Accessibility

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60 Entry &

Exit

Airport (4.78%)

Most Destinations

- Very significant since it is the starting point - Flying is not favored if possible

- The priority of considerations: cost, (possible) experiences, travel time

Ferry (2.46%)

PH (9.78%) SK (5.44%) ID (4.28%)

Visa / Travel Permit

Visa (5.51%)

8 highly significant destinations

- Some backpackers avoid, skip, or make a detour when a destination is difficult to enter

- Common topics to discuss among travelers:

entry-visa, visa-extension, and visa-run - The permit requirements contribute to the

flourishing travel agent businesses, especially around the border

- Full-time drifters usually have technical skills in visa process

Getting Around

Public Transport.

(1.51%)

- Public transportation saves cost, gives unique experience, and provides opportunity to get in touch more with locals

- Personal transportation offers more on the sense of freedom and flexibility (usually bicycle or motorcycle)

- It could become an attraction or the enhancer of attraction

Proximity ^Location _(1.96%)

- Directly related to the cost and travel time.

- Many enclaves enjoy strategic location, usually located between two major enclaves in which they function as a hub or stopover

Ease of Combining

with Another Destination

Border (1.96%)

MM (6.05%), Tbt (4.97%),

CN (3.10%)

- Backpackers do a series of visits to multiple destinations instead of a single destination - They will think about what the next destination

is, along with the visa requirements, transportation options, etc.

- They might skip a destination if it’s perceived to be difficult to combine with other destination

Transportation Option

In general, the attributes related to transportation options show significant results across countries as shown in Table 4.3. CTA shows that topics about entering a destination and its requirement to be more often discussed, rather than about exploring the destination.

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The attribute ‘entry and exit’ is represented by some keywords, such as ‘airport’

and ‘ferry’. The latter especially appears in maritime countries and destinations connected by the sea. Reflecting through the researcher’s participation, the matter of entry and exit is a very important technical part of backpacking trip. There are two notes regarding this attribute. First, long-term budget travelers or full-time drifters prefer not to fly when it comes to entering a destination. They prefer to use an alternative that is cheaper or offers unique experiences. Land transportation is usually the most preferable, either by train or bus (including minivans), though ferry is also found in certain destinations such as South Korea that well-connected by the sea to Japan and China. Nevertheless, this preference might change if the cost of flying is cheaper than taking land transportation.

As an illustration, the researcher once met a Japanese traveler in 2015 in Malaysia, who planned to explore Southeast Asia and crossed to South Asia. She answered as follows when was asked about how she would get there.

“I will use a bus to cross from Myanmar to Bangladesh. It is cheaper and allows me to get a more unique experience of how local people cross the border”

The said traveler took this option, even though it means more paperwork was required since crossing Myanmar’s border is not much opened for foreigners. Another reflection is on the researcher’s experience in planning to cross from Fukuoka in Japan to Busan in Korea by ferry, yet found that the flight ticket is cheaper to fly from Fukuoka to Daegu. The option of flying was eventually taken, even though taking a ferry is more interesting. Still on the same trip, the researcher planned to fly from Korea to any major destination in China, yet found that there is a ferry connecting Incheon in Korea to some cities in China. The fare is cheaper and it offers a unique experience to land in China by ferry. Hence, the option was taken and Dalian in China was visited, even though it is not

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in the mainstream backpacking trail of China. The examples show that budget travelers might do a reroute or detour, and tend to have a flexible itinerary. They also prioritize either affordability or unique experiences over travel time.

Besides the concern of entering and exiting a destination, travelers also put concern on the visa or travel permit. The discussion on ‘visa’ appears to be highly significant across the destinations. Participant observation also unveils a consistent finding with the CTA. Visa and immigration are among the subject of discussions that never missed to be talked about in a hostel when the drifters gather. There are three types of discussions about visa among travelers that identified: entry-visa, visa-extension, and visa-run.

Tibet is a perfect example of how travel permit affects the backpackers’ movement.

It requires a travel permit for any non-Chinese, that is not cheap nor easy to get. Some backpackers do detour and visit another part of Tibet that is free to visit, such as Amdo Tibet in Sichuan (China). On visa extension, it is the practice of allowing travelers to stay longer without leaving the country by doing some paperwork. The last one, visa-run, it is related to visa-extension. It is practically a “visa-reset”, that done by going out from a country and then returning with a new visa. This practice commonly happens in established backpacker enclaves that have land borders and relatively relaxed visa policy such as Thailand, Malaysia, Cambodia, Laos, and Vietnam. The need for this service also affects the travel agent industry, especially around border towns. These agents may help travelers to get their visa renewed or extended. However, it is noted that most long-term backpackers usually do the process related to visa by themselves due to cost consideration and the technical skills they possess, in which visa application process has become a routine for them.

