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[[User:TheNomadFamily|TheNomadFamily]] Hitchhikernick - On the whole hitching is ok in Japan for a 40 year old white male. Some challenges between Osaka and Akita going up the west coast in December 2023, did only give myself just over 4.5 days to get to Niseko, so if i had more time it would have been more enjoyable and less waiting time as would not have bothered trying to hitch in the dark. My most frequent pickups were in the morning and between 7-9pm, struggling between lunch and dinner time. Waited at expressway service station near Osaka and within an hour police arrived and escorted me to another road away from the expressway informing me it was illegal. Once I got past Akita it was much easier and even had a guy offering me a lift to Aomori from 10k north of Akita. He also shared their experience wanted to pay for my ferry ticket and train ticket to Sapporo, but didn't want to take advantage so only took up ride offer. 10 minute wait 20km north of Hakodate next morning and got a lift direct to Sapporo 😁 Definitely more difficult than 2016 when I was there for 2 months (oct-dec), maybe because of COVID, lots of people wearing facemasks and drivers may be more paranoid/fearful. Waited at a service station (second one on this trip) for 5 hours with sign for first hour, then no sign, until finally a young lady picked me up and drove 5 miles to the town she was going to. Got train after that to make up some ground, pleased police didn't come to escort me again. Cleaner of service station spoke broken English and asked me if I was hitchhiking Japan . I was clean and kempt. In 2016 I managed to hitch out of Tokyo with ease, 10 minute wait on hard shoulder to expressway on-ramp. Could of just been right time at right place. All types of people picked me up, except truck drivers. Many business men and truck drivers on 2023 trip had very stern faces when trying to hitch and gain their young kid attention. Maybe my age is making it more difficult, there could be age limitations/expectations in some Asian countries and the reasons for the difficulty and attitude a lot of the drivers had towards me hitching... Average waiting time 2023, for me, 3 hours. *UPDATE* Wow don't things change!!! Managed to hitch from Niseko down to Joetsu in 2 and a half days, retracing my steps. Meals bought for me, received money three times and an onsen experience😁. Didn't wait longer than an hour and average waiting time was 20 mins, that included hitching in dark and moderate snow with ski equipment. Finally a truck stopped for me, but wasn't going my direction. From Joetsu I hitched to Osaka on the same day (9 hours and 4 lifts) and offered lift direct to airport. Waited at service stations on expressway for 15mins average, no police showed up...relief. No public transport was used on return leg to Osaka from Niseko, except for ferry. No signs were used after Niseko, for whole trip signs were not used 95% of time, just the thumb. I only know three words in Japanese and hitched all over country twice with no problems. I used convenience stores, expressway service stations, expressway on-ramp/entrances, petrol stations and bus stops to hitch as well as shoulder lanes (not many) and never asked for a lift, just left it to the good ol' thumb😁 I used manga cafe when in towns as they are cheap and do good night rates (1800 Yen for 8 hours in a cubicle where you can lie down, use internet, free shower and free soft drinks). Brought back memories of 2016 trip 😁. Camped out in some towns behind buildings in quiet areas, even when snowing, with no problems. After Niseko, I was dishevelled, smelled funky due to shoes and had more gear, yet I had much more luck hitching even though theoretically it should have been the other way around...go figure!!! == How to get in and out of cities == See instructions on [https://thenomadfamilywikitravel.org/hitchhiking-in-japanen/ on their websiteHitchhiking_in_Japan wikitravel].
== Nomadwiki & Trashwiki ==
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→Personal Experiences
|hitch = <rating country='jp' />
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:''Copied from [http://en.wikivoyage.org/wiki/Hitchhiking_in_Japan Wikivoyage] with permission from the author, [http://jpatokal.iki.fi Jani Patokallio].'' <!-- this version: http://wikivoyage.org/wiki/en/index.php?title=Hitchhiking_in_Japan&oldid=111542 --><!-- [[Image:Bihoro_Pass.JPG|thumb|240px|[[Bihoro]] Pass and Highway 243, [[Akan National Park|Akan National Park]], [[Hokkaido]]]] -->
{{IsIn|Eastern Asia}}
Hitchhiking in '''Japan''' is quite easy, and the key to true budget travel in the country and the way to escape the country's ruinously expensive domestic transport costs, where an hour on the Shinkansen can set you back ¥10,000. Coupled with [[camping]], you can effectively cut down your daily budget to food and admission fees alone - — although it is wise to allow for the occasional (literal) rainy day.
