Backpackers

[Gazza]

Don't like their appearance too much but give them their dues, they're getting out and seeing the world.

It's the boring squares back home that p*sses me off. Their world extends as far as the local pub or wherever their footie team is playing away from home.

[DJ Pat]

By all means knock the B.Ps (little A/Hs) for their childish behaviour,their farting around,stupid antics.. but dont put them all down after all in another 20 years or so just like you they will.......

I'll be deterring my kids from backpacking for sure!!

[splitlid]

Don't like their appearance too much but give them their dues, they're getting out and seeing the world.

It's the boring squares back home that p*sses me off. Their world extends as far as the local pub or wherever their footie team is playing away from home.

totally agree with you on this.

ive friends back home who are too scared to try new things.

down the local every friday and saturday night

yearly holiday to spain.

i went back home 5 years ago after being away for 2 years....

same people at same bar stools...it was "oh hello mate havent seen your for a while, where ya been"

"been working in blah blah...doing blah blah"

"OH"

END CONVERSATION.

if its not about the uk or whos shagging who they havnt got a clue.

most of em anyway.

[DJ Pat]

ive friends back home who are too scared to try new things.

down the local every friday and saturday night

yearly holiday to spain.

One reason why my annual Xmas trip to UK is cancelled this year.

[Insight]

Going off-topic, but I pretty much told my folks I'd be spending my annual hols next year getting to see more of SE Asia, rather than blowing it on my yearly trip home. Getting so fed up with comments like:

"So you got yourself a chinky girlfriend then?" or...

"You live in Bangkok? So do you BANG COCK? HAHAHAHAHA!!!" or...

"I'll be joining you out there in a few months - I promise this time." or ...

"It's a bit too far for me to go out there." (What??? Worried you'll get swallowed by some space-time vortex during the flight or something??? )

Back on-topic, the biggest vex I have with backpackers is that they judge all Thai society by the tourist touts they have to deal with during their trip, which usually are the less-than-wholesome type.

That also concludes that, completely contrary to the usual backpacker mission statement, they’re not going “off the beaten track” at all, but rather sticking firmly on it.

Rant over.

[DJ Pat]

the biggest vex I have with backpackers is that they judge all Thai society by the tourist touts they have to deal with during their trip, which usually are the less-than-wholesome type.

That's a crying shame that is but what else would we expect them to do? Start venturing up Rhamkamhaeng Road?

[taxexile]

nothing wrong with backpacking round the world, its what anybody with a sense of adventure would do. its probably what most of us did.

if i was twenty years younger i would do it again.

nothing can beat the excitement and freedom of arriving in a new country with loads of free time and no itinerary.

good luck to them for spinning out their money for as long as possible ,the locals here and in every other s.e.asian or s.american country are trying to fleece these inexperienced beings as much as possible , they do right to make it last.

the locals may look down on them but they are only too pleased to take their money, and its the backpackers of the past that opened up this country so that the less adventurous tourists can now wallow and stuff themselves in the 5-star hotels.

their fashion sense, manners and hygiene may leave a lot to be desired , but its a great adventure even if they do all follow the lonely planet trail. nothing beats seeing a far off country for the first time.

most of us who are over 40 have some yearnings for our youth and we shouldnt knock the young for being free and enjoying themselves whilst they have the chance.

i would recommend a stint on the road to anybody.

[DJ Pat]

their fashion sense, manners and hygiene may leave a lot to be desired , but its a great adventure even if they do all follow the lonely planet trail. nothing beats seeing a far off country for the first time.

Good point ....distracting avatar though!

[sbk]

Nice post tax, scary teeth tho

Personally, I think the fact that more Americans don't get out and travel is part of the US and it's governments inability to understand the world outside it's borders. If more Americans got out and experienced the world then they would have a greater understanding of different cultures and we wouldn't hear so much of that "America is the greatest country in the world" stuff. And yes, I am American.

I live on Koh Phangan, where yes, the majority are backpackers but certainly not all. Would you classify the 38 year old Swedish man and his Swedish wife travelling with their 2 year old "backpackers" because they find it more convenient to travel with a backpack? I think the 'backpackers' get lumped into one big group by people who don't take the time to note differences. Yes, there are hairy dreadlocked smelly ones but after having lived in Backpacker Paradise for over 15 years I have to tell you that this is a stereotype that is dying fast. Catch up to the real world guys, many young people travelling today are doing a 'gap year', some have just finished Uni and want to see the world before they settle down to boring 9-5 jobs. Others have seen the boredom of their 9-5 jobs and have saved up their money and quit their jobs to taste some adventure. Why is this wrong? How is this worse somehow than drunken men coming to Thailand just for sex?

