TripHip - Travel Tips and Advice for Traveling on a Budget

Cuba has a unique "system" for hitchhiking around the country. It's called "el Amarillo" in reference to the yellow-uniforms of the stop attendants. These attendants will flag down cars and actually require them to take you as a hitch-hiker. You pay a few pesos for this privilege, though it is not paid to the driver but to the attendant.

Some Amarillo stops have washrooms and other services. If you use a designated Amarillo stop at night after the attendant has left, you would still be expected to pay the driver instead.

So it's not free, but it can be more interesting than taking the bus. And it will be much cheaper.