Difference between revisions of "Hitchhiking and Pandemia"

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- every foreign national aged >= 18
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Antigen, TMA, PCR and LAMP; max 48h old; language: Swedish, English, Norwegian, Danish or French
  
  

Revision as of 18:57, 30 April 2021

The Covid 2019 pandemic and the public reaction to it that as of April 2021 are ongoing and don't show any concrete signs of ever ending have affected many parts of public and private life. It could be expected that they would also render hitchhiking a much more difficult and precarious way of travelling, however this is not necessarily the case. In this article we gather some information about hitchhiking in the times of Corona.

Apart from the fact that there are currently numerous rules in place to keep people from travelling, it is fairly difficult to get any reliable information about how the pandemic has affected hitchhiking itself. Only anecdotal evidence is available, and that can be quite contradictory.

Legal Problems

Do you have any information about any laws that have been passed that specifically impact hitchhiking? Post them here.

Possible issues are the obligation to wear masks in public space which exists in multiple areas, and conditions that are imposed on crossing borders. However the extent to which these regulations are enforced vary, eg. in Spain and France there is little control and negotiation is often possible. When crossing borders, hitchhiking can work to your advantage if you catch a ride in a car that has the right license plates.

It's safe to say that rules are changing constantly and every country has their own rules. You may have to show a negative corona test and/or vaccination status at borders. You may be forced to quarantine for a any number of days. Wearing a face mask may be compulsory inside and even outside. It's probably good to have some idea of the current rules when going from one country to another.


Respect and Safety

Of course it is everybody's own choice if they feel comfortable hitchhiking or travelling at all in the context of a global pandemic, even if the severity of this pandemic is debated by some people. When hitchhiking in this context, in can be respectful to ask the driver who stops for you if they would prefer you wearing a mask, sitting in the back, driving with the windows open -- the great thing about hitchhiking is that it is possible to personally negotiate the level of comfort and safety needed by everybody involved.

Considering the amount of people you come in contact with during a typical hitchhiking trip, hitchhiking can actually be a safer way of travelling than taking a train or especially a bus. It's possible to focus this fact even more by avoiding short rides and aiming for less, but longer rides.

Experiences

Zenit has been hitchhiking on a weekly basis nearly all through 2020 and 2021. To him, it does not seem that hitchhiking has become more difficult at all, in fact he has even been picked up by some people who suffer from social isolation and needed somebody to talk.

Warlo Has hitchiked sparsely thru the pandemic and noticed no significant difference, particularly in Germany where rides are quick and plenty as usual. Also he is very surprised how up until this writing, no driver (and passengers if any) were interested in his offers to wear a mask, sit in the back, etc.


Countries

Germany

updated 30.4.21


negative test:

required for:

- everyone entering via air

- else, everyone coming form risk, high incident or virus variant area (every neighboring country at the moment)

exemptions:

- transit on the fastest way

further info:

- free weekly testing for residents (might work with a fake address...)


quarantine:

- 10 days if you enter from a risk, high incendet or virus variant area

- might be able to reduce to 5 days with another negative test (depending on regional rules)


contact rules:

- only two households are allowed to meet, max 5 ppl


accomodation:

- hotels/hostels/... are closed for private guests


curfew:

- every area with an incident > 100 has a mandatory curfew from 10pm to 5am


misc info:

- Online registration required before entering.

- Germany is a federal republic, every federal state can have his own rules, even cities might decide on different rules than others. Recently a federal low has been introduced regarding the curfew yet better check for the local rules that might apply.


Official information

https://www.germany.info/us-en/coronavirus/2317268


Sweden

updated 30.4.21


negative test required for:

- every foreign national aged >= 18

accepted test:

Antigen, TMA, PCR and LAMP; max 48h old; language: Swedish, English, Norwegian, Danish or French


quarantine:

- recommended for 7 days, NOT MANDATORY


contact rules:

- "The police has the right to cancel or dissolve an event that has more than eight attendees."


accomodation:

- no restrictions


curfew:

- no


misc info:

- Entry via Denmark (bridge or ferry) should be ok(transit). Probably better find a direct ride from Germany to Sweden. It should be rather easy from Puttgarden (ferry) as the ferry runs pretty much non stop every 30min and is one of the main routes from Germany to Sweden. The ferry goes to Denmark so make sure the car goes further to Sweden afterwards!


Official information

https://visitsweden.com/about-sweden/information-for-travellers-corona-virus/

Spain

Land borders between Spain and Portugal are supposed to be closed until some point in May 2021.

Netherlands

As of some point in May the Netherlands will be forcing people to quarantine for 10 days. This is on top of the requirement to show a negative test.

Belgium

Quarantine unless you're staying less than 48 hours.