good websites with info about hitching points from major cities.

www.digihitch.com

Alastair

Great info and great site.  Thank you very much.

I ‘hitched’ in the Irish Republic several times over the years.  It used to be excellent, like when Around Ireland with a Fridge  detailing a Hitch-hiker’s travels with a Fridge, was written.   But there have been some incidents like the weirdo with a hatchet that have turned many people off. 
 
It’s still better than places like Spain (where I had no luck at all)  

By the way, youknowwhat4q, I posted a reply on your thread about crossing Russia.

I’ve had really good luck hitching in France – I even managed to get from Toulouse to Lyon faster than I would have on the train. Was picked up by all different sorts of people, including families with children. I’ve heard that Spain is a bit trickier though as Alistair said, a buddy of mine had no luck at all and had to return home.

If you look like a foreigner (code word for Somalian or South Asian), you may have trouble.  That’s all.