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Once the travelers enter a destination, the next concern is how they will get around there. As shown in Table 4.3, many of the significant keywords representing accessibility in general can also represent this attribute, such as ‘train’, ‘bus’, and specifically the keyword ‘public transportation’ which is quite significant. CTA shows that the attribute is important for backpackers, in line with the findings from autoethnographic works.

Furthermore, it is observed that the favored means of transportation for backpackers to get around are either public transportation or affordable personal transportation, and this mode of transportation can be leveraged to enhance or to become an attraction itself. For instance, the “circular train” in Yangon is famous as a tourist attraction. Even this idea is applied to the modern system, like Singapore’s Mass Rapid Transportation (MRT) is listed among the top activities on TripAdvisor. So are Jakarta’s MRT and Bangkok’s BTS or “Skytrain”. The three transportation systems mentioned have an aggregate score of 4.5 out of 5 on that website based on thousands of reviews, illustrating how positive the tourist experience that they offer as an attraction – including for backpackers.

Multiple Destinations

Most backpackers are observed to visit multiple destinations in their trip. And the factor ‘proximity’ and ‘ease of combining with other destination’ represent that behavior.

However, both factors are found to be insignificant according to CTA, though this research argues that it happens because of some technical limitations. However, the disparity was found between CTA and observations. It is observed that both attributes are essential for backpackers in terms of accessibility.

Proximity is very important in the decision-making process of backpackers toward visiting attractions. It is closely linked to travel cost and time, though the latter is less

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important for backpackers. There are many cases whereas destinations are left out by budget travelers because the location is simply too far from where they are at that moment, or visited by backpackers due to its strategic location.

For instance, Pai in Northern Thailand is basically a backpacker enclave. It attracts backpackers mostly and less regular tourists. However, despite its growing popularity, the place is arguably not yet becoming a must-visit destination for backpackers travelling in Thailand in comparison to Chiang Mai or Bangkok. It is mainly because of its location that makes the destination less attractive, especially for backpackers that have a strong orientation toward accessibility. Pai is located around 125 km from Chiang Mai as the closest enclave and there are not many options for the next destination after Pai. The opposite case is Vang Vieng in Laos, Da Nang in Vietnam, or Bagan in Myanmar. Vang Vieng is located between Luang Prabang and Vientiane in Laos. So are Da Nang between Ho Chi Minh City and Hanoi in Vietnam and Bagan between Yangon and Mandalay in Myanmar. Thus, backpackers would be more likely to make a stop and visit the destination in between major destinations.

Proximity also relates to ‘ease of combining with another destination’. This attribute is the amalgam of other attributes discussed in this factor, incorporating some aspects of other attributes and involving the presence of other destinations as well.

Considering the attribute inherits a relatively complex concept, then it is not surprising to get an unconvincing result from CTA due to some technical limitations. As shown in Table 4.3, there is only one quite significant keyword representing this attribute, which is

‘border’. The countries with the highest proportion of mention of this keyword are Myanmar, Tibet, and China. Those three countries are particularly among the most difficult destinations to enter in Asia as reflected from autoethnographic works. Though visa policy had been relaxed in recent years in Myanmar, it still limits the movement of

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travelers to do land-border crossing and the transportation options are limited. Tibet, specifically the region of Lhasa where the famous Potala Palace is in, requires a special travel permit to visit. Moreover, the location is pretty remote to other tourist enclaves with limited transportation options, creating another disadvantage to attract budget travelers. Meanwhile for China, there is an issue of inflexibility to enter the country as it doesn’t offer either visa-on-arrival or free visa-waiver to many nationals including many Western and Asian nations.

In addition, the tendency of multi-destination trips is observed to contribute to the development of backpacker enclaves around the land border. For instance, Kanchanaburi in Western Thailand is getting popular considering its location close to Myanmar, making it ideal for a visa-run. So is Sa Pa in Northern Vietnam which becomes an alternative stop-over destination for backpackers travelling to or from China.

To sum up, CTA and autoethnography affirm the importance of all attributes, though its level of significance varies. Backpackers take considerations on how they will enter and exit a destination, the visa and permit requirement, and the options of getting around in a destination. In most cases, backpackers would prioritize affordability of them and the unique experiences it might offer, over travel time. The researcher once had an encounter with a Japanese backpacker who did hitchhike to 47 prefectures in Japan, saying that she didn’t care about the attraction in those prefectures, but concern more about whether she can reach the prefecture. That is to argue that some segments of backpackers see accessibility as the main attractor itself that is more important than the factor ‘attraction’.

Budget travelers also tend to do a series of visitations to multiple destinations rather than to a single destination only. Proximity is surely noted as an important factor since it

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defines the distance between enclaves. And the other one is the ease of combining with another destination, which is a fusion of other attributes in the model. Figure 4.3 below visualizes the relationship between the attributes in this factor.

Figure 4. 3. The Relationship Between Attributes in Accessibility Source: Researcher’s interpretation based on autoethnography