So you’ve made the decision to throw your most important belongings into a backpack and travel the world. Congratulations! The world of travel is a beautiful thing. Going on a backpacking journey will be an adventure like you’ve never experienced.
You’ll get to see the world that you only saw in magazines, meet different people, experience things you’ll never forget, and learn more about yourself than you ever knew.
If this will be your first time traveling as a backpacker, you probably are feeling a little nervous and anxious about the whole idea, despite the tremendous amount of excitement you have… and that’s completely normal.
We’re going to take a look at some of the most common concerns first-time backpackers have and what you can do to put your mind at ease with those concerns.
Common Backpacking
Concerns
Concern#1: The Language Barrier
It’s completely normal to have concerns about language barriers. I mean, think about it, you’re traveling to a country where your native tongue is not the local native tongue.
A language barrier is not something that we think about too often until we are put in a situation and are forced to deal with it; it’s definitely something we take for granted during our normal day-to-day interactions.
What You Can Do
Don’t let a language barrier stress you out. The way technology has been on an upward climb, you can best believe that there are translation apps out now that will allow you to easily decipher a foreign language.
In addition to that, you can always buy a self-help book that teaches you the foreign language of the location you’re traveling to.
Concern #2: Not Having Enough Money
When it comes to traveling the world, you definitely need to have enough money to survive. You first want to plan your backpacking adventure at least a year out so that you’ll have enough time to actually start saving for it.
There are definitely things you can do to earn extra money to help you financially prepare for this trip and the best way is to work jobs that allow you to travel the world. One of the worst situations you could possibly put yourself in is to be in a foreign country and run completely out of money
What You Can Do
One of the best employers to work for is yourself. You can start your own e-commerce business and sell retail or handmade products all from the comfort of your own home or remotely.
Having your own business can be a steady and reliable source of income that can actually become your primary source of income.
Concern #3: Getting Sick While Abroad
Unfortunately, getting sick while you’re on your backpacking journey is something that you’re not going to be able to avoid. Your body is going to have to adjust to the different types of food you will be eating, the new temperatures, and just the overall new living conditions you’re experiencing. All of that can throw your body off and it’s only reaction might be displayed from the top half of your body or the lower half of your body… sorry, but it’s true.
Here are some sicknesses that backpackers are ar risk of becoming susceptible to:
- Sunburn
- Altitude Sickness
- Ear Pressure
- Traveler’s Diarrhea
- Motion Sickness
- Malaria
- Exhaustion
What You Can do
Well, you, of course, will want to make a mad dash to the nearest facility but if that is not in your immediate vicinity, at the least, you want to make sure you have plenty of tissues with you along with soap and hand sanitizer.
Concern 4: Getting Lost
Isn’t the whole thrill of backpacking, going on adventures? Some of the best adventures happen when you get lost. It’s more normal to experience panic when you get lost at home because you have an actual home to go to but as a backpacker, the area under a big palm tree could be your next temporary home or you could get somewhere nice without breaking the bank using Airbnb Coupon codes that work… there’s absolutely no need to panic when backpacking.
What you Can do
When you made the decision to live the backpacking life, you had to also know that it included the possibility of getting lost so the best thing you can do is to not get so caught up in the idea of being lost and take your adventures as they come.
Some backpackers will take note of their surroundings to help them not get lost. For instance, maybe on your way to a particular location, you noticed a tree with a unique marking on it.
Once you realize you’ve gotten lost, you can turn back around and look for that tree with the unique marking on it to let you know that you’re on the right path to getting back to where you first started out at. If you find yourself lost, the Huffington Post has safety tips for people traveling abroad.
Safety Tips to Follow as a Backpacker
When it comes to traveling abroad it’s very common to have the concerns listed above but to put some of those concerns to rest, you can actually be proactive in following these safety tips for traveling abroad.
- Participate in a self-defense class. By taking a self-defense class prior to your backpacking journey, you’ll be able to protect yourself in the event of anyone try to commit any harmful act towards you.
- Put hidden pockets in your clothes. This is a safety hack you can follow whether you’re at home in your local area or traveling abroad. You can easily hand sew pockets on the inside of your pants and t-shirts. This will conceal your valuables and money to look like you don’t have money in typical areas.
Split Your Travel Money. You never want to keep all of your money in one location while you’re traveling. You can keep some of your money hidden in some of your secret pockets that no one will notice. You can also keep some of your money in a storage bag in the bottom of your backpack.
Popular
Blog Post
2019 Survival Guide FOr
Backpacking Thailand
Ultimate List of
TrAVEL RESOURCES