Two Generations of Backpackers. Identifying the Multisectional Structures of Backpacking Tourism Participants in Poland

Backpacking is still an unrecognised issue in Poland. A survey research performed in years 2013–2014 was to identify the demographic profile of the Polish backpackers. The representative group was chosen with the purposive sampling method. The identity and demographic criteria were assumed basic for the selection. The respondents were 100 representatives aged 18–25 years and 100 people aged 60–75. A survey questionnaire was applied to identify and describe the multilayer structures of the backpacking movement in Poland. The paper presents results reflecting the sociodemographic aspects of the Polish backpacker tourism among the young and elderly generations

Tożsamość współczesnego backpackera – między kontrkulturowością a indywidualizmem

Many scholars attempt at identifying and defining the nature of backpacking by describing the sociodemographic profile of the backpackers; others search for awareness-related components connected with the backpackers’ need of self-fulfillment and self-determination. In the following article, the profile of a backpacker has been reconstructed on the basis of self-portraits of those travelers who call themselves backpackers. The addressed research question was: Who is a backpacker? The analysis was based on the level of awareness of travelers practicing this particular type of tourism. Field studies have been conducted in Australia, Indonesia, United Arab Emirates, Poland, and Thailand; the study group consisted of 290 backpackers. The image emerging from the collected self-definitions allowed to formulate a different (new) approach to the identity of a contemporary backpacker, shaped by their lifestyle, which stands in opposition to the mainstream consumer culture as it is based on counterculture and individualism

Millennial backpackers and risks in travel: a typological approach

In the research undertaken, the analysis categorised risk in the experience of the millennial generation of backpackers. An attempt was made to systematise it on the basis of the cognitive as well as emotional characteristics presented by the respondents. The research was conducted between 2018-2020. A non-random selection was used to acquire respondents called snowball sampling. 409 Polish millennial backpackers were found and interviewed online, and from this code keys were then extracted, assigned to meaningful categories, and thematic ranges were defined. The analysis of the collected qualitative material was used to establish a typology of risk for millennial backpacking. Analysis of the collected material on backpacking allowed five coded risk categories to be extracted. The first one was the backpacker's attitude towards travel; the second a search for autonomy and independence; the third selective calculation in terms of ‘profit and loss’, the balance determining behaviour; the fourth connected with the emotional needs of backpackers and the search for impressions; the fifth with external conditions involving risk related to environmental and cultural features of the reception area. Typological systematization of risk in backpacking allows the needs of this groups of travellers to be understood and service provision to be adapted to the requirements of a particular generation

Backpackerzy z pokolenia milenialsów o ryzyku związanym z podróżowaniem: ujęcie typologiczne

Na potrzeby niniejszego artykułu analizie poznawczej poddano kategoryzację ryzyka wpisanego w doświadczenia podróżnicze backpackerów z pokolenia milenialsów. Podjęto także próbę jego usystematyzowania na bazie poznawczych, a także emocjonalnych wyróżników przedstawionych przez respondentów. Badania przeprowadzono w latach 2018–2020. W celu pozyskania respondentów posłużono się nielosowym doborem próby, zwanym metodą kuli śnieżnej (ang. snowball sampling). Badaniami objęto 409 backpackerów z pokolenia polskich milenialsów. Przeprowadzono z nimi pogłębione wywiady online, z których następnie wyodrębniono klucze kodowe, przypisano je bardziej znaczącym kategoriom oraz dookreślono zakresy tematyczne. Analiza zebranego materiału jakościowego posłużyła do podjęcia próby typologii ryzyka związanego z backpackingiem milenialsów i pozwoliła na wyodrębnienie pięciu jego zakodowanych kategorii. Pierwsza zawiera się w backpackerskiej postawie wobec podróży. Druga wpisana jest w poszukiwanie autonomii i niezależności. Trzecia (kalkulacja selektywna) wynika z zachowań adaptacyjnych, związanych z rachunkiem zysków i strat. Czwarta kategoria jest powiązana z potrzebami emocjonalnymi backpackerów i poszukiwaniem wrażeń. Z kolei ostatnia wiąże ryzyko z warunkami środowiskowymi oraz cechami kulturowymi obszaru recepcyjnego. Usystematyzowanie typologiczne ryzyka w backpackingu pozwala zrozumieć potrzeby tej grupy osób podróżujących i dostosować świadczone usługi do wymagań konkretnego pokolenia

Mountaineering in Wroclaw young inhabitants awareness and strategic models of Lower Silesian subregions managing

Background. Lower Silesia is an unique region because of the relief and other features that promote the mountaineering. Using the wealth of mountains chains and directing them towards the tourism and recreation can affect the economic development of the whole province. For this purpose e. g. the tourist field managing strategies were created for all regions of Lower Silesia. For mountaineering the most important are: Karkonosze Mountains, Izery Mountains, Ślęża Mountain, Sowia Mountain Subregion, Kaczawy Foothills, Wałbrzych Area Sudety. There is an emphasis in the strategic models to obtain the so-called ‘local’ tourists from Wroclaw Agglomeration. Material and methods. There were the questions put in the research that concerned Wroclaw inhabitants’ interest in mountaineering and in their activity in Lower Silesian mountains. There were some questions checking the knowledge concerning wealthy of mountains in Lower Silesia. People in age 18–30, registered in Wroclaw were the respondents. For this research the questionnaire was used and conducted directly in four contact places in Wroclaw. Conclusions. The research results let point that it is necessary for enhancement promotion activities included in regional strategies to direct young people activity towards the values connected with physical culture in the mountains environment. A young Lower Silesia capital city inhabitant is not interested in the regional tourist product. Only 8% of the examined cultivates the mountaineering but not in Lower Silesia mountain chains. The lack of interest in mountains is connected with the low level knowledge of the rich qualities of Lower Silesia. The obligate changes must be done in a youth hierarchy of value and creating it by e.g. Lower Silesian mountaineering ‘style’

