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[[Image:IMG 5392.JPG{{infobox Country|thumbcountry = Germany|250pxmap = <map lat='51.39920565355378' lng='9.9755859375' zoom='5' view='0' height='320' width='260' float='left' country='Germany' />|rightlanguage = German|capital = [[TizianoBerlin]] hitching from |pop = 82,314,900|currency = Euro (€)|hitch = <good>|BW = DE}}[[Berlin]] to File:2003 Hitch-hiking in Germany.jpg|thumb|left|250px|[[MunichUser:Sigurdas|Sigurdas]]thumbing towards Nürnberg, 2003.]]'''Germany''' is a member state of the [[European Union]] as well as the [[Schengen Agreement]]. It is a great country for [[hitchhiking]], both on motorways (via [[on-ramp]]s, [[rest area|service stations]], more seldom - parking lots) and local roads. Just make sure Germans are a little bit suspicious, but nice if you get to know them. Thumbing makes it easier for them to say "no", because they do not even have to look at you. Those who will stop are often people who hitchhiked themselves when they were younger. Many of them have families, jobs and fast cars now.Because of the absence of speed limits on many motorways it's a good country to hitchhike long distances in short time.__TOC__ == Road types ==To hitchhike efficiently in Germany it is good to know the three different kinds of roads between cities and towns. By descending speed these are:* motorways or expressways called ''Autobahn'' with no general speed limit (motorwaythere can still be signs with speed limits)! There it is best to get to a * federal roads called ''Bundesstraße''* country roads called ''RaststätteLandstraße'' (service area) where drivers can legally stop Their use in hitchhiking is different and get from one to anotherexplained below. You will often find maps with  === Autobahn ===For more information, see the motorways and the service areas along themarticle [[Autobahn]].

In Germany there are no speed limits on many highways. So you might first want to try to get a ride with fast cars before asking truck drivers! Trucks are great during nighttime, but like in [[FranceFile:Bundesautobahn_7_number.svg|thumb|left|150px|A traffic sign indicating Autobahn A7]], there The autobahns in Germany are restrictions to when they might drivethe fastest links between cities. Their numbers consist of an '''A''' and the number of the highway. In Germany, trucks arenOn traffic signs the ''A''t allowed to drive on weekends from Saturday 10 PM to Sunday 10 PM or on public holidaysis not mentioned but they can be distinguished by the blue colour of the sign.

==License plates==In Germany license plates start with an abbreviation The lack of a general speed limit is something most Germans are proud of demonstrating to you and what makes them the best choice for longer distances. Subsequently walking and hitchhiking is illegal on the region where autobahn and the car is registeredemergency lane. So look out for number plates starting with '''B''' if you're hitching to [[Berlin]]!

:''See [http://enAs a general rule, you should always stick to the Autobahn as long as possible and try to change between major autobahns as little as possible, even if this means some detours.wikipedia.org/wiki/German_car_number_plates German car number plates] As soon as you are on the Autobahn and travel between service stations, you are hitching fast and [http://dereliable.wikipedia.org/wiki/Liste_der_Kfz-Kennzeichen_in_Deutschland List For more information about this kind of abbreviations usedhitchhiking, see the article on [[petrol station hitchhiking]] (in German) on Wikipedia for more information.''

==Border crossings==Germany implemented the [[Schengen Agreement]]As trucks do not travel faster than 90 km/h you might want first try to get a ride hitching a personal car before asking truck drivers. This means, that the border to other Schengen countries Trucks are open. At the borders to nongreat for a night-Schengen countries ([[Poland]]ride; however, [[Czech Republic]] and [[Switzerland]]) there are still checkpoints and German custom officers or sometimes police might control your luggagerestrictions, especially if you come from [[Eastern Europe]]an countries like [[Poland]] (searching for forged branded goodsin France, smuggled tobacco, etcof when trucks are allowed on an autobahn.), or if you come from In Germany most trucks aren't allowed on motorways on Sundays or cross over into Switzerland (black money is often smuggled over that border)public holidays before 22:00. If coming in with a commuter train, they easily take you out of your train to search your belongings, while your train continues without youAs most truck drivers stop earlier truck traffic already gets less on Saturday afternoons.

NeverthelessIf you travel a specific autobahn, this seems to be have a look at the [[autobahn]] page where you can find very unlikely nowadaysspecific information and hints about hitchhiking on German motorway ramps, etc. - for example, the route [[Amsterdam]]–[[Berlin]] along the [[A2 (Germany)|A2]] and [[A30 (Germany)|A30]].

