Backpacking: Diversity and Change

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Abstract
Backpacking, a relatively little studied form of tourism, is a rapidly expanding phenomenon. This article follows the transition from the tramp to the drifter, and from the latter to the contemporary backpacker, and points to the diversity within this general category of tourists. The discrepancy between the ideal and the common practice of backpacking, and the mechanisms of bridging it deployed by contemporary backpackers, are discussed. It is claimed that backpackers tend to profess modern ideals of tourism (e.g. the quest for 'authenticity') but are 'post-modern' in the praxis. While it is accepted that the model of a 'rite-of-passage' is a useful heuristic device for the study of backpacking, some significant qualifications regarding the applicability of the model are pointed out. The article concludes by stressing the importance of the historical and national contexts of the backpackers' origins for the diversity of their motivations and conduct, and proposes future directions of research.

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