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== Cities ==
[[Kasumbalesa]]
[[Lubumbashi]]
[[Likasi]]
[[Kolwezi]]
[[Kinshasa]]
[[Goma]]
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Further to the north. The part of the Oriantale province bordering the West-Nile region of Uganda is safe. Day trips from Nebbi or Arua in Uganda are okay. Any further and things become difficult.
Hitchhiking is the same as in [[Uganda]]. Every single vehicle passing by will pick you up, but only the ones driven by NGO's or the UN will be free. Everyone else will expect a payment.
== Hitch-hiking in the South ==
Experience in 2012 from member [http://hitchwiki.org/community/members/Thumbingmyway/ Thumbingmyway] hitching in the south, coming in from [[Kitwe]], [[Zambia]], is as follows: [[Kasumbalesa]] to [[Lubumbashi]], DRC: As you get to the border town, the human & vehicular chaos is intense. There are many scammers and touts offering to escort you through the border, get you a taxi to Lum'bashi etc, be firm and politely ignore them. I found most of them to be Congolese, and that's no judgement on the people or country, just the facts. Don't listen to the lies that you can't change Zambian Kwacha in Lum'bashi, you can. If you want, you can also change at the border at a bureau, or from a private person, if the rate is better.
Leaving [[Kasumbalesa]], [[Zambia]], is easy. Stamp out at the immigration counter (walk around to the back of the building) and that's it. Walk through no-man's land to the the DRC border post. you will be greeted by sentries at the boom-gate. One will will out your details in a register and another will escort you inside where the bribery will begin. They will take you to a room full of men and ask for a fictitious "entry fee" of $20. I refused, and after a while they let me go, but they tried every trick. They then tried to make me pay for injections I didn't need, like Cholera and Typhoid innoculations. I have my Yellow-Fever one so that was fine, but they tried to bribe me there too, even saying I must just pay for the stamps to say that I've had them. I refused and didn't pay. When I eventually got to the immigration counter so the guy could stamp me in to the country, he asked me directly to give him money and I refused. Eventually he stamped me in, but I dug my heels in and left the compound. The sentry whom I first met at the boom-gate then tried to get me a taxi as I was leaving but I declined saying I was hitching. I was in the compound for 45min to an hour, it was tough going, but I refused to be robbed of myn money.
Side note: I got my visa for the DRC in [[South Africa]], from the embassy in [[Pretoria]]. It was about $148 for a 1-month tourist visa. Sent photos, completed application, invitation letters, proof of payment. They rejected my first application as they said I wasn't allowed to hitch in the country. My second stated road transport via cars, and then some flights and they granted me the visa.
Leaving the border post and heading to [[Lubumbashi]]: Walk out the border compound past all the trucks on your right hand side to the boom-gate and you are in the DRC. The trucks are waiting for their papers to clear and as they come past hitch a ride to [[Lubumbashi]]. Some may have to wait at a customs clearing station a few km up the road for a day or two, so if there is space for you and you are happy to sleep in a truck for a few days, go for it. Of course you can also hitch rides with all the cars and pickups, and 4x4's headed to the city. I got a lift with 3 Americans in a Land Cruiser, and they gave me the front seat, so that was nice of them, and a relaxing trip for me. Leave Kitwe early when heading to this border, you don't want to be stranded here looking for a place to sleep at night because you arrived too late!
From [[Lubumbashi]] to [[Kolwezi]]: Hitching out of this city may be a problem, it was my first time to [[Kolwezi]], so I had to find out a lot of information etc, and the local concept of hitch-hiking is to take a truck (camion) that is packed with loads of goods, with a but of space for peopple in the front of back, or on top. They pay for their place beforehand, and sometimes the truck only leaves in a few days.
Best to head north out of Lubumbashi to the peage (toll-gate) area and hitch rides from people in cars, 4x4's, trucks going north to [[Likasi]], [[Kolwezi]], etc from there. As there is an army base nearby, the security at the toll-gate consists of soldiers and not police. They are chilled and polite. It's a better bet to hitch from the toll-gate, as you may find space on a truck that has come straight from the border that morning and you can ride in the passenger seat. There is a lay-by just before the toll-gate on the left, so you can approach drivers if they stop there.
As for me, a soldier with an AK-47 said I must let him find me a ride after he saw me speaking to a few truck drivers. He asked three businessmen in the mining industry to take me to Likasi, which they did willingly.
From [[Likasi]] to [[Kolwezi]]: I was dropped near the main bus/taxi station in town. From there, ask locals about the road to Kolwezi and they will show you. I got a ride in a small truck. It was mostly a dirt road, and quite bad in some places, but otherwise ok.
== General Tips ==
Check, double check and triple check the security situation in any area of the Congo you want to go. Humanitarian NGO's are good for this.
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