Sounds like a bit of jealousy to me, aah to be young and free again, with few responsibilities and the excitement of new places and peope. Let's try not to be too old and cynical, why not let them enjoy their lives too

[DJ Pat]

Not jealousy at all, just thought it would be nice to take the piss out of them.

[monkeygirl]

the female backpackers are repulsive, walking around in their little tops with no bra and fat rolls dangling off or just skinny and dirty, unwashed hair. it's a conservative country, they should show some respect. brit girls especially seem quite slutty, hitting on anything that will look at them... don't know how they get any play here though with all the pretty thai girls around.

[DJ Pat]

the female backpackers are repulsive, walking around in their little tops with no bra and fat rolls dangling off or just skinny and dirty, unwashed hair. it's a conservative country, they should show some respect. brit girls especially seem quite slutty, hitting on anything that will look at them... don't know how they get any play here though with all the pretty thai girls around.

^That made me laugh out loud.

Rolls of fat bursting out are a common sight down KSR I'll agree.

Brit girls have a snobbiness that makes them not that good to have conversations with especially when you tell them you live here.

[sbk]

the female backpackers are repulsive, walking around in their little tops with no bra and fat rolls dangling off or just skinny and dirty, unwashed hair. it's a conservative country, they should show some respect. brit girls especially seem quite slutty, hitting on anything that will look at them... don't know how they get any play here though with all the pretty thai girls around.

Funny monkeygirl, we must be seeing different people where I live. We just had two really stunning German girls stay here, young, cute, slender and very polite. I also see many fat, ugly Thai women impolitely dressed. The fat bg that likes to dance on the side of the road wearing tight hotpants and a bube toob usually puts me off my dinner.

Guess it's easy to make broad generalizations, much more difficult when one takes into account that there are all different kinds of people in the world.

[Boon Mee]

Many Thais are baffled by the backpacker phenomenom.

Absolutely...saw many Thai "Backpackers" in Brazil when I lived down there but they always dressed nicely and didn't smell bad either. Were courteous and certainly didn't lug around their entire household belongings every time they left the hotel. Farang backpackers are a nuisance in Thailand...maybe their momma brought 'em up wrong?

[taxexile]

Were courteous and certainly didn't lug around their entire household belongings every time they left the hotel.

they have to carry it all around with them because anything they leave in their rooms will be had either by the staff or other falang backpackers.

you cant trust anybody these days.

[monkeygirl]

Guess it's easy to make broad generalizations, much more difficult when one takes into account that there are all different kinds of people in the world.

It's an obvious given when you are discussing, well, anything in the whole world basically, that there are different people. This is just my opinion of the particular ones that I have seen, especially around the south of Thailand.

[damnaam]

Guess it's easy to make broad generalizations, much more difficult when one takes into account that there are all different kinds of people in the world. ....

.... my sentiments entirely. You cannot tar everyone with the same brush. I did a year backpacking around the world, with S.E Asia forming the last few months of this little adventure.

It was one of the best things I have ever spent time and money on, and taking all the lows and highs together, probably the single most richest experience of my life. Sure there are backpackers with attitude problems, but so are there from every walk of life.

From my own experience: you have to haggle sometimes since backpackers are often a target of scams and rip-offs. It's also not easy to stretch a budget over a long time, especially when you're caught between the desire to experience everything you want yet not go home early.

It's necessary to wear your 'day-pack' on your front at times since, if you're on the move, it's likely that you have debit/credit cards, traveller cheques, passport, tickets etc, in there. To 'lose' all these things because they're out of sight, even if only briefly, could be disastrous.

There are probably millions of package holiday tourists every year who vacation for a week or two somewhere that initially was discovered by backpackers and then became popular. Sure Rough Guide and LP featured in my trip, and apart from some places in South America, I can't otherwise claim to have gone far off the 'beaten track' but then, it's all relative and certainly more thought out than your average holiday-maker who returns from a two week break somewhere claiming to have discovered this amazing place and really gotten into the culture.

At the end of the day, it's a big world out there and if more people made an effort to go and see at least some of it with their own eyes then I think we'd all live in a better place

Cheers....!

[Spee]

I'll be deterring my kids from backpacking for sure!!

IMHO, you might be depriving them of one of the most economical means available for getting out and seeing the world (assuming of course they would want to do so).

Unless children come very well off homes, most cannot possibly afford to go and visit different parts of the world and explore and get to know the cultures there. The cost of airfare and intercity transport is a big enough cost hit and standard hotels are essentially unaffordable.

But in places like Europe, there are youth hostels in ever major city which offer younger people a cheap place to spend the night. These places are packed during the seasonable months and at least a bit busy other times.

IMHO, you attempt to take a shot at backpackers is another or many attempts in this forum to take a few bad or one-time experiences with a small group and generalize them into to describing the entire spectrum. Sorry but that just ain't right.

