Definitely life is something more than working and fulfilling the obligations of the family and society, we should enjoy, learn and explore the spectacular landscapes of this beautiful planet, but you will think “how to do it without enough money”. This way of thinking makes the dream of traveling unattainable, but many achieve it in a practical, economical and safe way.

To break with these paradigms, the backpacking culture has emerged, which is a way to travel the world overcoming economic barriers, making the trip an adventure full of magic and benefits not only economic, but spiritual and cultural, as it allows the traveller fulfil his dreams and enjoy different cultures and panoramas.

Likewise, traveling around the world is a recreational activity that many people perform according to their economic possibilities, and the frequency as well as the means of transportation, lodging and destinations, among other things, will depend to a greater degree on the preference of the traveller, but above all of their purchasing level. Thus, we meet different types of travellers, among which are the backpackers, who are those who travel with their backpack or luggage on their backs, hiking, and walk the road or solve problems of your trip independently.

However, the conditions of the trips may vary, depending on the type of tourism they develop, whether it is regional, national or international, there are cases in which people move by themselves on roads that lead from one city to another, in trucks or cars that move them freely and spontaneously, if it is a regional or national route, you can even see cases in which they move from one country to another in this way, as happens in the countries of the European Union or in Latin America.

Other times, people can travel formally or conventionally from one distant country to another, and once they reach their main destination, they become backpackers to travel that country independently, lowering the cost of their trip, however it is likely to make use of formal services in exceptional cases of places where travel alone is not allowed, for example, in historical places, such as the “Inca Trail in Machu Picchu” in Peru, or protected areas and ecological reserves.

In this way, this politically correct description that defines the backpacker as a traveller with his backpack on his shoulder and with a limited budget, should be complemented by saying that for many people being   a backpacker is something else, it represents a way of life, of living new experiences, to make a trip of self-knowledge, through the exchange with different cultures, of communication and coexistence, where the trip becomes a deeper experiential process.

Another characteristic aspect of backpackers that travel the world, is the fact that generally their trips are of long duration, there are exceptions to this rule, so they can vary obviously according to the type of person, their objectives, if only you want vacation and enjoy a few days of rest, or could take much longer, if your goals and your budget allow it, varying the motivations and plans; however, they all have in common the desire to know places and people in a different way, escaping from “organized tours” and very “tourist” places or destinations.

In this way, backpackers decide the way they travel, creating their own itinerary according to their time and destination, it is usually the case that they change plans during the trip, deciding for example to stay longer in one place or on the other hand to go to another city because he met people who recommended him and travel with them, which makes them independent and adventurous, dreamers and with a sense of ample practicality.

Definitely, it could be said that the first objective of a backpacker is to look for economy when traveling, considering that one of the compelling reasons that make travel difficult is the budget, so the so-called backpackers try to make them with the least possible cost, for which they usually stay in hostels or very cheap hostels, to mobilize in public transport or asking some drivers to take them or bring them to their destination, even walking long distances, and save on food as they buy their food in supermarkets that is much cheaper than eating in restaurants.

This is how, backpackers save the maximum amount possible, to be able to reach the places they want to visit and stay as long as possible. For this reason, they optimize both money and time. Even a backpacker could lower costs by 70% in relation to what he would spend as a traditional tourist.

Therefore, the tourism practiced by backpackers is considered as an alternative and economic with minimal expenses, which is its basic characteristic, being practiced mostly by young people and students, however, in the past the average age of the people has increased who are engaged in this activity.

It is worth highlight that, according to the World Confederation on Travel of Youth and Students (WYSE) and the World Tourism Organization (UNWTO), tourism made by young people represents 20% of all world arrivals, which is a considerable percentage, in addition to the spending made by these young travellers has increased by 40% by 2018, considering that a young tourist spends on average a total of 1915 euros on a trip, with a total of $ 25 per day, that is to say around 16 Euros, that are distributed among the lodging, transportation and food.

On the other hand, it has been observed in the past a rise of a new generation of backpackers or flash packers, who are over 30 years of age, and who have adopted some of the younger people’s habits, although the objectives of the trips could be more directed to realize a cultural tourism, or look for spiritual retreats, activities that take them to move away of the most concurred zones, but in essence the fundamental condition of the low budget prevails.

Another interesting fact provided by the aforementioned institutions is the fact that approximately 70% of these young people travel with a well-defined purpose, such as: learning a language, volunteering or social work, studying abroad, to know other cultures, to seek self-knowledge, to know other religious beliefs, among other short, medium or long-term objectives.

It is in this way, as unlike people who make traditional trips with air tickets purchased in advance, hotel reservations and previously planned tours, backpackers prefer to give up the amenities and seemingly safe, so     spend less money on transportation, lodging and food, in order to prolong the time of your adventure.

This custom of traveling as a backpacker has been increasing in recent decades, as well as the reasons for doing so that have diversified, since years ago this type of trip was mostly done by young people who had completed a stage such as high school or a university career, and undertook a process of searching for new horizons and new experiences, initiating a new life project in some cases.

It should be noted that, among young people from countries such as Canada, New Zealand, Australia, the United States and some European countries, it is very common to enjoy a sabbatical year traveling around the world, after having completed a university career, even many seek destinations Exotic as Africa or India, or closer destinations such as the Camino de Santiago in Spain,

Another interesting aspect of the backpacking community is the way to act and enjoy your trip, highlighting its culture of sociability, exchange and camaraderie, because as a rule it is about people with a strong desire to relate to the world, other cultures and ways of thinking and acting, so they are always open to all kinds of experiences and situations, looking more daring and risky in most cases, to the point of sleeping in tents at the campsite, which is often a bit far away from the centre of the cities, exposing themselves to the inclement weather and insecurity, depending on where they are.

Other travellers opt for hostels, whose   prices range between 13 and 20 dollars, that is, between 10 and 15   euros per day, being the preferred destinations of these backpackers countries belonging to Asia, Europe and Latin America, who sometimes search through networks social, contacting communities dedicated to this type of tourism and the orientation of young people, such as: Backpackers America that disseminates and projects to the backpackers of the continent, as well as the Backpackers Venezuela, Colombian and  Mexican backpackers.

In summary, being a backpacker who goes around the world interacting and exchanging experiences, means living a process of deep approach to the place visited, getting into their culture and customs, with no other tools than their own abilities of communication, exchange, empathy, sociability and an adventurous attitude, curiosity and collaboration that allow us to solve unforeseen events and to develop effectively through personal relationships with other people who are on the way during their journey through the world, with minds and hearts open to incomparable experiences and events that are presented.

ALFA