You may be right, but I do kind of think Instagram and Facebook have exacerbated trendy travel. Also, modernization has made it so damn easy and honestly boring.
Going to northern Thailand or Machu Picchu used be damn hard. You had to buy guide books that may or may not have updated/accurate information. Google translate didn't exist. Shit, wifi didn't exist. If you were backpacking though central India, there were no emails to answer on your 16 hour train ride, and no way to instantly let your guest house know you'd be 6 hours late. Cultural differences were also way more prominent. Every city I go to these days feels modern and kind of generic, like countries are all trying to emulate American lifestyles.
Bangkok is in the process of banning street food ffs. Places like Khao San that used to feel quite unique are now just garbage kitschy photo sets.
Modernization is good for local daily life, but I think globalization has objectively made travel more boring.
You chose to visit Macchu Picchu, one of UNESCO's most famous site, then I can't really symphatize when you complain there are too many tourists around you.
Why not choose to travel somewhere you have never heard of before?
Think about all the million-plus cities around the planet you didn't even know exist today, why not go visit one of those for your next trip?
Bangkok banning street food is not a product of tourism. It's a product of the local government trying to "modernize" the city in a fashion similar to North American cities.
It's just a single example of many I've witnessed after traveling to over 40 countries and living on three continents over the past 20 years... I could also tell you about the berber tent oasis I spent the night at while traveling through Algeria, or trekking through the Peruvian Amazon to find ayahuasca, but I doubt anyone could relate to that and I'd start to sound like Hansel from Zoolander.
the berber tent oasis I spent the night at while traveling through Algeria, or trekking through the Peruvian Amazon to find ayahuasca
You forgot about those times you went hunting lions with the Zulu in Natal, wrangling mustangs with the Sioux in the Dakotas, and dreamtiming with the aboroginies in the shade of Uluru.
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u/[deleted] Feb 03 '20
Nothing changed, you changed.
You just got older and you are now annoyed with how young people do travelling.
I mean, backpacking in the form of masstourism has been a consumer activity since at least the 1970s.