So insightful. I've already left a response to Hamish's comment on your note re: the difference in backpacking then and now with socialising in hostels and whatnot.
I did most of my backpacking between the late 90s and early 2010s and it really was a different era. I don't think I could hack it now.
Last summer I was working at a school and I had a couple of 20 year old colleagues from Ireland and one of them asked me: "Hey old man, how did you use to travel when you were our age?" (only joking about the 'old man' part, she didn't say that). She was genuinely curious, not taking the piss and so I told them a few tales and they were shocked - the idea of using guidebooks, not booking things ahead of time, no Google maps, TripAdvisor, etc was alien to them.
I had some wonderful couchsurfing/hospitality club experiences as well, met some fascinating people and I just don't think it's the same anymore. The romantic days are over.
This is something I've been meaning to put together in a longer post one of these days - I might come back and ask a few more questions if you're interested in a collaborative and/or guest post type of thing? (was also going to ask Georgia for something similar - an across-the-generations sharing of experiences, perhaps)
thanks for the comment, you may actually be so old you just taught me something brand new. i've never heard of hospitality club in my LIFE until now. i did come across BeWelcome while looking for couchsurfing alternatives some time ago and apparently it's established by former HC members?! wow thanks for this piece of lore
also, would definitely be up for a collab on this/similar topic!
I was coming to the comments because “you may actually be so so old you just taught me something brand new” had me CACKLING, and then I spotted my name! That idea sounds like a fantastic one. I’d equally love to read it / take part!
Airlines are ridiculous. I have to pay $40 to pick my seat now? I'd rather pay seat roulette and leave it up to the gods.
A private room in a hostel in many of the cities I've looked at (secondary cities in LatAm) are usually more expensive than a night in an Airbnb. There definitely are still cheap buy a bed hostels, like one in Bogota I stayed in for $3/night in Zona G just to see what it was like (actually not bad), but it certainly is harder to find deals.
These days I prefer quiet nights and a full kitchen with month or longer stays, so hostels and hotels don't work. I've never found hotels to be a good value. Airbnbs have their place, but should be more regulated especially in popular tourist markets.
Oh my god, seriously. When I lived in Madrid in 2010, I was hopping on Iberia or Ryanair for like $30–50 round trip to Germany, Belgium, or Italy. I’d grab a hostel bed for $10–15 a night, and I used Couchsurfing.com to meet people and actually get to know the cities I was visiting, through a local’s eyes.
I could spend $200 max on a long weekend away.
It’s such a night-and-day difference now. I’ll fully admit it… remote workers kind of changed the game. Hostels stopped being seasonal, got busy year-round, and then layered in all those “experiences” to cater to this new traveler-worker hybrid. (Or generation?)
I just really hope my 8-year-old daughter gets a shot at that kind of cheap, scrappy, backpacking trip someday. That era was special. And is hard to dismiss.
Every so often in a foreign country i feel the need to open couchsurfing and look for hangouts nearby and then I realize… the remote worker take is interesting and probably true so thanks for pointing that out!
I'm totally with you on this Brandi. I was thinking this recently as my 7 year old daughter was asking me about how I used to travel and I was telling her about my backpacking adventures way back when. It's a different era now for sure...sigh...
It’s such a bummer. When that time comes, they’ll definitely have to get more creative to make the money stretch. Or look to places like Asia or Central America, though even those don’t feel quite as affordable as they used to. I guess, like they say, where there’s a will, there’s a way. We can hope!
I think the real take-away here is to get back to people. Drop the apps, the corporate-infused garbage, and just talk to people. Put yourself out there, as you should when you travel. Meet people, talk to people, because connecting with locals is always going to be the greatest resource - for personal growth, for your soul, for learning about other options, etc...
Agree! But that's the problem, I miss when the apps were about people. There was a sweet spot once. I know that instead of using a rideshare, one can just hitchhike and the experience will be more or less similar. But as a woman, finding a ride on an app with identity verification is infinitely safer than just getting into a stranger's car.
I think it's wrong to make this about being a woman... you're only hurting yourself on that one. I know many female travelers who have gone solo all the over the world, hitchhiking and finding random adventures. I met one just a couple weeks ago, in fact, in her 60s. The apps made things "easier" for a bit, but there tends to be a price when it comes to these tech companies, especially the U.S.-based ones, as they're almost always going to, at some point, shift to a "profit over people" model. Frankly, I'm almost glad they have, because it's really pushed me, lately, to get back to just talking to people, connecting more deeply, and I think it's a good thing. Let them shoot themselves in the foot, U.S. tech can take a massive nosedive, and it would make the world a better place.
ahh so agree with this! so much travel now is performative and I think people feel they need to go backpacking as just something else to tick off. So like you say, they are absolutely looking for the 'aesthetic' rather than being part of the genuine culture of travellers on a budget doing what they can to see the world.
