Backpacking (travel)

Backpacking is a term used to denote a form of low-cost international travel, differentiating it from other forms of tourism. The name comes from the backpacks that budget travelers generally carry in the interests of mobility and flexibility.

Many commentators see backpacking as descriptive, not only of low-cost travel, but of the culture and philosophy often associated with it, especially anti or trans-nationalism as well as a romanticization of wanderlust and a desire for "authentic" contact with local culture.

History

Backpacking as a form of travel is usually said to have originated in the 1970s with the advent of low-cost jet airplane fares. During this era it became common for young Westerners, to follow the hippie trail into India and Southeast Asia. This period also gave birth to the first budget guidebooks (see Tony and Maureen Wheeler) and began to change the way that many people looked at the possibilities and opportunities of travel.

More recently, backpacking has become something of a rite of passage in the popular culture of some countries, most notably Australia and New Zealand where after finishing high school or university they take a years break working and backpacking around Europe, where afterwards they often travel work-free in South America or Asia on the way back home. This can be put down to the light population and geographic isolation of these two countries from much of the world's population and history, the fact that Australia and New Zealand are both affluent English-speaking countries where the majority of their citizens can afford overseas travel, and that both countries have a tradition of students attending university in the home city rather than moving away for college. A substantial amount of young adults from Israel also undertake long-term backpacking trips, particularly after they finish their mandatory military service.

Culture

Backpackers are sometimes identified as a subculture of generally youthful travellers dedicated to budget travel. They may go hiking and camping, backpacking in the other sense, but they more often explore more urban settings, usually because of the availability of public transport.

Low-cost options are popular: such as sharing lifts, standby flights (or if the backpacking trip is circumglobal, a relatively cheap round-the-world air ticket which permits numerous stops), youth hostels, free hospitality services and buying food at supermarkets abroad instead of going to restaurants.

Hostels and other budget accommodations tend to be communal to some degree, and thus backpacker culture is often highly social and emphasizes the camaraderie of communal life, such as the shared kitchens common in many hostels. When backpackers stay in one place for a while, they often seek a house-share with numerous other backpackers and are likely to share a room to keep the costs down.

The common language of backpackers is overwhelmingly English in varying levels of fluency while German is arguably the second most common language encountered due to the large presense of backpackers from Germany or Switzerland. (However, German-speakers will usually only speak German informally amongst one another, and will otherwise speak English in most other situations). Britons, Australians and Germans typically form among the most common backpacker nationalities in the world, in addition to Canadians, Israelis, New Zealanders and numerous other Western European nations such as Switzerland or The Netherlands. Per head of population, Australia is thought to have the highest representation of backpackers.

Backpacker culture is perhaps typified by the Lonely Planet (Australian) series of guidebooks, which caters to budget travelers both in its regular guides as well as, more specifically, the "On a Shoestring" regional compilations. The Rough Guide (UK) and Let's Go (USA) series of guidebooks are also popular. In France, the traditional backpacker's guidebook is the Guide du routard.

Traditionally, backpackers do not travel with expensive electronic equipment such as laptop computers and PDAs due to concerns about theft, damage, and additional luggage weight. However, the desire to stay connected coupled with trends in lightweight electronics have given rise to the flashpacking trend.

Many backpackers take a high resolution digital camera and/or high capacity MP3 Player with them on their travels. Blogging from various Internet cafes around the world is also a growing phenomenon, offering a more convenient way to relay information to interested friends and family at home.

Age of Backpackers

Backpackers can be of any age to theoretically be part of the backpacker scene and subculture; however, the vast majority of budget travellers are clearly in their 20s. Patrons at most youth hostels are rarely under 18 (some even mandate a minimum age of 18) while guests over 30 constitute a minority. The 'stereotypical' backpacker is often envisioned as a senior college student or recent college graduate about 20 to 25 years of age with no dependants (spouse, children, etc.), therefore making it relatively easy to put typical daily responsibilties on temporary hiatus to go travelling for up to many months at a time. Depending on the part of the world people backpack through, the median age can vary slightly.

Philosophy

Rolf Potts writes in his book Vagabonding about what he sees as the myths that surround conventional travel:

Of all the outrageous throwaway lines one hears in movies, there is one that stands out for me. It doesn't come from a madcap comedy, an esoteric science-fiction flick, or a special-effects-laden action thriller. It comes from Oliver Stone's Wall Street, when the Charlie Sheen character — a promising big shot in the stock market — is telling his girlfriend about his dreams.

"I think if I can make a bundle of cash before I'm thirty and get out of this racket," he says, "I'll be able to ride my motorcycle across China."

When I first saw this scene on video a few years ago, I nearly fell out of my seat in astonishment. After all, Charlie Sheen or anyone else could work for eight months as a toilet cleaner and have enough money to ride a motorcycle across China. Even if they didn't yet have their own motorcycle, another couple months of scrubbing toilets would earn them enough to buy one when they got to China.

