I crossed 2600 quilometres, almost the entire east coast from Sydney to Cairns hitchhiking. There is a common sense that Hitchhiking in Australia is not that safe. A famous serial killer was responsible for killing 7 backpackers in the 90’s and also inspired the horror movie called Wolf Creek. In general hitchhiking is never a 100% safe activity, but of course there are ways to minimize the risk.
About my experience in Australia, it was fabulous. I got lifts from 14 cars in the roads between Sydney and Cairns. And what I learned about this experience I share with you in this article:
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The service stations are the best place to catch a lift
Service stations are petrol stations that provide you amenities such as toilets, showers, drinkable water, restaurants, internet connections and other facilities. In Australia the most complete ones are the ones from the brand BP. You can stay close to the exit where the cars will be still driving slow and have time to stop safely. It is also a great place to stay because If you need anything such as food or going to the rest room you will always be able to do. If you are to far from one service station, a simple gas station is already good and better than being in the main road where cars drive fast and for them to pull out is unsafe and illegal in certain highways.
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Looking nice and trustful is the key to get a quick ride
We were the entire time smiling and looking at the drivers. This single gesture already made them feel a bit guilty when they have room in the car and are going in the same direction of you. We were properly dressed and also carrying a sign written “freshly showered” which definitely had a big impact on the decision of the drivers. We never waited more than 20 minutes for a car.
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Australians are generous, even the ones that never tried
Our first ride, in a brand new mercedes, was offered by an old lady that have never gave a lift to hitchhikers. She read the signs and told us that offered the lift by impulse since we were looking nice and were heading the same direction as her. Most of the lifts we had, the driver was doing this for the first time, since is not very common to see hitchhikers in the road. From our 14 cars, 13 were australians and one Canadian, which ended up being our travel partner from Airlie Beach to Cairns.
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Hitchhiking in Australia is good to save money, but not so good to explore
We quickly discovered that even though hitchhiking is great to save money, It wasn’t very handy and flexible for us to discover the cities away from the highway. To leave the coastal cities and go back to a good spot in the highway was not that easy, but still possible. In the entire trip we ended up catching 1 bus from Byron Bay to Brisbane and one from Kuranda to Cairns. We also kept travelling with a Canadian fellow sharing the gasoline to give us more flexibility to explore the last stops of the trip.
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Be prepared to sleep on the road
Australia has a great travel structure for those who wants to travel with a car, a camper van, motorhome or a tent. There are plenty of free camping sites and some service stations also allow you to park your car and use the amenities for free. When you are on the road and the next big city is at least 400 quilometres of distance is always good to have a camping equipment to sleep in a rest area or camping site in case you are a hitchhiker. A few apps including Wikicamps can show you the best places to stay and the facilities provided.
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Be aware about the regulations and travel seasons
Travel seasons impact on the volume of cars and the probability to catch a lift. I hitchhiked in the months of September and October which matched with school holidays. It was not so good because all the cars were full of kids and the camping prices were higher. Most of the cars we got were people visiting relatives in different cities. Is also very important to be aware about regulation. Hitchhiking in New South Wales is tolerated, in the other hand hitchhiking in Queensland and Victoria is illegal. According the law you cannot stand on a roadway (including the shoulder) where you may obstruct traffic. However this interpretation of the law suggests that it is OK to hitch from a footpath or the grassy area beside the road.
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Always try to be safe
There are many ways to make hitchhiking a safer activity. First of all, only hitchhike during the day. By 3 or 4 pm I was already looking for a place to sleep rather than trying to move forward in a new lift. For example, I always get the car plate and send to friends or relatives. Since most of the time I have data mobile, If I don’t give news in 24 hours they can activate the police. I never hitchhike by myself and I just accept a lift If I feel comfortable with the driver.
But in the end, the most important thing is to experience new adventures and meet amazing people around the world. Safe travels!