Found this to be such a thoughtful piece on the commodification of travel. I agree wholeheartedly. It's great to see so many others here in the comments that have noticed the same thing. Excited to read more, thanks for sharing 🤎
Good point, snatched two very cheap long haul flights to both Asia and South America recently. But to my understanding, flight prices, especially for regular airlines, are mostly dictated by fuel costs, airport fees, competition etc. which are largely outside of individual airlines' control. Unlike charging people to sit together or bring a backpack.
You can still travel on a budget! All you need to do is avoid high seasons. I have stayed in private rooms in the Algarve, Portugal, for 13 Euros per night in December. I have also paid similar to stay in Bangkok in July, when it's low season there.
This really made me think. When I first started backpacking, it was due to budget constraints. But even now, years later, when I can afford to stay somewhere "nicer" I still see backpacking as my traveling identity. This was very well written and an interesting read
Wowow ok this just ruined me but in a good way. I didn't even think about it this way when I was writing the article but you're so right and same! Tbh for me nice accommodations are rarely worth it, especially when traveling solo, but there are some areas where my travel style definitely isn't very lowcost, yet I still see myself as a backpacker anyway.
Thank you so much for leaving this comment, def some more food for thought.
Stayed in a hostel in Copenhagen last spring, the staff was nice, but I felt like my every action was monetized.
Had to pay to store my luggage, rent lockers, they even made you pay to access the communal kitchen.
Bought some snacks and a beer from a local supermarket, and the staff told me I couldn’t drink it in the common area because I didn’t purchase it from them. 🙃
Check-in process was all automated, you had to download a buggy, third-party app to get into your room.
Plenty of people hanging around but hardly anyone was interacting outside their group, which can be intimidating as a solo traveler.
The prices were still comparable to what you’d pay for a hotel/ airbnb, but I suppose that’s everywhere in Copenhagen.
Definitely a departure from the communal spirit of when I started backpacking in 2014.
Thanks for reading, Ashleigh! Oof that Copenhagen story is rough but it illustrates the issue so perfectly. Pay to use a kitchen? At a hostel? I understand hostels having rules around not bringing in food because of cleanliness but damn this is just greedy. And the reviews were still good???
This was such a thoughtful and well-written piece! I was listening to it while walking my dog and kept thinking, “Yes, that’s so true!” It really is interesting how all of these budget friendly platforms have transformed and even the aesthetic vs the price tag of budget travel has changed. So much food for thought!
after backpacking through Europe last year, I agree! while hostels are definitely more affordable than hotels and airbnb's, there are now these massive chains that are so sterile, they're basically a hotel experience but you get a bed instead of a room! my favorite hostels were the tiny ones with so much personality, always a more fun experience!
"Throwing a coin into the Trevi fountain now costs €2." I have so many questions. Is this a fee on top of the coins we throw in? Is there a booth where we have to pay for this? How long is the queue? Do we get a ticket? Can't I just lob in a €2 coin? Or the ticket? Will anyone check? Won't Caritas, the Catholic charity that funds food banks, soup kitchens, and social projects for needy families in Rome, suffer if people decide not to throw any money into the fountain?
hahah they installed a barrier around the fountain so to get close enough to throw the coin, you need to pay. unless you have extremely good aim i guess :D i have a feeling people will just pay the €2 so the charity shouldnt suffer too much
OH my gosh nothing makes me angrier than a short Ryanair flight that starts as $30 and then turns into $100 after extra carry on fees, check in fees, and god forbid you don't check in on time or else it's +$100 again.
I'm also interested to see how it progresses, if backpacking will continue on this path of an aesthetized & instagrammable lifestyle or if those other smaller avenues for authentic, cheaper travel will take off more. Oh how I would have loved to experience backpacking in the 70s or 80s or 90s, i love reading everyones stories of those times!
I feel you. Ryanair would have standing tickets by now if the idea didn't constantly get shut down for safety reasons. So they have to keep coming with new creative ways to make the big bucks i guess.
I truly hope backpacking in its essence won't go anywhere since the people who are still doing it oldschool aren't the ones visible online, obviously. Fingers crossed!!
So insightful. I've already left a response to Hamish's comment on your note re: the difference in backpacking then and now with socialising in hostels and whatnot.
I did most of my backpacking between the late 90s and early 2010s and it really was a different era. I don't think I could hack it now.
Last summer I was working at a school and I had a couple of 20 year old colleagues from Ireland and one of them asked me: "Hey old man, how did you use to travel when you were our age?" (only joking about the 'old man' part, she didn't say that). She was genuinely curious, not taking the piss and so I told them a few tales and they were shocked - the idea of using guidebooks, not booking things ahead of time, no Google maps, TripAdvisor, etc was alien to them.
