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Apparently - ''from what 'Aachen''' is a city in [[User:Guaka|GuakaNorth Rhine-Westphalia]], [[Germany]], close to the [[Netherlands]] and [[Belgium]] has heard'' - there is a somewhat official hitchhiking spot at ''Europaplatz''.

Cars number plates starting with letters '''AC''' are registered in this locality. License plates with '''DN''' indicate that a car is from a the neighbour locality of Dürenin the east. The central terminal for local and regional buses is called ''Aachen Bushof''. Local inhabitants tell that during recent months there were some car robberies (summer 2014), when one person stops the car and suddenly other people appear and take the car from the person. It was said to be some immigrants from Belgium. So car drivers are very circumspect and it is harder to get a lift there.

=== East to Cologne {{Autobahn|4}}, north to Düsseldorf {{Autobahn|44}} === The ''Europaplatz'' roundabout is a popular hitchhiker spot to start to any destination within Germany. It is located in the east of Aachen directly near the on-ramp and can be reached quickly. There is an Esso petrol station where you can ask and that also offers a spot where cars can see you easily and stop. If you don't feel lucky at the Esso there is also an ARAL petrol station at the same roundabout. Cars could also stop for you at the hard shoulder right after the roundabout, but the spot is already on the autobahn so police might ask you to leave. Getting there is a 15 minute walk from ''Aachen Bushof''. Go east for the ''Peterstraße'' which later becomes the ''Jülicher Straße''. At the ''Blücherplatz'' square you will see a church to your right. Bear right following the B1 federal road and you will come to the Esso petrol station. === West towards [[Maastricht]] === It is possible to get to Maastricht via the autobahn A4 (A76 in Netherlands) or the federal road B1 (N278 in Netherlands). To take the autobahn, walk from the ''Ponttor'' while in Aachen for about two kilometers up the ''Roermonderstrasse'' or take the buses 27, 37, 47 or 77 from the central bus station ''Aachen Bushof'' to ''Jupp-Müller-Straße''. There are two petrol stations and the bus stop for thumbing where you can find a Dutch driver. If he's not passing by Maastricht you can get out at the A76 exit #2 ''Geleen'' or N281 exit ''Maastricht'' and continue from there. People going from Aachen to Maastricht might prefer to use the federal road via Vaals, the first town after the Netherlands border, instead of the autobahn. To get there, go to the B1 ''Vaalserstrasse'' or take a bus to ''Vaals''. When in Vaals, walk to the roundabout on ''Maastricherlaan'' road, go for 20 meters more and you will see a bus stop where cars going to Maastricht can stop. === West towards [[Netherlands]]{{Autobahn|4}} {{E|314}}, [[Belgium]]{{Autobahn|44}} {{E|40}}, East towards [[Cologne|Köln]] {{Autobahn|4}} via service station ''Aachener Land'' ===<map lat='50.80' lng='6.1571502685546875' zoom='12' view='0' width='400' height='220' float='right'/>There is a nice The autobahn [[petrol station hitchhiking|petrol service station]], ''Aachener Land'', is located 10 km east of Aachen on the A4, not too far east of Aachen. It The north side is good for heading towards Netherlands or Belgium, while the other south side offers good opportunities to hitch towards almost any region in [[Germany]] via [[Cologne|Köln]]. The fastest way to get  You can either hitchhike there is by taking a or take the bus #. Hitchhike from ''Europaplatz'' roundabout as explained in going east. To go further east towards Germany, stay on this side; cross the autobahn to continue towards Belgium or Netherlands. Bus line 52 from ''Aachen Bushof'' in direction of ''Eschweiler Bushof'' will take you to the station ''BusbahnhofRöhe Wasserwerk''in about 25 minutes. (3,20 Euro in January 2012). It stops close To continue in direction of [[Cologne|Köln]] just walk back 500 meters, to go to the Netherlands or Belgium cross the bridge over the autobahn and turn left at the first street.[[File:AachenerLand2013.jpeg|200px|thumb|left|Approaching Aachener Land from town Eschweiler]] === West towards [[Liège]] (B), south towards [[rest areaLuxembourg]] {{Autobahn|44}} {{E|40}}===To go to in the direction of Belgium, especially if you want to go to [[Liège]] or [[Luxembourg]], go to the service areastation ''Lichtenbusch'' on the German-Belgium border at the A44. There's not too much traffic, and most of it seems to go via [[Liege]] and [[Namur]]to France. ==== Option 1 ====Take bus 11, 36, 55 or SB63 from the centre to ''Kohlhof''. Walk westwards on the little street parallel to the motorway and you will find the service area on the right. There's a pedestrian bridge connecting both sides. ==== Option 2 ====To get to the service station or the exit you can also hitchhike from the bus station ''Aachen Siegel''. Another option is It can be reached by bus lines #11, #21, #36, #46, #53 and #SB63 or by a 45 minute walk from the city centre to start hitchhiking the south. Cars can easily see you and stop. ==== Option 3 ====One may also thumb at the on-ramp at the Autobahn exit ''Aachen Brand'' on the A44. To get there take bus lines 25, 45, 55 or 68 from the main bus station ''Aachen Bushof'' until ''EuropaplatzKönigsberger Straße'' just where (2,55 Euro as of May 2013). Walk 500 m along the road and either thumb down the cars coming from Aachen centre turning right or the cars enter going straight onto the motorway highway from a the industrial area. Beware that there is local traffic that will leave the Autobahn on the next exit. === South towards [[roundaboutEifel]]region === To get into the region south of Aachen hitchhike from the bus station ''Aachen Siegel''. It can be reached by bus lines #11, #21, #36, #46, #53 and #SB63 or by a 45 minute walk from the city centre to the south. The spot is perfect if you want to hitchhike south to the Eifel in the direction of Roetgen, Monschau, Simmerath or further. When Cars can easily see you and stop. == Hitchhiking In == If you are with people that are going East directly to Aachen being dropped of at the central bus terminal ''Aachen Bushof'' is a good idea. Most buses come through there, but this is not the main train station. Otherwise, if your driver is only passing by the city your best option to get off depends on the direction. === A4 from/to west (direction KölnNetherlands), leave === Ask your driver to drop you off at the exit #3 ''Aachener LandAachen Zentrum'' behind . From there youcan take various buses to the central bus terminal ''Aachen Bushof''. When If you're coming from the Netherlands, your driver can turn around when going Weststraight after the exit. Otherwise, step out going towards the Netherlands he should turn right and then left to be able to drop you off and make a U-turn. Don't drop yourself at the Dutch petrol station (Shell) near borderpoint Vetschau. It was very difficult to find a ride just to Aachen and do I stucked there for 3 hours in Feb 2018. There is also NO train-station in the next village Bochholtz (like in some maps), but at least some bus-services to Aachen. === A4 from/to east (Cologne) === When your driver is passing by on the A4 it is a little walk over good idea to get out at the autobahn service station ''Aachener Land'' and take the bridge nearby bus 52 to cross the motorwaycenter (see [[Aachen#Hitchhiking Out|Hitchhiking Out]]). Buses to Aachen go weekdays every half hour between 5:00 and 20:30 and hourly until 23:30. Saturday service is from 5:30 until 23:30 and sunday service is between 8:30 and 23:30.

