New Zealand travel tip — never underestimate the beauty of an impending storm. NZ is known for its many climates and its ever-changing weather…

“Do you have a vegetarian option?” As someone who doesn’t eat red meat or pork and dates a straight-up vegetarian, I’ve heard a range of laughable responses to this question — everything from:
“Yes, we have fish” to “Just take the ham off.” Sigh. If you’re tired of dealing with similar confusion from servers who think that vegetarian means that if the meat’s white, it’s alright, try these tips for actually finding food you can eat on the road.

If you told me in November of 2009 when I moved to New Zealand that I would still be here 18 months later, I’d tell you that you were mad. It’s certainly not how I envisioned things going; yet, as I’ve learned in the last year – things don’t always go as planned. A mate [...]

If you’re considering a RTW trip or perhaps a working holiday abroad, you’ll have heaps of things to consider when planning your life changing trip. Flights, visas, trip itineraries and … health insurance. Arguably not the most exciting aspect of planning a trip, yet going prepared could save you literally $1,000s in medical expenses. Lauren provides some fantastic tips to get you started in the post below.

Consider these tips for planning health insurance while traveling abroad:

The Land of the Long White Cloud is a destination well worn onto the backpacker trail. And for all the right reasons. An epic combination of stunning scenery, adventure sports, and friendly locals combine to make one hell of a place to travel to. Not only is New Zealand beautiful, New Zealand is easy to [...]

Today’s Friday Travel Photo was submitted by fellow expat and traveler seeing the world through working holidays, Christine of C’estChristine.com. If you’d like your photo featured in this not-quite-weekly feature, please contact me. Melbourne has gotten used to Sydney stealing its thunder. While Melbourne was once the largest and most prominent city in Australia, Sydney [...]

A trip to New Zealand isn’t complete without taking in one of the many fantastic wineries scattered throughout the North & South Islands. This fantastic guest post nails out 5 must-see wineries for your trip to Aotearoa. Recently New Zealand was shaken by the Canterbury earthquake but fear not, this Land of the Long White [...]

At 12:51 PM on February 22nd, the earth roared and the entire South Island of New Zealand rumbled. I was sitting at my desk in Queenstown – some 500 kms away from the Garden City of Christchurch – and as I looked out on our balcony overlooking The Remarkabes, I saw my mountain bike shake [...]

If you’re considering a backpacking trip around the world, you should be writing a travel blog. One thing to remember is you won’t be alone. The travel blogosphere is vast and growing daily. There are heaps of reasons why you – and literally hundreds of other people – write travel blogs. You meet fantastic people [...]

2011 is going to be a banner year here at Backpackingmatt.com. As I explained in my January Update, I have a number of exciting initiatives planned in the coming months. Each of these will ultimately result in a travel blog that is more beneficial to you – the budget conscious traveler or backpacker. I’ve spent [...]