Hitchhiking in Japan is great because the country is considered one of the safest countries in the world and also one of the most expensive from Asia. Considering these both facts I concluded that hitchhiking would be a great idea. I was traveling with a french girl, Mathilda and we decided to get a lift from the capital Tokyo to Osaka in the south.
Morning
We started by 10:30AM in front of a McDonalds, in the entrance of the highway to Osaka, where a Japanese friend told me could be a good place. We had signs written in Japanese: “Please bring us to Osaka, we speak a little bit Japanese and play the guitar”
Most of the drivers looked at us and laugh. After half an hour, one car stopped but the driver figured out we didn’t speak Japanese at all and left. Suddenly a young Japanese student and hitchhiker showed up in the same spot asking for lifts. He stayed 10 meters away not to make competition with us but in a few minutes a car stopped for him. It was already noon and the student asked the driver If he could take us as well. We were really lucky to be accepted considering that none of them two speaked properly english.
Afternoon
On the way we stopped in a restaurant were the driver payed us food and drinks. This is very traditional in the culture and is not respectable if you decline the offer. This lift brought us to Nagoya, a city a bit more than half of the way to the final destination. We took a picture with him to register his generous face. In the same place were we were dropped we kept trying with the signs and the guitar. Our Japanese hitchhiker was a very important asset for us in this day.
After half an hour one car stopped and said that would bring us to a proper hitchhiking spot, the Toyota Junction. He was speaking good english and explained us that we would never get a lift in our current spot. He brought us to the junction, a big encounter of highways with a convenience store and a huge parking area where he dropped us.
Evening
It was getting late and we were losing hope because of the upcoming sunset. Almost thinking on sleeping somewhere there to wait for the next day. After one hour of wait a 4×4 stopped and said he was going to Osaka, such a lucky day!
The car arrived around 10PM in Osaka and we were exhausted but very satisfied to reach our goal. This route allowed us to save around 100 euros, the price of a train ticket. Strongly recommend hitchhiking in Japan, specially if you are traveling with someone that speaks Japanese.