Changes

One safety benefit over car hitchhiking is that with a boat, it's easier to share the boat and captain's identifying information with a friend or family member before you leave. Boats have their names and often registration numbers painted on the side, and you'll have plenty of time to get the captain's full name and any other details you might want. Your family and friends might even be able to track your GPS position throughout the trip - most larger boats (and some smaller ones) have a system called AIS that regularly reports their GPS position to a public server so anyone can look up their current location on a map online. And captains who don't have this might still have another method, like a Garmin GPS system that reports back to a password-protected website. Others might have nothing.

Also be aware of weather-related hazards. It's the captain's responsibility to avoid sailing into a dangerous storm (another reason to choose the captain wisely), but you may be held responsible for your own personal preparations. On a boat you're more exposed to rain, wind, sun, and cold than you would be in a house or even a car. Most boats have an indoor or covered area, but you may not have access to it for long hours of the day and night that you're standing watch or otherwise working on deck. In other words, make sure to bring a rain jacket, warm clothes, and sunscreen. Expect conditions at sea to sometimes be much colder than on land, and possibly sometimes hotter as well.