Flashpacker vs Backpacker: Which Are You?

Once upon a time, I used to share a hostel dorm with nineteen other travellers and consider a reclining seat on a long-distance bus the height of luxury. These days, I’m more likely to book a hotel with fluffy towels and pay extra for business-class travel.

Does this make me a traitor to the backpacking cause? A sellout who’s forgotten their roots?

Not quite. It simply means I’ve evolved from a backpacker to a flashpacker, and if you’re wondering what that means, you’re not alone. 78% of respondents to this survey of 1,000 working professionals aged between 35 and 54 defined their travelling style as “flashpacker”.

The terms are thrown around a lot in travel circles, often with a surprising amount of judgment attached. But here’s the thing: the difference between a backpacker and a flashpacker isn’t as simple as budget versus luxury or authentic versus tourist. It’s more nuanced than that, and understanding where you fall on this spectrum can actually help you travel better.

So, backpacker vs flashpacker; which are you? Let’s unpack this (pun absolutely intended) and figure out where you might fit in the grand taxonomy of modern travel.

What is a Flashpacker?

The Oxford English Dictionary or Chambers aren’t much help here, but the Urban Dictionary defines a flashpacker in two ways:

• referring to a backpacker with a better budget – independent travellers with money to spend.
• geeky backpacker – youngsters who always carry around a backpack stuffed with ‘indispensable’ gadgetry: laptop, pda, GPS, etc 

These definitions of a flashpacker are broadly accepted, particularly the first one.

However, I disagree with the second definition. As backpackers nowadays come armed with DSLRs, smartphones and tablets, travelling with gadgets can no longer be a distinguishing criterion of the flashpacker.

Flashpacking bridges the gap between travelling the world on $50 a day and living it up in 5-star hotels. Whilst it is not the preserve of the wealthy, it is associated with those travelling on a bigger budget.

It is all about valuing comfort over saving pounds.

Although flashpackers do not fit into a neat demographic, they tend to be older travellers who are likely to have more disposable income. They also believe that investing in good meals and comfortable accommodation enriches the travel experience and actively seek affordable luxury travel.

We are talking boutique hotels and occasional luxury hotels instead of dormitories, favouring taxi transfers over complicated and time-consuming bus journeys from A to B.

Are You a Flashpacker?

To find out if you could be a flashpacker, ask yourself these six key questions:

If the answer to at least four of these questions is ‘yes’, then you are a flashpacker at heart.

How I Became a Flashpacker

I can pinpoint the exact place and time I became a flashpacker: Raratonga, 1996. My friend Fi and I had a short stay on this South Pacific island, en route from New Zealand to Los Angeles, as part of a round-the-world jaunt.

Arriving at our pre-booked budget hotel in the wee small hours of the morning, the dim glow of a bare lightbulb was not able to conceal its squalor. Putting it another way, we would not have to leave the ‘comfort’ of our room to feel sand between our toes.

Unable to face spending a further three nights in this hovel, we cut our losses and hightailed it out of there the following morning. For the remainder of our stay, by day we chilled at our beachside luxury hotel, and by night drank our way through the drinks menu of its cocktail bar with a group of Kiwis.

Happy days and the genesis of a flashpacker.

Until then, I had done my fair share of staying in hostels and cheap hotels.

I had earned my budget backpacker spurs whipping up pasta and noodle-based meals in grimy kitchens and making the acquaintance of many a cockroach. And let’s not forget the joy of bathing under cold water in clogged-up showers, and sleeping in the bunk under the snorer.

Don’t get me wrong. If I could turn back the clock, I would not change a thing. Far from it.

I value the fun, friendships and wisdom gained from my backpacking days, and these experiences have helped to shape who I am today. But there came a point when I was ready to ditch dorm beds for boutique hotels, and fast food for fine dining.

Now my mission is to spend as little as possible on as much luxury as possible whilst still travelling independently. Less backpacker, more flashpacker.

Can You Meet Fellow Travellers as a Solo Flashpacker?

Solo travel is a rich and empowering experience, but travelling alone has disadvantages. The loneliness of solo travel is very real, and staying in a hostel is often a very social experience and a good way to meet fellow travellers.

Whilst this option may not be open to you as a flashpacker, there are other ways to meet people on the road.

Smaller, boutique hotels and B&Bs tend to be friendlier than larger luxury hotels.

Or how about doing a day tour, taking a class or going wine tasting? Coffee shops or bars are also good places to meet like-minded people.

Can You Have an Authentic Travel Experience When Flashpacking?

What is authentic travel?

It is a hot topic within the travel industry, but what does it mean, and can you be a flashpacker and embrace the principles of authentic travel? It is a tricky concept to pin down, and I propose that authenticity is an artificial goal and measure of travel, and its pursuit is flawed.

Let’s examine this a little closer.

Andrew Johnson, an anthropologist from Yale-NUS College, remarks that authenticity derives not from the host country’s culture, but “the game of the tourist.” It is a shiny badge that the visitor proudly pins on their lapel for avoiding the “touristy”. Instead, they seek out places “untouched” by Westernisation and pursue seeing how the “locals” live.

The major flaw with the pursuit of authenticity is that it is the visitor who is defining what it is. This is a subjective judgment and is based on their perceptions and previous exposure to that culture.

Let me ask you this. How do you know that the Pad Thai you picked up at the street market in Chang Mai is more authentic than the one you ate in the restaurant at the Shangri-La Hotel in Bangkok? Chang Mai’s street market and the Shangri-La are merely two representations of Thailand.

Final Thoughts

If you have the independent spirit of backpacking but have grown beyond travelling on a budget, then flashpacking may be the solution for you.

I’m not saying that the transition from backpacker to flashpacker is always easy. You may feel that by waving goodbye to your budget backpacking days, you are ditching a laissez-faire approach to travel, and it is a sign of growing older.

But it’s ok to feel that way and you should embrace the advantages of being a more mature traveller, namely experience, affluence and, hopefully, wisdom.

Granted, your strap-on backpack may be jettisoned in favour of the wheeled variety or – whisper it – a suitcase. However, you can continue to travel independently as a flashpacker and be every bit as adventurous as your former backpacker self.

About Bridget

Bridget Coleman has been a passionate traveller for more than 30 years. She has visited 70+ countries, most as a solo traveller.

Articles on this site reflect her first-hand experiences.

To get in touch, email her at hello@theflashpacker.net or follow her on social media.

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