==Eat== Getting onto the autobahn ====__TOC__[[File:Zeichen 330.svg|thumb|right|100px|The on-ramp sign of an autobahn]]Try To get onto the autobahn either hitch a ride from a city, thumb at the on-ramp '''before''' the sign or go to a service station by public transportation and walk there. A good possibility is to look for a street with traffic lights that leads to an autobahn. Wait for the red light, then knock at the windows (do not forget to smile!) and ask for a ride. If you look neither like a homeless nor like a drug dealer, they will be happy to help you. ==== Service stations and rest areas ====You have various possibilities for being dropped off along the autobahn to look for your next ride. As petrol station hitchhiking is faster, try to avoid eating being dropped at on-ramps where you have to thumb. On the autobahn, it is preferable to be dropped off at a service station instead of a rest area as rest areas have much less cars stopping.  [[File:Zeichen 448.1.svg|thumb|right|150px|Autobahn traffic sign of an Autohof]] The ''Raststätte'' is the usual choice for hitchhiking because most cars tend to refuel there. Make sure your ''Raststätte'' has not just a restaurant but also a petrol stations because more people stop there and they leave quicker. Most ''Raststätten'' are on both sides of the autobahn and there is often a bridge or tunnel nearby to cross. Therefore you might consider hitchhiking to a ''Raststätte'' in the opposite direction first to get onto the highway quicker. At the entrance of the petrol station shop there are usually map stands that show the surrounding area and other service stations in Germany.With a few exceptions all service stations can be entered by foot from the side and feature an unlocked door in the fence or wall. The off-autobahn ''Autohof'' is a local fuel station that is marked on traffic signs on the motorwaysautobahn. They Food and fuel is cheaper there but most car drivers don't bother and thus mostly trucks stop there. This means that they are very expensive (you even okay on weekdays but have to pay be avoided on Saturday evenings and Sundays at all cost. Another disadvantage for continuing on the toilets) autobahn is that local traffic also stops at the ''Autohof''. === Federal ''Bundesstraße'' roads === [[File:Bundesstraße 42 number.svg|thumb|right|150px|A traffic sign indicating Bundesstraße B42]] The federal ''Bundesstraße'' roads are indicated by yellow signs and carry numbers like ''B6'' or ''B49''. Like in the food case of the autobahn the ''B'' is not written on traffic signs, but federal roads can be distinguished by the yellow colour of the sign. As they are smaller and carry more local traffic they should only be used to get from and to the autobahn, though there are a few exceptions to the rule. Their general speed limit is 100 km/h and they usually very badhave no emergency lane so they are difficult to thumb. To get a ride either try petrol stations or choose a place where have a lot of space to see you and stop or where they are going slower, e.g. town exits. Police might consider it illegal to thumb in sites where cars cannot stop without putting the traffic in danger.At [[File:Zeichen 331.1 - Kraftfahrstraße, StVO 2013.svg|thumb|right|150px|A fraffic sign indicating the beginning of a ''Kraftfahrstraße'']]To make it more complicated some service stations you get of the ''Bundesstraßen'' are a 1€ bill for so called ''Kraftfahrstraße''. For them most of the toilet''Autobahn''-rules apply (e.g. no pedestrians and bikes allowed). You can buy thinks recognise a ''Kraftfahrstraße'' by the sign of a white car in front of a blue backround.   === Smaller federal ''Landstraße'' roads === These roads are not numbered on traffic signs and usually connect minor towns. As most of them have lower speed limits thumbing is likely to work. As they might not have a lot of traffic coming through they should only be used for 1€ with getting from and to you final destination. == The Ruhr area warning == When hitch hiking towards and from Belgium, be carreful passing the Ruhr area (Dortmund, Essen, Duisburg). Once you get in, it 's difficult to get out. Raststättes are rare and passing traffic avoids this region. We tried on several places and had to take the train to pass this area (lost 5 hours). There are sufficient work arounds to avoid this area. See also the hitchwiki page of the [[Ruhr Area]]. == Legal stuff ==Hitchhiking in general is legal in Germany. It is only forbidden to hitchhike on the Autobahn itself, meaning you standing on the autobahn or its emergency lane. It is also forbidden to walk on a ''Kraftfahrstraße''. You are perfectly fine stopping at service stations and asking the petrol people but keep in mind that service stations are private property / leases. It occasionally happened that owners try to get rid of hichthikers at "their" service station shop . If that happens, just move to the parking space and hitchhike there.If you want to start hitching at the restauranton-ramps, make sure you stand before the rectangular blue sign indicating the start of the autobahn.You can drink water Just like other people, police may or may not be friendly towards hitchhikers. It is said that police controls are more frequent in the southern states of [[Bavaria]] and [[Baden-Württemberg]]. As a foreigner you have to carry your passport at all times; a national ID card is sufficient if you are from the tap nearly everywhere in Germanyanother EU country. If you are being checked, be friendly, show it to them and they will leave you alone.

Keep in mind that most shops === Car registration/number plates ===You can determine where a car is registered by its number plates. While tehre are certain plates on rented cars. (Europcar has „HH“ (Hamburg), Avis – „EU“ (Euskirchen), Sixt – „M“ (Munich), Hertz „DN-H“ (including supermarketsDüren) ), other plates are not allowed to open on Sundaysassociated with areas [https://de. Also most supermarkets close at 20:00 or even earlierwikipedia. There are ''no'' 24horg/wiki/Liste_der_Kfz-Kennzeichen_in_Deutschland -shopsDE], but gas stations often offer a limited food section[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vehicle_registration_plates_of_Germany EN]. The first letter is usually the district where it is registered.In bigger cities addition, there is a little patch beside the number which tells you what state that number plate belongs to, which is useful if you can usually get the cheapest fast-food at do not know the various Turkish and Italian Restaurantsdistrict letters.

