Hyped after boarding down Volcán Cerro Negro in Nicaragua
Welcome to the Surprising Backpackers
Hi, I’m Gillian, married to Graham.
We are both from Northern Ireland and live in England.
We retired in our late 50’s to go backpacking and stay in hostels for the first time but we have also slept on boats, buses, trains, planes, a bamboo tree house, homestays, a former prison, temples and even some luxury hotels.
We have loved exploring the world and for me it feels like I have truly come alive. Having received many requests for our itineraries and experiences, we started this travel blog to share them more widely. So now I write, Graham navigates and we both plan and photograph.
Bitten by the Travel Bug
Our thirst for travel started much earlier, when we took our 3 young children on a 3-week USA road trip through Arizona, Nevada, Utah and California.
That was our first independent trip, planned with military precision on a spreadsheet so that no more than 2 hours were spent in the car at a time. It was not easy to get information, back in the days of dial up internet in the early noughties.
Every year we took a big trip. We went to Iceland, Namibia, South Africa, Tanzania, Canada, Seychelles, Hawaii, USA and many places in Europe. After their studies, our children each took gap years and travelled while we went to work as usual and waited impatiently for our turn. We were planning a 6 month sabbatical to South America when the Covid-19 pandemic changed the world and our attitudes. In 2022 we both took early retirement specifically to go travelling while we both had our health and energy.
Together we had been to over 60 countries but only for a couple of weeks at a time. After listening to our children’s advice on how to pack a rucksack we flew to Mexico for 2 months. It seemed so long. Graham was excited but I was anxious about everything – staying in hostels, travelling around Mexico, safety, backpacking, speaking Spanish, being away for 2 months and even being together non-stop. We had no idea how we would manage being in each other’s company for every single minute for 60 days. We had heard stories of other relationships being strained when they retire and spend more time together but fortunately for us it was the opposite. Our bond was strengthened.
Covered in paint powder from Holi Festival on Andaman Islands, India
What We Learnt Staying in Hostels
We already knew we liked nature, food and travel but at our age we were too accustomed to our own space to stay in dorms. Then we discovered private rooms in hostels for the first time in our late 50’s and that was a game changer for us giving us the perfect balance we sought and without the late night and early morning disturbances that are so common in dorms. There is nothing as refreshing as a good night’s sleep.
We welcomed the social side, the advice and information from the hostels and fellow travellers. The experiences they offered were more intense, the activities more adventurous and we liked it.
Often things were not as we expected and we learned how much our view of the world is shaped by the media.
So we started spending more time in each place getting to know the people and their stories and tried to learn more about the culture. We went to local festivals, asked the tuk-tuk drivers where they ate and sought out the places few tourists go. We ate local food and enrolled in cooking classes, sometimes in the chef’s home.
Some of our best days were when we had nothing particular planned and we bumped into someone in a cafe and then spent hours hearing about their lives. It has been fascinating.
Facing my fears zip-lining over waterfalls in Mexico
Facing Fears
Graham had always been adventurous, but now I was willing to step outside my comfort zone and try new things. My 18-year-old self would be flabbergasted at the things I have achieved and to be honest I am surprised that I have done them.
I have realised that I am capable of so much more than I thought. I used to think work was my biggest restriction on travel but actually it was me, limiting myself. Now, I try to throw myself into the experience and fully live it in the moment and have found it to be so much more fun.
For me it has been empowering to face my fears. I have an endless list of challenges with my fear of heights and speed. Confronting them I feel liberated, more alive and to my surprise I have become calmer.
Inspired by our daughter, my mantra was ‘If she could do it, then so can I’ after our petite daughter travelled solo around South America safely for months.
After Rainbow Mountain, Peru we hiked across to Red Valley for even better views and no crowds
Becoming the Surprising Backpackers
On our travels, we surprised ourselves, exceeding our own expectations and those of others. We hiked Machu Pichu, Rainbow Mountain, Laguna 69 and the Red Valley in Peru, danced all night at the Treehouse Party in Nicaragua and were covered in the volcanic ash of El Fuego in Guatemala.
Younger travellers sought us for advice and wanted to follow our travels. ‘I wish my parents were doing what you are doing’ was a regular comment along with ‘I hope I’m still travelling like you when I’m your age.’ We were asked to record inspiring messages for their parents.
Since retiring we have tried to focus on physically demanding travels including a lot of hiking, which we have found very meditative. Together we have since been to Mexico, Galapagos, Ecuador, Peru, Bolivia, Chile, Argentina, India, France, Hungary, Guatemala, El Salvador, Honduras, Nicaragua, Austria, Thailand, Laos, Italy, South Korea, Japan and The Philippines
…and Graham also squeezed in several golf trips to Portugal and Turkey with his golf buddies.
We want to continue exploring and having fun for as long as we can, sharing our travels and insights with you. Our daughter gave us the confidence to go on our first backpacking trip by providing us with her itinerary and tips, for which we are grateful. Now we are doing the same for you.
Translating my menu for this Japanese feast on the Kumano Kodo pilgrimage hike
The Goal of the Surprising Backpackers
Our goal is to inspire you to be open and curious. To give you the confidence and information to reach a little further, step out of your comfort zone and feel the wonder and excitement of the world and new experiences. Whether that’s trying a new food, a different kind of dance, or visiting a new place. There is so much to see and do.
You might surprise yourself. What do you want to do next? Not sure? Maybe we can give you a few ideas.
Never miss an Adventure!
Snorkel with sea lions, penguins and flightless cormorants in Galapagos, Ecuador
Dance till you drop at the Half Moon Party Koh Phangan, Thailand