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Hitchhiking in Romania is usually very easy. Payment for the ride is often expected, however. Make sure to tell the driver that you are travelling without money (''fără bani'' ‘without money’ or ''nu am bani'' ‘I have no money’) before you get in the car. Most drivers will agree to take you anyway, but if you don't tell them beforehand, they can aggressively demand payment when you get out later. If you wish to pay drivers like local hitchhikers do, it is still cheaper than trains and buses though, about 5 lei (1.25€) for every 100 km.
Sometimes it's possible to find some drivers that will ask you for a lot of money, maybe even 100€ for a short trip. Some people is are trying to work as illegal drivers taking people from one place to another, due to the high unemployment. When they see foreings they will try to convince them to go with them and ask for lots of money, even if local travellers have just paid 5 lei. Recently, the Romanian goverment government has forbiden forbidden asking for money when taking hitchhikers, but not hitchhikng hitchhiking itself.
At the exits of most cities, there are established places to hitchhike and you may find yourself competing with local people who will pay drivers. In some cases, it is better to walk a little bit down the road and hitchhike where you can stand alone. The common practice is to hold a sign with the name of the place you want to go; Romanian usually write the two-letter code of the county seat they are going to (e.g. "CJ" for Cluj).
