# Backpacking and budget travel



## foadi (Feb 15, 2006)

i don't understand why someone would only travel for a year anyway. i've talked to people on their gap year. whenever i ask them why they don't just continue travelling they just give me a blank look. is normal life at their homes really that exciting? working 35 - 40 hours per week 11 months out of the year for the rest of their lives? doesn't seem like something to look forward to. i don't understand why more people don't travel full time for the rest of their lives.


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## nuevo-chicago (Nov 24, 2007)

I've done the whol EU tour with my backpack. IT was quite an experience and I would do it again and plan on doing it this time to explore all of EE during the fall when prices are lower.


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## ØlandDK (May 29, 2005)

foadi said:


> i don't understand why someone would only travel for a year anyway. i've talked to people on their gap year. whenever i ask them why they don't just continue travelling they just give me a blank look. is normal life at their homes really that exciting? working 35 - 40 hours per week 11 months out of the year for the rest of their lives? doesn't seem like something to look forward to. i don't understand why more people don't travel full time for the rest of their lives.


Where should people get the money for all that traveling?


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## foadi (Feb 15, 2006)

just work while your travelling like everyone else does.


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## FIDEL CASTRO (Nov 20, 2007)

WANCH said:


> I also plan for a Eurotrip with London as my entry/exit point. There are alot of Euro backpackers in the US mostly in major tourist cities such as NY, LA, SF and Miami. These are the US cities that are frequently visited by Euro tourists.
> 
> Latin America would be interesting though Mexico is the most visited especially by US tourists.
> 
> BTW, I have an expat friend in HK who's originally from Munich. He actually has a top position in an international company but when he travels around Europe, he backpacks. Its his leisure


I've never seen a backpacker in New York nor Miami.


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## nuevo-chicago (Nov 24, 2007)

FIDEL CASTRO said:


> I've never seen a backpacker in New York nor Miami.


Those aren't ideal places for people on a budget. I see them in Chicago during the summer even now there are some but those are Japs...


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## FREKI (Sep 27, 2005)

foadi said:


> a rental car for _urban_ travel? that doesn't make any sense at all. suburban travel, maybe but surely not urban? would you rent a car in hong kong? bangkok? tokyo?


Well it does ofcause depend on the location.. in the US i would normally rent ( expect for Manhattan ) in Japan or Hong Kong I wouldn't ( but hat's partially because of leftside driving ) and in Europe it greatly depends on the location - if planning on visiting more than one place I rent if keeping to a single place I don't..


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## MoreOrLess (Feb 17, 2005)

foadi said:


> just work while your travelling like everyone else does.


What funds alot of budget traveling is the fact costs of living are so much lower in alot of Asia and South America, actually getting a job somewhere like India or Thailand isnt going to fund much traveling compaired to one back in Europe.

Personally though I find the idea that backpacking gets you "off the beaten track" to be a bit of a fantasy. There are a small percentage of real "travelers"(mostly the slightly older people mentioned ealier) who genienly do explore untouched areas but most backpackers seem to end up hanging around a few big tourist traps in my expereince. If you want to get beyond those areas you either need to be intrepid or spend quite a bit of cash.


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## ØlandDK (May 29, 2005)

foadi said:


> just work while your travelling like everyone else does.


Just because you are lucky to have a job where you travel alot doesn't mean that everybody else can be that lucky.


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## foadi (Feb 15, 2006)

i don't have a job, i am self-employed.

and i'm not talking about everyone else, i'm talking about people who would want to travel year round. if your goal in life is to travel year round then you will _not_ have a problem making money. there are millions of ways to make money, even in poor countries. and i actually don't work in most of the countries i travel to. i limit this to rich countries usually.


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## ufonut (Jul 24, 2007)

When you travel in undeveloped countries it is cheap but if you want to work there you get paid what everybody else gets paid - almost nothing. You can't save money to prolong your travel, you are stuck working there and just barely surviving. I have seen it in many places.


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## foadi (Feb 15, 2006)

if you can't save anything then dont take that job. duh


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## ufonut (Jul 24, 2007)

foadi said:


> if you can't save anything then dont take that job. duh


Sure then go back home after few months or starve. So much for your childish ideas of lifetime travel.:bash:

In the real world (you know the world where mommy doesn't wire you money whenever you need it) people either work or go home. Simple as that. Try working in Central America for 50 cents an hour and see how much you can save for your endless travel. :lol:


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## tvdxer (Feb 28, 2006)

10ROT said:


> We don't have gap years here, or at the same way as in other countries...
> 
> You could attempt to study abroad and see the world while in college, but other than that, you start college after finishing high school. There's no leisure, it's all work. Although, people are starting to "take a year off" more often these days. It's still rare though.


