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Travel guides for planning real trips

Where to go, how long to stay, how to get around and what it actually costs. Plus the trip admin worth sorting before you leave.

Jump to: Japan, Thailand, Vietnam, South Korea, Europe
Traditional Korean palace beside a river
South Korea. Our itineraries, transport and eSIM guides cover Seoul, Gyeongju and Jeju.

Sort these before you fly

eSIMs & mobile datagetting online without roaming bills27 Travel insurancewhat’s covered and when to buy22 Travel cardsavoiding foreign fees and ATM charges13 Transport & car rentaltrains, ferries, buses, road trips75 Accommodationwhere to stay and how to book10 Itinerariesday-by-day routes21 Daily budgets by countrywhat a backpacker day costs in 20+ countriesFree Rental car cost calculatorcompare two quotes with extras and excessFree

New to backpacking? Start with these

Backpacker checking in at a hostel
1

The First-Time Backpacking Guide

Picking a route, packing light and the money mistakes that quietly drain a first-trip budget.

Read the guide
 Backpacker walking along a train platform
2

The 3-Month Southeast Asia Route

Route order, pacing and the stops worth your time on a longer trip through the region.

Open the route

Latest guides

Destinations

All destinations
Traveller reading a map in a forest

Southeast Asia

Bali, Philippines, Malaysia, Singapore

Thai temple above limestone hills

Thailand & Vietnam

Thailand, Vietnam, Cambodia, Laos

Japanese city street

Japan & Korea

Japan, South Korea, Taiwan, Hong Kong

Lake below forested mountains

Europe

Greece, Iceland, Portugal, Spain

About this blog

Kiyomizu-dera temple overlooking Kyoto
Kiyomizu-dera, Kyoto

I’m Lee. I started Backpacking Is Life because I like travel advice that helps you make decisions.

Which route makes sense, how many days you really need, whether the cheap option is worth it, and what to sort before you leave.

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