I had some wonderful couchsurfing/hospitality club experiences as well, met some fascinating people and I just don't think it's the same anymore. The romantic days are over.
This is something I've been meaning to put together in a longer post one of these days - I might come back and ask a few more questions if you're interested in a collaborative and/or guest post type of thing? (was also going to ask Georgia for something similar - an across-the-generations sharing of experiences, perhaps)
thanks for the comment, you may actually be so old you just taught me something brand new. i've never heard of hospitality club in my LIFE until now. i did come across BeWelcome while looking for couchsurfing alternatives some time ago and apparently it's established by former HC members?! wow thanks for this piece of lore
also, would definitely be up for a collab on this/similar topic!
“you may actually be so old you just taught me something brand new” - omg, no, why remind me of my frailty, I’m not that old…am I? 😂😂😂
I didn't realise Hospitality Club no longer existed, but I guess it makes sense. I used them mainly from 2005-2010 and met some terrific people.
I was coming to the comments because “you may actually be so so old you just taught me something brand new” had me CACKLING, and then I spotted my name! That idea sounds like a fantastic one. I’d equally love to read it / take part!
Airlines are ridiculous. I have to pay $40 to pick my seat now? I'd rather pay seat roulette and leave it up to the gods.
A private room in a hostel in many of the cities I've looked at (secondary cities in LatAm) are usually more expensive than a night in an Airbnb. There definitely are still cheap buy a bed hostels, like one in Bogota I stayed in for $3/night in Zona G just to see what it was like (actually not bad), but it certainly is harder to find deals.
These days I prefer quiet nights and a full kitchen with month or longer stays, so hostels and hotels don't work. I've never found hotels to be a good value. Airbnbs have their place, but should be more regulated especially in popular tourist markets.
Agree, hostel private room prices are so ridiculous! Thanks for bringing that up!!
Even shared room hostels are getting crazy in Europe
Oh my god, seriously. When I lived in Madrid in 2010, I was hopping on Iberia or Ryanair for like $30–50 round trip to Germany, Belgium, or Italy. I’d grab a hostel bed for $10–15 a night, and I used Couchsurfing.com to meet people and actually get to know the cities I was visiting, through a local’s eyes.
I could spend $200 max on a long weekend away.
It’s such a night-and-day difference now. I’ll fully admit it… remote workers kind of changed the game. Hostels stopped being seasonal, got busy year-round, and then layered in all those “experiences” to cater to this new traveler-worker hybrid. (Or generation?)
I just really hope my 8-year-old daughter gets a shot at that kind of cheap, scrappy, backpacking trip someday. That era was special. And is hard to dismiss.
Every so often in a foreign country i feel the need to open couchsurfing and look for hangouts nearby and then I realize… the remote worker take is interesting and probably true so thanks for pointing that out!
I'm totally with you on this Brandi. I was thinking this recently as my 7 year old daughter was asking me about how I used to travel and I was telling her about my backpacking adventures way back when. It's a different era now for sure...sigh...
It’s such a bummer. When that time comes, they’ll definitely have to get more creative to make the money stretch. Or look to places like Asia or Central America, though even those don’t feel quite as affordable as they used to. I guess, like they say, where there’s a will, there’s a way. We can hope!
I think the real take-away here is to get back to people. Drop the apps, the corporate-infused garbage, and just talk to people. Put yourself out there, as you should when you travel. Meet people, talk to people, because connecting with locals is always going to be the greatest resource - for personal growth, for your soul, for learning about other options, etc...
Agree! But that's the problem, I miss when the apps were about people. There was a sweet spot once. I know that instead of using a rideshare, one can just hitchhike and the experience will be more or less similar. But as a woman, finding a ride on an app with identity verification is infinitely safer than just getting into a stranger's car.
I think it's wrong to make this about being a woman... you're only hurting yourself on that one. I know many female travelers who have gone solo all the over the world, hitchhiking and finding random adventures. I met one just a couple weeks ago, in fact, in her 60s. The apps made things "easier" for a bit, but there tends to be a price when it comes to these tech companies, especially the U.S.-based ones, as they're almost always going to, at some point, shift to a "profit over people" model. Frankly, I'm almost glad they have, because it's really pushed me, lately, to get back to just talking to people, connecting more deeply, and I think it's a good thing. Let them shoot themselves in the foot, U.S. tech can take a massive nosedive, and it would make the world a better place.
Best wishes, Fialka!
ahh so agree with this! so much travel now is performative and I think people feel they need to go backpacking as just something else to tick off. So like you say, they are absolutely looking for the 'aesthetic' rather than being part of the genuine culture of travellers on a budget doing what they can to see the world.
