In the digital age we are able to be online almost anywhere we go, but is that necessarily a good idea when you’re backpacking?
While staying in touch with family and friends, uploading photos or contributing to a travel blog are all positive uses of the Internet while traveling, there are plenty of arguments for limiting the amount of time you spend online. Perhaps most importantly is the idea that the more time you spend staring at a screen, the less time you spend observing and interacting with the environment around you.
Everyone has seen it, the crowded coffee shop where each customer sits staring at a smartphone or a laptop, largely oblivious to the people around them. The same goes for those who are out with friends, with many people roundly ignoring face-to-face interactions in favor of chatting or commenting online.
If the pressure of work or the sense of familiarity provides some excuse for that kind of behavior at home, a similar argument does not pass water while you are abroad. If you have made the commitment to travel somewhere for pleasure, there is no reason to cut yourself off from your surroundings behind a piece of technology.
A smartphone is potentially the only piece of technology most people will need on a backpacking trip, as the majority boast WiFi connections and decent built-in cameras. For longer emails or Skype conversations, you’ll find an Internet cafe. Obvious exceptions include travel bloggers, digital nomads and professional photographers, but for the non-professional backpacker, technological distractions should be kept to a minimum.
Don’t take away from your trip by letting technology steal your attention away from the people, animals and scenery you could be experiencing.
Read This Next
#TrazeeTravel
Insta FeedSlideshow
Apr 23, 20247 Must-See Sites in Curaçao
It’s time to start dreaming of your next trip. Here are seven must-see sites in Curaçao.
Sponsored Content
Travel Tips to Help Protect Your Health and Your Trip
Five Tips to Help Minimize Potential Travel Problems
Surveys
Apr 23, 2024Going the Distance: Which Airports Have the Longest Walks?
You’re in between flights and ready to find a coffee and your next gate and settle in. But then you find the signs to your gate and look down the impossibly long corridor and wonder how you managed to have the gate at the opposite end of the airport.
Keep Your Road Trip Smelling Good with Purggo
The last thing you want during a road trip? A stinky car. Luckily, Purggo is here to help —without filling your car with a bunch of nasty chemicals that really only just make you cough and cover up the stench for a short time.
Sponsored Content
Your Home Away from Home in Dallas
Open spaces, open thinking and open expression thrive at Aloft Dallas Downtown.
Hotel
Apr 22, 2024Fairfield by Marriott Brand Debuts in Copenhagen
Fairfield by Marriott Copenhagen Nordhavn recently debuted in Denmark. The opening marks the European debut of Marriott’s Fairfield by Marriott brand. The design prototype from OCCA Design Studio will be used as the blueprint for future Fairfield by Marriott properties throughout Europe.
ShareThis