== Where to hitch ==
*Comment: Just assuming the pose was rarely enough in my experience. You have to be slightly aggressive and bluntly ask people where they are going - while making sure they've seen your pose. People that seem reluctant to take you with them can turn out to be very welcoming when they're simply asked, preferably in Japanese. [[User:Matsumoto Joe|Matsumoto Joe]]
*Comment: I wrote the previous comment, and writing again in 2023, I have to take back my words. Being 'aggressive' is not necessary - the best thing I find is just holding up a sign and friendly greet the people who make eye contact with you. I just came back from a week of hitchhiking in Japan and barely raised my thumb.[[User:Matsumoto Joe|Matsumoto Joe]]
* Comment 2018: Not sure how well the ''pose'' works, because when I'm not travelling, I've spoken to some Japanese that think that the pose is used to call a cab. That kind of explains why an actual taxi pulled over once while I did the pose without a sign. I almost always use a sign, and the locals seem to always use signs. One guy said that in a busy city, sticking your thumb out is the best way, but I think I'll stick to either signs only or pose+sign.
*Comment: The biggest thing I found wrong with the hitchhikers guide to Japan. I '''rarely''' got good rides in the morning, in fact, my ride/wait ratio was much worse with 20 minute waits for 20 minute rides in the mornings vs 30-40 minute waits at night for 2 hour rides. I would always use morning to walk around, explore my locale, then start hitching after noon. I got most of my best rides in the early afternoon and right around 17:00-18:00. Hitching after 20:00 takes a lot longer, but often you get '''really''' good rides out of it. I would '''not''' suggest waking up early for rides. [[User:Traceoftoxin|traceoftoxin]]
*Comment: In Japan, I've never hitchhiked in the early morning - always in the afternoon, and occassionally at night. Still I've never waited for more than an hour (usually 10-30 minutes) and I got some long rides, too: from Fukuoka to Kagoshima, or once (at night!) from Tokyo to Kyoto. [[User:MatsumotoJoe|MatsumotoJoe]]
If the weather is bad, it's best to give up hitchhiking for the day and figure out something else to do. A sodden figure standing forlornly in the rain with his thumb out is not a pitiful figure in Japan, he's a dangerous lunatic.
[[User:Anaimlesshitchhiker|Anaimlesshitchhiker]] has written some tips on hitchhiking Japan on [https://anaimlesshitchhiker.com/2017/12/11/hitchhiking-japan-some-tips/ -an aimless hitchhiker ]
==Cities==
* '''Honshu - Kanto''': [[Tokyo]] (東京), [[Shizuoka]] (静岡), [[Matsumoto]] (松本), [[Nagano]] (長野), [[Nagoya]] (名古屋市),[[Gifu]] (岐阜), [[shirakawa]] (白川), [[Kanazawa]] (金沢), [[Matsumoto]] (松本), [[Gotemba]] (御殿場)
* '''Honshu - Kansai''': [[Kyoto]] (京都), [[Osaka]] (大阪), [[Kobe]] (神戸), [[Hiroshima]] (広島)
* '''Honshu - Tohoku''': [[Akita]] (秋田), [[Aomori]] (青森)
* '''Kyushu''': [[Nagasaki]] (長崎), [[Kagoshima]] (鹿児島), [[Fukuoka]] (福岡市), [[Beppu]] (別府), [[oita]] (大分),
* '''Shikoku''': [[Takamatsu]] (高松), [[Tokushima]] (徳島), [[Kochi]] (高知), [[Matsuyama]] (松山)
* '''Hokkaido''': [[Hakodate]] (函館), [[Sapporo]] (札幌), [[Wakkanai]] (稚内) , [[Asahikawa]] (旭川) == Links ==
== See also ==
{{nomadwiki}}
=== Links ===
* Nexco take care of the highways and SA/PAs, they have multiple websites depending of the part of Japan you are in. But you can find the same maps which you can get inside the SA/PAs on the corresponding website. [http://www.w-nexco.co.jp/ Nexco West] [http://global.c-nexco.co.jp/en/ Nexco Central]
* [http://randomroads.org/story/will-ferguson-updated-winter-hitching-japan Travelstory] on [[Randomroads]] by [[User:Gutuater|gutuater]] about hitching Japan. Photo gallery [http://www.flickr.com/photos/gutuater/sets/72157623691059894/ here].
* '''Hitchhiker's Guide to Japan''' (ISBN 0-8048-2068-6) — practical guide to hitchhiking with a number of tested itineraries
* '''Hokkaido Highway Blues''' (ISBN 1-56947-234-3) — the story of an epic hitchhiking trip across the entire country
{{Excellent}}
