You hear of backpacking and then you see backpackers wherever you go. They are people who are everywhere, seeing and exploring the world around them on the lowest budget possible. Backpackers are not people who are banking on comfort and luxury. They are comfortable with the barest necessities that will keep them alive and will leave them enough to see and enjoy the sights and the sounds of things all around them. You will see them, carrying heavy backpacks, and hence the name, on their shoulders, walking around for hours and just exploring everything all around them.
What are the characteristics of a typical backpacker that you see? Firstly, a backpacker will always use public transport since it is cheaper than any form of private transport. They also prefer youth hostels to hotels which are more expensive than the average youth hotel. The trip of a backpacker is considerably
Longer and more flexible than for the conventional holidaymaker. A backpacker uses a backpack, which is obvious, or he or she would not be called a backpacker. Also, backpackers like meeting the locals and interacting with them and seeing not just the popular tourist spots but also some of the other sights which will tell them more about the local culture and its people.
Now, the story does not end here. There are many different kinds of backpackers as well, in case you did not know. Firstly, there is the flash packer which is basically a term used to denote someone who is a rich or slightly better off backpacker, though the expression might seem self contradictory in itself. It basically means backpacking with some luxury thrown in. it is generally seen to be a mixture of both roughing it out as well as having some expense thrown in as well. Some people spend less on food, travel and accommodation while they spend a lot of money in activities or buying things there. That can be seen as flash packing as well.
The next type of backpacker is the gap-packer. This refers to younger backpackers who are just out of school and take what is commonly known as a gap year. School kids in Europe generally take one year off after finishing school and joining the university. At this time, they take some time off and travel around to see the world. Being school students, they are naturally on a budget and prefer to rough it out as well.
The last form of backpacking is called mega loping. This means backpacking using only public transport.