The language of persuasive interactions used in Lower Silesian tourist advertisements

To be effective and efficient every advertisement promoting a tourism product must use, as any other commercial advertising, a variety of methods affecting the imagination and emotions of potential customers either through verbal persuasion or visual amplification of information. In terms of language effects, rhetoric offers a wide range of persuasive methods. It proposes such constructions and verbal patterns that allow effective stimulation of associations. For example, rhetorical figures, which are able to overcome unfavorable conditions for an advertising message to get through, e.g. the restriction of space and time, intensified informational noise or unilateral communication barriers. A conscious and deliberate choice of appropriate forms and linguistic structures largely determines the level of interest and involvement of potential customers. This paper presents and discusses the utilization manner and effectiveness of some language persuasion methods used in leaflets, brochures, pamphlets and mini guides in which the region of Lower Silesia is promoted. The paper analyses forty advertisements prepared and published by municipal offices using the European Structural Funds. The research material is rich and varied while the language persuasion methods seem to be a weak point of the promotion of Lower Silesi

Czynniki podejmowania zachowań ryzykownych w turystyce backpackerskiej

Risk is an inseparable attribute of backpacking travels and their distinguishing feature against forms of mass tourism. The risk typical of this type of traveling includes, among others, risky behaviors resulting from traveling to regions which are distant geographically, culturally, climatically, and environmentally; engaging in extreme and dangerous behaviors. Numerous academic centers carry out research allowing not only to know the backpackers’ approach to risk, but also the scale of their engagement in risky behaviors and the reasons for it. In the following article, the results of such research have been presented. A thorough analysis thereof allowed to identify more fully the risk involved in backpacking, and to define more precisely the factors governing the risks undertaken by backpackers on their long journeys.Ryzyko jest nieodłącznym atrybutem podróży backpackerskich i wyróżnikiem wobec turystyki masowej. Do grupy ryzyka, charakterystycznego dla tego typu podróżowania, zalicza się m.in. ryzykowne zachowania wynikające m.in. z podróżowania po odległych geograficznie, kulturowo, klimatycznie i przyrodniczo rejonach świata, podejmowanie ekstremalnych i niebezpiecznych zachowań. W różnorodnych ośrodkach naukowych na świecie prowadzone są badania pozwalające poznać nie tylko stosunek backpackerów do ryzyka, lecz także skalę ich zaangażowania w działania ryzykowne oraz przyczyny podejmowania zachowań ryzykownych. W niniejszym artykule zostały przedstawione wyniki tych badań zostały. Ich szczegółowa analiza pozwoliła na pełniejszą identyfikację ryzyka w backpackingu oraz na dookreślenie czynników podejmowania przez backpackerów zachowań ryzykownych w trakcie odbywania przez nich dalekich podróży

Hostels for backpackers. An example of Australian accommodation service

expectations of its customers. In the last quarter of the 20th century there was an increased interest in individual low-cost journeys, which meant an increased demand for cheap accommodation. Thus, especially in Asia and Australia, a vast variety of accommodation facilities were created to meet the needs of a new type of tourist – a backpacker. Material and methods. This article describes an synchronous and diachronic view of the innovative changes made to the former tourist dormitory-type, ways of adapting the market expectations of hotel services to the changing needs of the consumer segment. Conclusions. Implemented innovations primarily helped to develop the competitiveness of the services and strengthen the local economy, associated with backpackers destination

Backpacking and two generations of tourists – introduction to research theory

Background. Backpacking is a relatively new type of travelling (its existence dates back to the 90s of the 20th century). According to the indications of foreign researchers of the issue, it has evolved from drifting, and according to Polish theorists – from tramping. From the very beginning, backpacking has been identified with a generation of young people, mostly students, who have temporary resources or employment status and are not conditioned with family responsibilities. The definition of this alternative mode of travelling was established on the basis of research and analysis of canon characteristics of backpackers. Material and methods. Some essential features relevant only to backpacking are classified in the paper. However, backpacking is changing together with the changing generations. Therefore, the research presents reflections on backpacking definitions formulated by two generations of tourists (backpackers youth: aged 18–25 years, and seniors: aged 60–75 years). The study should be treated as a survey, supporting the diagnosis of the problem and preparing the ground for research on a wider scale. A questionnaire survey was conducted among 100 people aged between the so-called young backpackers (50 respondents) and senior backpackers (50 respondents). The technique of a diagnostic questionnaire was used. Conclusion. The results obtained allowed to establish backpacker definitional characteristics, as perceived in the context of the travelling experience of two generations of travellers

Evaluation of backpacker-oriented advertising materials published in Australia and Poland

Background. Backpacking is a relatively new way of travelling (dates back to the 1990s). Therefore academic interest in backpacker tourism has grown since the beginning of the 21st century. In Australia the sector dedicated to the needs and expectations of one of the Australian tourism pillars, i.e. backpacking, operates very effectively. Among the available proposals there are mainly offers made by hostels, travel agencies, clubs or recreation places. In Poland, however, what is advertised are activities that are offered, e.g. hiking, skiing, agro-tourism or culture-oriented tourism and particular tourism products, e.g. theme trails dedicated to e.g. backpackers. Folders, brochures and leaflets remain the most frequent means of advertising. The aim of the article is to evaluate the advertising materials affecting the induction of response desired by the target audience – backpackers. Material and methods. Expert evaluation method was used to analyze the advertising materials available in the years 2014–2015. Results and conclusion. The analysis and evaluation of selected publications allowed observing the most important similarities and differences in selection methods and the level of application of crucial elements by Australian and Polish publishers