For many, this sums up the allure of backpacking, promising an "exotic" or "adventurous" experience that is also deemed "authentic," that is, an experience that, because it is self-planned and directed, does not fit within the typical Western-style vacation or travel industry.

This desire to experience "authentic" travel may be a reaction to the commercialization of the travel industry. Many backpackers express disdain towards “packaged” travel experiences including cruise ships and guided or bus tours which typically consist of a large number of tourists led by a guide. In contrast, backpacker philosophy encourages self-reliance and individuality, like overcoming the language barrier without the help of a translator or making all of one's own travel arrangements (to present two examples). John Gregory sums up this philosophy as:

Those spending big bucks for guided travel get peace-of-mind in return. They are guaranteed no worries, no hassles, an experience as close as possible to being home, without being home. They get an hour and fifteen minutes for the guaranteed-open museum, then a two-hour sightseeing ride that catches all the picture-postcard highlights. They break for lunch at a "recommended" restaurant, where the food is reasonable and ordering is easy. And as the next bus pulls in they re-board theirs to repeat the routine, ending with an easy check-in at a reasonable hotel, populated with plenty of other tourists, pretty much like themselves.

While all travel is good for the human spirit, budget backpacking is unparalleled for meeting people and experiencing worlds on their own intimate terms. There are many travelers who have the resources for pampered-class but choose to strap on a backpack and see the world via the seat-of-their-pants, because they know it's the best way to experience cultures and interact with local people

In the United States among many other Western countries, this backlash against the large-scale commercial travel industry as expressed in the philosophy of backpacking has made some inroads into mainstream culture, such as in the popular travel guide writer Rick Steves who, like Tony and Maureen Wheeler of Lonely Planet, spun his experiences as a backpacker in the 1970s into a successful guidebook series.

Working on the Road

Many backpackers gain temporary work (usually low-paid, unskilled, casual, and sometimes in violation of local labor laws) in the countries they visit. For instance, London's pubs are well known for the number of Australian bartenders working in them; "Irish pubs" around the world hire Irish backpackers. In Australia, fruit picking is a popular job among backpackers, although it can be physically demanding.

Backpackers are also commonly employed by hostels, where English-language proficiency and familiarity with hostel operations are considered assets. Hostels around the world are increasing their revenue by inaugurating work and travel programmes, where hostelers can work for accommodation by performing basic hostel upkeep and operational duties.

Criticism

Backpacker philosophy is sometimes criticized for being hypocritical. Some travellers have been known to forego finding "authentic" contact with a culture, and instead congregate only with other travelers in international hostels or guesthouses.

In addition, backpackers are sometimes blamed for the commercialization of the destinations they travel to. By definition, any “undiscovered paradise” cannot remain pristine under the demand of thousands of visitors. This can often lead to the overuse of certain natural and cultural resources, a vice backpacking shares with other forms of tourism. A notable example of this phenomenon is Byron Bay in Australia, which was a largely quiet backpacker town in the 1970s and is now considered one of the most popular destinations in the 2000s with a bias for yuppies. This is sometimes said to actually pervert the backpacking culture itself: while backpackers seek genuinity and "authentic" cultural interactions, thus often looking for places with as less other foreigners as possible, they very often tend to meet in so-called "backpacker paradises" - places where all backpackers meet and that, eventually, end-up being modern-day "hippie-resorts". Examples include San Pedro de Atacama, former isolated village in Chile and now a town only dependent on tourism.

A third layer of criticism is economic. Backpackers’ pursuit of “cheap” travel destinations is only possible through the imbalance of living costs between Western and developing nations. Thus, backpacking can be seen as an inherently exploitive activity that benefits from the poverty of destination countries. Bolivia and Cambodia are notable examples of very inexpensive countries which backpackers visit and have the ability to stay comfortably for months even on a relatively small budget, all the while contributing little to the local have-nots.

Advantages

In their defense, some backpackers say that budget travel pumps money into the economies of Third World countries, increasing their standard of living and creating jobs, and doing this in a way that is inherently more egalitarian than mainstream tour companies, who often operate with minimal contact with third party vendors or average citizens. Backpacking in comparison, frequently makes use of local food vendors, merchants and accommodations, and thus does more to benefit the local economy. The lower cost to the budget-conscious young Western tourist and the increased patronage to local merchants actually makes the economics of backpacking a win-win situation in many cases.

