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Find out many of the tips you can use to prevent yourself falling victim to the scams pulled on backpackers.
So you've mapped out your itinerary, bought some comfortable hiking shoes cause you figure you'll be doing a lot of walking, (you're right, you will) and you are now probably scouting the paper for some cheap fares.
Well there is one more thing you have to find out about before you actually head off, and that is "How to avoid the scams pulled on backpackers" (plus, how you can probably pull off one or two of your own)
How do I know?
I have been there. When I did my backpacking trip, I was away for about 14 months and even though I was in my early 30's when I did it, I still got caught by some of the rip offs and scams along the way.
Now it wasn't the first time I had been overseas (I had a 7 day holiday in Asia when I was 22) but it was the first time I had traveled to Europe, UK, USA, and Mexico. And, by myself, all as a backpacker, which meant I was traveling on a budget.
Traveling as a backpacker is completely different from traveling overseas on a short holiday or a short packaged tour holiday, because as a backpacker, you are left to your own devices and most of the time you are on your own (although you will meet up with other travelers from time to time which in itself can also be a dangerous thing sometimes) and because of this you are vulnerable to the crooks and scammers who specialise in preying on backpackers.
Horror stories.
Along my way I heard heaps of horror stories from other backpackers about what had happened to them or to other people they new. Or horror stories that they had heard and were now recounting to me.
Every time I heard these stories I walked away thinking "Well I'd better make sure that doesn't happen to me which made me start to think of ways around certain situations I might encounter (some of which I did.)
Why backpackers are vulnerable to scammers.
The bigger the city, the bigger the population obviously, and the bigger the population the bigger the number of crooks and scammers there are. And the greater the number of crooks and scammers there are, the more creative the scams that they pull need to be.
It's a business for them, it's their stock and trade, so they need volume to make their scams pay off so they go for easy prey. Backpackers. So I hear you say what's so different between backpackers and other tourists?
Well, for starters backpackers have this huge sign on their back saying "Hey I'm a tourist!" Plus the crooks and scammers know that cause of the backpack, chances are this is the first time you've been overseas, so that means you'll be a little bit green, making their job so much easier.
Plus because you are carrying this huge backpack they know that you will have more to offer than the 7 day holiday tourist because the 7 day holiday tourist is only there for 7 days, they will not be carrying as much money as you.
Also because of your backpack the crooks and scammers know that you will also be carrying more saleable items than the 7 day holiday tourist because chances are that you will be staying for probably a minimum of at least 3 months.
How to survive the crooks and scammers.
The key to surviving the crooks and scammers is preparation not only overseas but preparation before you leave. It is this preparation that will have you in a stronger position when faced with a person trying to scam you or rip you off.
Things like scanning your passport and travel documents and then emailing them to yourself so that if you do loose them, you can simply pop into any internet cafe and get them printed out.
One of the most important things you can do in preparation is get the book "How to avoid the scams pulled on backpackers" This 42 page book is not only filled with tips and ideas for backpackers but will let you in on some of the scams you will come across in your backpacking travels and will give you the low down on how to avoid them.
Like on page 39, how to avoid getting your backpack ripped off from the room of the youth hostel you are staying in. I witnessed this 3 times in my 14 months of traveling. On three separate occasions, I stayed in youth hostels where people had their backpacks stolen from our room, and on every occasion they didn't even touch mine.
Even when on one of the occasions there were only two backpacks in the room to choose from, one of them being mine, which was the larger and more expensive of the two backpacks.
Things like this can easily happen in your first week of traveling and believe me it really does wreck your trip, because your backpack becomes your home. It sort of becomes your security blanket cause it is the only stable thing you have whilst traveling that represents some sort of continuity in your life on the road.
Here are just some of the other things you will find in "How to avoid the scams pulled on backpackers" :
- How to travel on trains in Europe for FREE.
- How to get free car hire in the USA.
- How to make up to $5,000 in cash in some Eastern European Countries (and it's not drugs).
- How to stay in youth Hostels for FREE.
- How to sleep safely in a train carriage without getting robbed.
- How to avoid losing all your money and credit cards if you are mugged.
- How to avoid losing your backpack in hostels.
- How to know when you are expected to pay a bribe and what happens if you don't.
- Find out about hitch hiker and taxi scams.
- Why you should never accept help from locals in train stations.
Don't head off on your trip without reading "How to avoid the scams pulled on backpackers" first. You have saved for your trip of a lifetime, so don't take the risk of having it cut short by getting caught by a scam.
Next to your backpack and your hiking shoes this is the best investment you can make before heading off on your trip.
Will you end up a statistic like Rob did?
You don't want to become just another one of the statistics that I came across time and time again in my travels. Like this guy I met in a youth hostel in Chicago USA, his name was Rob, he had come all the way from Liverpool in England on his backpacking adventure.
It was the first time he had been overseas and he had been in Chicago for just week, it was his first port of call, so he had only been out of his home town for one week and already he was forced to book a flight home cause he had fallen victim to some crook who had scammed him big time.
When I met this guy in the youth hostel he was feeling so low and disillusioned cause he had lost everything, all he had was his return ticket home, I felt so sorry for him he barely got a week into his trip and all of a sudden it was over. Don't let this happen to you.
You can protect yourself by ordering "How to avoid the scams pulled on backpackers"
The usual price of "How to avoid the scams pulled on backpackers" is $20 but as a first time special offer you get a 25% discount, you can get "How to avoid the scams pulled on backpackers" for just $15 immediately downloaded directly to your computer in PDF format.
So even if your plane is leaving tomorrow for just $15 you can protect yourself from all the crooks and scammers waiting to prey on a new fresh arrival of backpackers everyday.
Don't let them prey on you!
Don't delay, order now!
Remember if you order now you can take advantage of the first time offered 25% discount.
Get "How to avoid the scams pulled on backpackers" for only $15 instead of the usual $20
Have a safe and wonderful trip.