==Biggest citiesLicense plates ==* There are between one and three letters on a license plate which show the city or region where the car is registered. For example, look for license plates starting with '''B''' if you're hitching to [[Berlin]]* [. Have a look at the articles on Wikipedia for more information: [Köln]http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/German_car_number_plates German car number plates] (Colognein English)* [[Düsseldorf]]* [[Dortmund]]* [and [Frankfurt am Main]]* [[Hamburg]]* [[München]http://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Liste_der_Kfz-Kennzeichen_in_Deutschland Liste der Kfz-Kennzeichen in Deutschland] (Munichin German)* [[Hannover]].

==Cities=====[[Baden-Württemberg]]===[[Freiburg]]Note that it is no longer required to change plates if you move, [[Karlsruhe]], [[Konstanz]], [[Ravensburg]], [[Reutlingen]], [[Stuttgart]], [[Ulm]], [[Weingarten]]so a HH (Hamburg) car may very well belong to someone living in München (M). At the moment this is not yet a big problem,but in due course it may lead to the situation that license plates become as useless as those in many other countries for determining the direction a car might be going...

==Maps ==[[BayernFile:IMG 5392.JPG|thumb|250px|right|[[Tiziano]] (Bavaria)===hitching from [[AugsburgBerlin]], to [[MünchenMunich]]], ]Recommended maps for Germany are listed in [[NürnbergMaps#Germany|this article]]. You can easily hitch through Germany with just a map that has all service stations along the Autobahn on it. There are maps at many service stations in a little free booklet which are quite misleading, they do '''not''' contain all service stations, just the ones belonging to one of the big companies running them. For more information look here: [http://www.tank.rast.de/standorte/servicenetz/index.php tank.rast.de]. For a good map to print out and bring with you that has all the service stations on it have a look here: [Würzburg]http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/684/rastekarte.jpg/ Rastekarte]. This is the same one you will find at the service stations as big overview maps, more often than not those can be nicked very easily as well.

===[[Hessen]] (Hassia) ===[[Darmstadt]]On a longer journey with several route options, [[Gießen]https://www.diercke.de/content/deutschland-stra%C3%9Fenverkehr-978-3-14-100800-5-64-1-1 this map]showing the traffic volume of the different highways might help you deciding which could be faster due to more traffic.

===[[Nordrhein-Westfalen]] (North-Rhine Westphalia) ===[[Aachen]]For those using mobile app MAPS.ME, you may download a .kml file with all the service plazas for viewing on your map offline. Considering Germany is extremely well mapped on [[Bielefeld]https://openstreetmap.org OpenStreetMap], these locations can be assumed to be very accurate and up-to-date. You can view the [[Bonn]], [[Düsseldorf]], [[Köln]], [[Wuppertal]], [[Mönchengladbach]https://overpass-turbo.eu/s/MGq data extract here]and click Export > Download as KML and then open the .kml file on your phone to be loaded in MAPS.ME

===[[Sachsen]] (Saxony) =Language ==Despite German being the major language, (with over 95% of the population speaking it as a first language [[Dresden]http://www.bbc.co.uk/languages/european_languages/countries/germany.shtml]) you will find that many Germans speak English or French as a second language. Other common languages in the country are Turkish, Russian and Arabic.

===[[Sachsen-Anhalt]]Learning to speak German ===The basic hitchhiker needs can be satisfied by a look at the phrasebook [[Magdeburgwestern Europe phrasebook|here]].

==Useful links =[[Lower saxony]]===[[Hannover]]

* [http://www.hitch-hiking.org www.hitch-hiking.org - Information all about hitchhiking (English and German language)] * [http://www.liftershalte.info/index.php Worldmap with good places to hitch] * [http://www.hitchbase.com/ Database with good places in Germany and other countries] * [http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/e5/Autobahn_1-999.png Overview of highways autobahns in Germany]* [http://www.bestmokli-restaurantshelp.de] helps you find free showers/aurade.htm Highway restaurants in German] food/emergency accommodations, some of the listed ressources are aiming to ‘solve the problem of homelessness’ - just pick what suits you (please delete if it doesn’t belong here)* [http://www.tank.rast.de/standorte/servicenetz/index.php/ Service stations on highways in Germany]  == Trashwiki & Nomadwiki ==

<!--* [http://www.linksundrechts.com/karten/u_oesterreich.gif Autobahnübersicht Österreich]* [http://www.autostrade.de/ Autobahnübersicht Italien]* [http://stuenings-nt.stuenings.de/LuR/karten/01519.gif Autobahnübersicht Italien] * [http://www.bibione.com/index_de.html Bibione - Offizielle HP]<BR>* [http://www.bibione.com/vetrina/images/mappa_dintorni.jpg Bibione Übersichts Karte]<BR>* [http://www.bibione.com/upload//sito_bibione/162sito_bibione.jpg Bibione Strand]

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