I took a "gap year" between high school and college, though I ended up not traveling on it. I would say perhaps 10% of students do so. It's just not the usual practice, I suppose.


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## foadi (Feb 15, 2006)

ufonut said:


> Sure then go back home after few months or starve. So much for your childish ideas of lifetime travel.:bash:
> 
> In the real world (you know the world where mommy doesn't wire you money whenever you need it) people either work or go home. Simple as that. Try working in Central America for 50 cents an hour and see how much you can save for your endless travel. :lol:


what? just make money then you'll be able to travel.


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## Луиc (Oct 4, 2007)

That is not so easy as that man! You just can´t leave your job for a full year and then return. This is Europe. Not all guys have that luck, just a really small percentage would have that chance.


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## schmidt (Dec 5, 2002)

FREKI said:


> Well it does ofcause depend on the location.. in the US i would normally rent ( expect for Manhattan ) in Japan or Hong Kong I wouldn't ( but hat's partially because of leftside driving ) and in Europe it greatly depends on the location - if planning on visiting more than one place I rent if keeping to a single place I don't..


This is a bit off topic, but what's the minimum age to rent a car in Europe? I'm turning 21 and living there for 6 months this year, so I'd like to rent one and do some sightseeing, autobahn fahren, etc... However, I don't think they'd rent to a 21 year old guy.

Now about the thread... I've never had any true backpacking experience. I've already stayed in a couple hostels, but never travelled around with a backpack. Over here in Brazil you don't get to see many backpackers. If you do, they're mostly foreigners, not many Brazilians do such a thing.

We actually don't travel at all! Hahah no gap years, no travelling far away on vacations (that's due to LACK OF MONEY for most hah), etc...

I might do that in some weekend excursions to the cities near Berlin, like Hamburg, Prague, Szczeczin...


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## ØlandDK (May 29, 2005)

schmidt said:


> This is a bit off topic, but what's the minimum age to rent a car in Europe? I'm turning 21 and living there for 6 months this year, so I'd like to rent one and do some sightseeing, autobahn fahren, etc... However, I don't think they'd rent to a 21 year old guy.


You have to be 21 and have had your driver licence in more than 12 months to rent a car (that's atleast how it is in Denmark). Not sure if that's only for EU citizens but doubt it. So shouldn't be a problem for your.


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## Svartmetall (Aug 5, 2007)

ØlandDK said:


> You have to be 21 and have had your driver licence in more than 12 months to rent a car (that's atleast how it is in Denmark). Not sure if that's only for EU citizens but doubt it. So shouldn't be a problem for your.


Isn't there a premium placed on drivers under the age of 25 though? I believe you have to pay something extra.

Generally I'd not rent a car anyway - it's just easier and quite often cheaper to take PT especially when you factor in fuel costs. If you're spending a lot of time in a particular country then get yourself a local railpass such as the Bahncard 25 which gives you 25% off all DB train fares in Germany.


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## Луиc (Oct 4, 2007)

schmidt said:


> This is a bit off topic, but what's the minimum age to rent a car in Europe? I'm turning 21 and living there for 6 months this year, so I'd like to rent one and do some sightseeing, autobahn fahren, etc... However, I don't think they'd rent to a 21 year old guy.
> 
> Now about the thread... I've never had any true backpacking experience. I've already stayed in a couple hostels, but never travelled around with a backpack. Over here in Brazil you don't get to see many backpackers. If you do, they're mostly foreigners, not many Brazilians do such a thing.
> 
> ...



Be smart and make an InterRail


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## schmidt (Dec 5, 2002)

^^ What's an InterRail?


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## ØlandDK (May 29, 2005)

^^
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Inter_Rail 

I guess you speak German:
http://www.bahn.de/p/view/preise/international/interrail/interrail.shtml


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## LT1550 (Oct 15, 2007)

Yes, make it by train (InterRail) ... driving in Germany is very expensive; just like renting cars is more expensive like in the US for example. The standard rates of Deutsche Bahn are extremely high, too, but there are lots of special offers.


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## Луиc (Oct 4, 2007)

:sly: i swear that i made a post about those links...but!!

anyway, the information in Wikipedia is not correct:

"...minimum 6 months)..." :| it´s wrong

"...except on special trains such as high-speed trains and some night trains..." :| once again, wrong! you could, but you need to pay an extra.


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## emmahardy1 (Mar 11, 2021)

Yeah rightly said so backpacks are really an essential part of travel. We do need them to carry our needy things and most of them are a great help on the long tours. I also use travel backpacks and love to use a different and unique style of them that I recently found from commuter backpacks with a healthy life and money-back guarantee. I would also suggest you if you're looking for a good option then you must try this out.


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