Here's a very divergent example. I just did London-Bangkok-Tokyo-Bangkok-London within about 10 days. On one of my flights there was a little baby who did nothing but cry almost the whole leg, obviously disturbing many people in the surrounding area. If I were to use your "logic", I would get down on all crying babies everywhere because they cause a minor discomfort to me. That argument doesn't make sense either.

Sure backpackers are adults and are more responsible for their behaviour than a little baby, but the point is that most backpackers are probably reasonably responsible people. To try and cast them all into the darkside because of one or two bad experiences, just doesn't make sense.

To try and convince other people of the same through these kinds of posts, just aggravates the situation.

Just my own wrong opinion ...

[Khun Larry]

Don't like their appearance too much but give them their dues, they're getting out and seeing the world. 

It's the boring squares back home that p*sses me off. Their world extends as far as the local pub or wherever their footie team is playing away from home. 

Spot on.

The backpackers are exploring new areas which will develop for our future travel and enjoyment. Back home the west is quite sterile.

[samran]

The way this DJ bloke writes reminds me of a certain breed of human in Australia we called a "young liberal". For you UK/US'ians out there that would roughly be a "young conservative/young republican" All same same and not terribly different.

But while we are on the topic of the relative merits of backpackers, lets just remind ourselves (according to the Australian Tourism Commission) that far from being the tight scumbags which is the stereotype, backpackers on average spend per person more on an average stay than any other class of traveller.

The money they spend is often directly injected into the local economy, given they tend to stay in locally run guesthouses and go on locally operated tours.

But you wouldn't want blind predjudice get in the way of some decent facts now would we???

[samran]

oh, almost fogot, and a fair chunk of these backpackers go back to start their professional careers in white collar jobs. The next time they venture out is as a more upmarket tourist, with their matching suitcases and a 3 to five star hotel.

A country which puts out the welcome mat for a backpacker is sure to receive return custom from that same person a few years down the track.

[Boon Mee]

But you wouldn't want blind predjudice get in the way of some decent facts now would we???

No, but they could take a bath now & then!

[samran]

But you wouldn't want blind predjudice get in the way of some decent facts now would we???

No, but they could take a bath now & then!

seeing that we are dealing in generalisations, then it is safe to say that the smelly backpacker must be English then.......

[Totster]

Not jealousy at all, just thought it would be nice to take the piss out of them.

5555

You know... I can just imagine a topic on a backpackers forum discussing expats (sexpats ? ), what do you like/dislike about expats.... or professional teachers in Thailand for that matter....!!

LIVE AND LET LIVE

totster

[samran]

well said Danny

[A. BOOZER]

Backpackers, if fat or thin, long haired, short haired, clean or smelly are in general doing something that will benefit them in later life. The finest university in the world is the university of experience and life, at least they will have obtained a semblance of understanding before returning to the rat race.

Has anyone stopped to talk to some of these developing characters, let alone shown them some hospitality and the use of a bathroom?

Only wish that I was thirty or more years younger! I would certainly be travelling and learning about the world.

[theviking]

I have been in & out in los now for 12 years, still havent socialized with backpackers. I cant say a bad thing about them, simply cuz i dont know any.

I guess all of you, both telling negative experience about them and positive, got a broad social life with backpackers, and so on, you got broad experience with them.

The only thing i know about them, is that the full moon party mainly consists of backpackers....and if the youth want to slam out their brain, they will do it anyway, stying in los....or their homecountry.

I guess all of you writing in this tread, either have been a backpacker, or socialize with them a lot.....if you neither of the above....why comment?

Totster got a really good point:

Live and let live.

[joinme2leave]

nothing special against the BP folks. never ever was a real BP myself.

BUT one thing for sure: IF there would be no more (or, at least: less) BPs traveling around, Thailands QUALITY OF ACCOMODATION could finally INCREASE.

Have a look at cheap(er) hotels, especially in southern los parts such as Samui and try to find a hotel offering MEDIUM quality for reasonable price: difficult to find that spot, I can tell ya.

As a matter of fact, a BP is not at all interested in quality but only low price.

Why should a "normal" traveler (mostly in high season) be "forced" to pay inaccepatable high prices for BP-quality-hotel rooms?

just my 2 cents...

[theviking]

So...let's throw out the backpackers , so you can find cheaper accomodation in samui for the 2 weeks you are staying......

Is it really what you are saying????????

[stroll]

brit girls especially seem quite slutty, hitting on anything that will look at them... don't know how they get any play here though with all the pretty thai girls around.

Better to be with a ganja puffing Brit dreadlock for free than a jaba snorting bargirl for money....Most of the time the Brits can speak English as well and don't wake you up at 6 in the morning leaving your hut.