Are You Too Old to Backpack Around the World?

Last Updated on August 17, 2021 by Kickass Traveler

Take the Lucky 13 Challenge to Find Out!

Note: I wrote this post before the novel Coronavirus derailed our lives. I hope everyone is healthy and safe. We’ll all be back on the road soon!

For those kickass travelers suffering from wanderlust, I am here to say, “I feel ya.”  We’re supposed to slow down as we get older, right? This begs the question, “Are we too old to backpack around the world?”

Backpacking brings up thoughts of hostels, anti-luggage, and winging it. Does backpacking have to be associated with youth? Can you throw on a backpack and make up the rules day-to-day? Logically, the first step is to buy a backpack and the rest is just walking out the door. Here are the questions you should ask yourself if you think backpacking might be in your future:

The Lucky 13 “Too Old to Backpack” Challenge

Challenge	Points
Are you okay with wearing the same pants four times before laundering?	5
Can you tolerate weak, tepid coffee? (This can be a deal-breaker.)	5
Can you tolerate 3-color wardrobe combinations? (black/tan/gray) (black/white/blue) (blue/black/gray) (black/black/black) and so on…	3
Can you limit your carry-on items to a bag the proportions of a medium-sized dog? (Smaller than a husky but bigger than a dachshund.)	5
Can you carry your bag up 3 flights of stairs without the aid of a sherpa?	5
Are you patient enough for long delays, hurry-up-and-waits, no-shows, mechanical failures, and cancelations, sometimes all in the same day?	7
Can you shrink your toiletries to 1/4 the area of your carry-on?	5
Can you forgive your clothing of offending wrinkles? (No travel irons allowed.)	3
Can you forgo hair color, blowout maintenance, and mani/pedis?	5
Are your souvenirs small enough to fit in a backpack pocket? (I’m talking about a small outside pocket, don’t cheat on this.)	6
Are your knees strong enough to make it up a hill with your worldly goods strapped to your back? (Minor assistance is allowed, and often suggested.)	4
Are you willing to sacrifice fashion over comfort with a limited shoe collection?	5
Can you maintain a sense of humor 85% of the time?	8

Highest possible score – 66 – (like the highway)

Hopefully, this list makes you think about all the issues involved in traveling, but the most important thing is your sense of humor. If you want to travel at any age, fantastic, but if you are traveling at a certain age, let me be the first person to applaud you and your rollie bag, backpack, whatever.

Can you offer your own suggestions for our Lucky 13 List? Click here to contact me.

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Surely you can do better than one of my Lucky 13 gems that didn’t make the list: “Will menopause cause a fight with your seatmate on the bus, plane, car, train, sidewalk…”

And, finally, the answer to, “Are you too old to backpack around the world?” is not yet. Not while you still have the ability to head out the door.