Consider hitchhiking – International travel tip

On a recent trip to Ireland and London, I discovered that the best way to get to know the local people is to hitchhike. In addition to meeting some rather interesting people, it definitely beat paying for a rental car or idling away your time on a bus ride.

In many parts of the world, thumbing can be as safe as traveling on a bus or by yourself. If it’s your first time, then be sure to hitchhike with a friend as it can ease your mind, increase your security, and feel safer.

Be sure to learn the cultural norms before embarking on a hitchhike: learn whether the drivers expect to be tipped… or if they do it for karma points.

Use eRideshare.com – Road trip tip

By posting an ad on sites like Craigslist or eRideShare, you may find other travelers who would be happy to join you … and your friends … or whomever else … on your road trip.

Sharing a ride may give you the opportunity to meet new people and make new friends. It will also help out another traveler in need. Finally, it may even save you a decent amount of money, since they should chip in for gas.

Hitch50: Scotty and Fiddy Hitchhike Across 50 States in 50 Days

Soon after Scotty and Fiddy graduated from college, they decided to hitchhike across the country, visiting all 50 state capitals in 50 days — including Alaska and Hawaii. To Scotty and Fiddy, hitchhiking means they can’t pay for ANY transportation; they must rely on the kindness of strangers. Did they make it? Of course! Strangers are kind. In the end, the pair spent 1200 hours traveling almost 24,000 miles, through 50 states, 3 countries and five time zones. Their average speed was just under 20 MPH.

In order to chronicle their adventures, the pair formed Hitch50, a site to showcase the 2695 photos they took — including the ones they were required to take in front of each capitol building — and for sharing video and news about their trip. Recently, Vagabonding caught up with Fiddy and interviewed him about the trip. It sounds like they had a blast — though they’re both broke now.