<map lat='50.79269814077799' lng='6.1571502685546875' zoom='12' view='0' width='400'A44 from/>If heading towards the Netherlands you have several options. The first is to hitchhike to the traffic lights at the main motorway exit at Geleen from the ''Achener Land'' service station south (perfect if you are going to MaastrichtBelgium). Otherwise, one can walk from the ''Ponttor'' while in Aachen for about two kilometers up the ''Roermonderstrasse''. There are some petrol stations where you can find a Dutch driver. If you are going to [[Maastricht]] you can also go to ''Vaalserstrasse'' or take a bus to ''Vaals''. The roundabout at the West end of Vaals, for instance, is a good place to hitchhike.===

The Aachen-Laurensberg on-ramp is a pretty good for getting a rideOn the A44 from/to Belgium, into get dropped off at the Netherlandsexit #3 ''Aachen Brand''. There is a petrol station right after You can use the frequent bus service at any time from there to the bordercenter (2, which is not very busy40 Euro as of January 2012) or try to hitchhike. Your driver can get back on the highway easily.

==Public transportation = South towards [[Liège|Liege]], [[Luxembourg]], [[Eifel]] ===Another option to go to in the direction of Belgium, especially if you want to go to [[Liège]] or [[Luxembourg]], is to go to the service station on the German-Belgium border at the A44. Take bus #11, #36, #55, or #SB63 from ''Busbahnhof'' or ''Hauptbahnhof'' (central station) to ''Oberforstbach Laschet'', get out and walk back the direction you came from. You have to walk a few hundred meters until you reach a bridge after which you turn left to get to the service station after 150-200m (you can either walk through the fields or use the exit and walk along the autobahn). At the same bridge there is also the exit #2 ''Aachen-Lichtenbusch'' at the A44 which you can use to go either in the direction of Köln (or at least to the service station ''Aachener Land'') or in the direction of Belgium.

To get to Check [http://www.aseag.de/ the service station or website of the exit local bus operator ASEAG] for bus informations. There is no english page but you can also hitchhike from just input your request on the top right. Input the bus station start city (e.g. ''Aachen Siegel'' ) and station (reachable by e.g. ''Bushof'', the lines #11, #21, #36, #46, #53 main bus terminal) and #SB63 or by foot - ask locals the same for directions) which is perfect if the destination in the second row. The results are understandable without knowing German. People with monthly tickets and job tickets can take you want to hitchhike south to along for free in buses and regional RE trains on weekdays from 19:00 until 3:00 and on the Eifel in whole weekend within the direction area of Roetgen, Monschau, Simmerath or furthertheir validity. Feel free to ask around.

 There are quite a few [[police]] controls around Aachen, so make sure you are not bringing any drugs from the Netherlands to Germany as you might get controlled. Controls are for sure for buses, although hitchhiker [[User:Fverhart|Fverhart]] writes: ''"I don't like drugs cars and I was never checked on even bicycles. Bus lines from the border. Once in my life I had some marihuana with meNL are being controlled, our host so kindly asked for it that I took especially the line 50 from Maastricht if you get out at the risk, although I did not know what kind of risk I was actually runningmain train station. Cars are more likely to be controlled if they have registration plates from other cities than Aachen."''[[trash:Aachen]]== Nomadwiki & Trashwiki == {{nomadwiki}}