April 2011


Backpacking trips have come a long, long way. What used to be a hike through the forest has now turned into fantastic expeditions in all sorts of countries and tourist locations.


Ireland backpacker tours let you roam Celtic lands of legend, and Alaskan tours have you hiking over centuries-old glaciers. You can backpack Everest or explore fantastic European cities.


The choice of backpacking trips available are as plentiful as the places you can imagine trekking across. Here are some more great destinations to choose from:


If you like the sun and warmth, backpacking Mexico destinations can be a great alternative to heading down south to laze on a beach. There are pyramids and ruins in Mexico with tours that let you explore Aztec temples to your satisfaction.


You’ll be stunned by the first-hand experience of being in a location full of legend. Other locations you’ll explore on your vacation backpacking Mexico wonders will be the famous Shrine of our Lady of Guadalupe, a highly visited religious site. Other tours available include the City of Eternal Spring or the Gardens of Xochimilco.


A European backpack vacation can be another wonderful experience full of culture. The size of the countries in Europe means that in two weeks and at budget-conscious expenses, you can tour the trails of several vacation destinations and see different people and places.


Recommendations for European backpack holidays suggest careful planning, as those who hike their way through places in Europe on their own might find different countries and unfamiliar languages confusing.


One backpacking mountain tour brings you to the highest mountain of the Ukraine in the Carpathians. You can ascend to the summit of the Doboshanka!


Those backpackers who’d like to get a taste of Everest can do so by taking one of the backpacking trips to the mountain’s base camps. Be forewarned that mountain-climbing trips can be arduous and require good physical fitness.


If you don’t want to have a wild backpacking tour, settling for more sedate backpacking trips is just fine. You can chose a European tour that involves nothing more than a stay in the hotel and traveling through cities by day on foot.


Walking tours come in a close second to their hiking counterparts. Backpacking Italy is another wonderful way to see beautiful buildings and romantic locations without needing to exert yourself to climb mountains.


The destinations of your backpacking trips are only limited by how many places you can think of traveling to. You can find all sorts of backpacking tour companies that will help you make your travel reservations and fill you in on trip details.


You could opt for letting your feet take you where they would by booking a flight and nothing else. Once you arrive at your destination, you’ll wander wherever you please. These types of trips are great on a budget, but do some pre-expedition planning and try to have some type of itinerary in mind.

Hostels working to accommodate flashpackers need for wifi


Don’t worry a flashpacker isn’t some student backpacking Europe flashing people and it’s not somebody that packs very quickly or anything else you might imagine it to be- flashpacking simply is backpacking with a lot of high tech gear. Flashpackers generally come in two types, the younger group, still in college, who have all the gadgets but not all the money for luxury accommodations and the second group of individuals is in their late 20′s who have a little bit more money to spend and carry iPods, digital cameras and laptops.


Oftentimes over a third of the stuff a flashpacker brings along on vacation is technology related. Not only laptops and digital cameras are brought with, but also extra batteries, camera cords for uploading pictures to share while traveling, portable wifi finders and international plug adapters to name a few. Let’s face it, in the past decade technology has changed our everyday lives and things like laptops, cell phones, iPods and digital cameras come with us everywhere, especially on vacation.


According to a survey completed by 2,561 visitors to Hostelworld.com this year, 21% travel with a laptop, 54% with an MP3 player, 83% with a cell phone and 86% with a digital camera. Hostels have been noticing this trend and have been trying to accommodate the flashpacker’s needs. Just because you have an iPod, a laptop and a digital camera, doesn’t mean you can afford to fork out $200 a night for a hotel.


Truthfully though, this new “flashpacker” phenomenon doesn’t seem that shocking. The generation of kids that grew up in the 90′s, grew up with the Internet and cell phones. It only seems natural that they would want to bring them with while on vacation. Plus if it is a student backpacking Europe, they’ll be gone for awhile and will want to communicate with friends and family back home and will want to share their travel adventures.


While some hostels have been making changes, in particular offering free wifi, a large majority of hostels don’t offer all the high tech accommodations that flashpackers desire or they charge for Internet access. If you’re going flashpacking, here’s list of a few hostels that offer budget accommodations and wifi to help you on your quest for Internet while backpacking Europe or across the country.


Hostelling International – New York, New York


Hostelling International Chicago – Chicago, Illinois


Hostelling International Santa Monica Santa Monica, California


Bellavista Hostel Santiago, Chile


Green Tortoise Hostel San Francisco, California


Banana Bungalow Maui Hostel Wailuku, Hawaii


The Generator Hostel London, United Kingdom


The Tropics Hotel and Hostel Miami Beach, Miami


USA Hostel Las Vegas, Nevada


Yosemite Bug Lodge Hostel – Midpines, California

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