Carpooling with strangers

I know that my last post proclaimed my love for trains, but I have to admit that sometimes taking a train is not always the best options. My trip to Forchheim, for example, would have cost over 100€ roundtrip even with all the special savings prices. Not to mention it would have lasted about 5 or 6 hours and I would have had to change trains at least once.

 

With the help of mitfahrgelegenheit.de (a literal translation being "carpool opportunities"), I managed to get to From Dortmund to Forchheim and back for a grand total of 50€ in one ride. Oh and did I mention each ride only lasted between 3 and 4 hours. 

This website is basically a place for people traveling by car to offer up any free seats to people traveling in the same direction in return for a little gas money. Genius. 

 

The first time I used Mitfahrgelegenheit was on a trip to Berlin with 2 friends last year. So the fear of climbing into a car with a total stranger and traveling across Germany didn't seem quite as daunting. For this trip though, I was all by myself. 

 

Luckily each post on the website has a little personal message written from the drivers, so you can take your pick of who you think is most likely to get you to your destination alive. (just kidding, mom!)

 

Of course, if your still nervous, you can always refer to my hitchhiking guide created in the aftermath of last years actual hitchhiking extravaganza.*

Both my trips went smoothly and I never felt uncomfortable with any of  my drivers (and it's pretty fun to watch the spedometer hit 180** on the Autobahn). Mitfahrgelegenheit is definitely an option I would recommend to anyone looking to travel quickly and cheaply throughout Germany!

*I was 2 friends when we missed our last bus to catch the train home, 

so we stood on the road, stuck out our thumbs and hitched  a ride to 

the train station. After posting about our success on Facebook there 

was quite a lot of backlash from concerned parents, which lead to the

creation of this video of safety tips for hitchhiking.

**180 km/h, so around 110mph. Which is still pretty impressive.