Thanks for the comment Lila, glad it resonated!
Found this to be such a thoughtful piece on the commodification of travel. I agree wholeheartedly. It's great to see so many others here in the comments that have noticed the same thing. Excited to read more, thanks for sharing 🤎
Thank you so much for these kind words, Liv!
As for flying, again, avoid high seasons. Long haul flights to Asia are cheaper now than in 2019.
Good point, snatched two very cheap long haul flights to both Asia and South America recently. But to my understanding, flight prices, especially for regular airlines, are mostly dictated by fuel costs, airport fees, competition etc. which are largely outside of individual airlines' control. Unlike charging people to sit together or bring a backpack.
You can still travel on a budget! All you need to do is avoid high seasons. I have stayed in private rooms in the Algarve, Portugal, for 13 Euros per night in December. I have also paid similar to stay in Bangkok in July, when it's low season there.
For sure, going off season helps a lot!!
This really made me think. When I first started backpacking, it was due to budget constraints. But even now, years later, when I can afford to stay somewhere "nicer" I still see backpacking as my traveling identity. This was very well written and an interesting read
Wowow ok this just ruined me but in a good way. I didn't even think about it this way when I was writing the article but you're so right and same! Tbh for me nice accommodations are rarely worth it, especially when traveling solo, but there are some areas where my travel style definitely isn't very lowcost, yet I still see myself as a backpacker anyway.
Thank you so much for leaving this comment, def some more food for thought.
Stayed in a hostel in Copenhagen last spring, the staff was nice, but I felt like my every action was monetized.
Had to pay to store my luggage, rent lockers, they even made you pay to access the communal kitchen.
Bought some snacks and a beer from a local supermarket, and the staff told me I couldn’t drink it in the common area because I didn’t purchase it from them. 🙃
Check-in process was all automated, you had to download a buggy, third-party app to get into your room.
Plenty of people hanging around but hardly anyone was interacting outside their group, which can be intimidating as a solo traveler.
The prices were still comparable to what you’d pay for a hotel/ airbnb, but I suppose that’s everywhere in Copenhagen.
Definitely a departure from the communal spirit of when I started backpacking in 2014.
Thanks for reading, Ashleigh! Oof that Copenhagen story is rough but it illustrates the issue so perfectly. Pay to use a kitchen? At a hostel? I understand hostels having rules around not bringing in food because of cleanliness but damn this is just greedy. And the reviews were still good???
This was such a thoughtful and well-written piece! I was listening to it while walking my dog and kept thinking, “Yes, that’s so true!” It really is interesting how all of these budget friendly platforms have transformed and even the aesthetic vs the price tag of budget travel has changed. So much food for thought!
after backpacking through Europe last year, I agree! while hostels are definitely more affordable than hotels and airbnb's, there are now these massive chains that are so sterile, they're basically a hotel experience but you get a bed instead of a room! my favorite hostels were the tiny ones with so much personality, always a more fun experience!
yep, small locally owned hostels are the way to go! the aesthetics are usually not there but the vibes are!
Is there anything left that the modern world has left to ruin?
barely
"Throwing a coin into the Trevi fountain now costs €2." I have so many questions. Is this a fee on top of the coins we throw in? Is there a booth where we have to pay for this? How long is the queue? Do we get a ticket? Can't I just lob in a €2 coin? Or the ticket? Will anyone check? Won't Caritas, the Catholic charity that funds food banks, soup kitchens, and social projects for needy families in Rome, suffer if people decide not to throw any money into the fountain?
hahah they installed a barrier around the fountain so to get close enough to throw the coin, you need to pay. unless you have extremely good aim i guess :D i have a feeling people will just pay the €2 so the charity shouldnt suffer too much
Too many tourists chasing the same thing, wreaking all these changes. For a different take on the same issue, check here.
https://danwake.substack.com/p/are-there-really-100-times-as-many
OH my gosh nothing makes me angrier than a short Ryanair flight that starts as $30 and then turns into $100 after extra carry on fees, check in fees, and god forbid you don't check in on time or else it's +$100 again.
I'm also interested to see how it progresses, if backpacking will continue on this path of an aesthetized & instagrammable lifestyle or if those other smaller avenues for authentic, cheaper travel will take off more. Oh how I would have loved to experience backpacking in the 70s or 80s or 90s, i love reading everyones stories of those times!
I feel you. Ryanair would have standing tickets by now if the idea didn't constantly get shut down for safety reasons. So they have to keep coming with new creative ways to make the big bucks i guess.
I truly hope backpacking in its essence won't go anywhere since the people who are still doing it oldschool aren't the ones visible online, obviously. Fingers crossed!!