BootsnAll Travel Network teamed up with respected travel writer Rolf Potts to create a community developed statement about the values encompassing independent travel or indie travel as some call it. They encourage travellers to share this manifesto and vote the statements up or down according to what you think is most important. The manifesto is meant to start a discussion, an open dialogue with travellers on what they think indie travel means to them. As they mention on their site, the manifesto wasn’t created to debate what type of travel is best or whether you call yourself a ‘tourist’ or ‘traveller’. I hate labels anyways because travel is a personal experience. The manifesto is meant to help develop ideas about the values that are most important to travellers looking to create meaningful, educational and transformative experiences from travel.
When I found this manifesto, it really resonated with me and my beliefs on travel. Some of these values I already follow (I don’t shop much when I travel, valuing options and experiences over transactions/products), but I am definitely not a light packer. This Indie Travel Manifesto is a great guide for challenging me as a world traveller and hope you find it helpful too! Check out www.indietravel.org for more information.
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