Backpackers are accused of traveling to exotic places only to associate with other backpackers. That perception is probably correct but requires some explanation. Generally backpackers are from developed countries, speak fluent English (even if from a non-English speaking country) and are Caucasian (except for the prolific Japanese backpacker tradition). When these backpackers arrive in developing countries they congregate at the hostels and guesthouses in the center of town where they tend to not blend in. In these areas the best English speakers among the locals tend to be touts who will prey upon the backpackers to visit the factories that they "own", to buy jewels to smuggle back and resell in their home countries, to purchase their services as a "guide" and to undertake illegal activities such as gambling, prostitution and drug use.

Most backpackers would like to interact with locals, but have a hard time fending off the touts. Backpackers find it easier to fend off touts if they are traveling with other backpackers. Locals with the intent of approaching a backpacker are generally not as aggressive as the touts. Backpackers would consider it obtrusive to approach a local in English and ask to join the local in their home for dinner for instance. The inability to travel beyond the areas covered by public transportation further strain the situation.

Generally a backpacker will stash some travelers checks, credit cards and identification in the hostel or guesthouse safe to minimize damage if they are robbed during the day. Backpackers are thus most vulnerable when traveling between locations and stashing isn't possible. Backpackers prefer to minimize that risk by traveling between cities in groups, especially in dangerous areas like the infamous Nairobi to Mombasa train ride in Kenya. When they reach the next destination, new groups will form to continue on a few days later. Backpackers universally trust other backpackers based on the logic that "someone wouldn't come all the way from [ Stockholm, Berlin, Sydney, etc. ] just to steal from other tourists."

Americans and Backpacking

Americans generally backpack noticeably less than other Westerners, leading to the common perception among backpackers that Americans are not well travelled. There is no authoritative explanation for this, and is indeed one of the most perplexing cultural aspects of international backpacking, considering that the United States of America has all the ingredients and similarities to other backpack-savvy nations necessary to make budget travel easily accessible to untold millions of young Americans. This includes such attributes as a large English speaking and broadly middle class populace, not to mention being the world's wealthiest and third most populous nation which in theory should make Americans very visible in the backpacking circuit when they are in fact not. In particular, African Americans and Hispanic Americans tend to backpack very rarely.

The widely spaced nature of American cities may lead to an inclination more towards road trips instead of backpacking. However, people also argue that most Canadian cities are similar in culture to the USA but its residents are far more likely to be seen backpacking, although even Canadians backpackers are not as numerous as the Germans, Aussies, or even the Swiss. In addition, Americans who stay in hostels may experience anti-Americanism directed at them (see Criticism section below). This criticism, along with a perceived notion that being labeled "American" is undesirable while travelling in general, is also widely attributed to the very large number of Canadian backpackers who purposefully have Canadian flags on their backpacks or clothing to avoid being mistaken for their USA counterparts who often have very similar accents. However, in many countries, the belief that Americans put Canadian flags on their backpacks or clothing to pass as Canadian has led to anti-Americanism being directed towards English-speaking Canadians. The Canadian Flag Patch is also known in some backpacking circles as "pickpocket bait" because they are seen as affluent yet naive travellers in unfamiliar surroundings. A growing number of Canadian (and American) backpackers are increasingly avoiding the 'patch-toting Canadian' phenomenon, particularly as more young travellers become aware of the fad and the questionable status behind it. The frequency and demographics of American backpackers are often debated. It is sometimes alleged that Americans backpack less than citizens of other Western countries or that they face discrimination from their fellow backpackers. This topic is often a controversial one among members of the community.

Other arguments as to why Americans are seen less frequently while backpacking is that the American cultural psyche puts significant emphasis on work and career advancement for people in their twenties, that American employers are less flexible at providing long-term leaves of absence, a smaller amount of vacation weeks compared to most Europeans countries (many Americans receive no paid vacation time, especially those in their twenties), long-term financial obligations such as automobile payments or expensive student loans (which may be more irrelevant to countries where public transportation is used more frequently and Higher Education is much less expensive), and the fact that few Americans in their own country have contact with International backpackers as a possible means to encourage undertaking a trip themselves. Furthermore, the American tradition of moving to another city to go to college may sate the travel bug in American students to some extent, and the concept of a semester abroad for many US tertiary students is growing in popularity as well. However, this study/travel lifestyle is not perceived to be 'real' backpacking.

Many budget travellers have observed that a significant proportion of American backpackers are from a relatively small geographic area in the USA, most notably the "Blue" states of the Pacific Coast and New England. There is again no authoritative explanation for this, though a common argument within backpacker communities is that people with a more liberal mindset and background travel far more often than conservatives. (See Red state vs. blue state divide)

While not necessarily deriding Americans, a large number of backpackers say that the relatively small number of American backpackers is a good thing, as they consider backpacking to be one of the few major outlets of youth culture which is not heavily influenced or controlled by the USA. In a more humorous point of view, others say if Americans travelled anywhere near as close as Australians or Britons do it would be downright impossible to get a hostel bed in many popular areas.