If you feel like discovering the world without damaging it, and without feeding the capitalist system, here are few tips that you can use (thanks to internet):
To move:
- Hitchhike and use hitchwiki.com
If you are afraid, here is my advice: don't be afraid! Even if you are a young girl traveling alone. If you follow your intuition and are not shy saying "no", hitchhiking is not more dangerous than being in a train (there will always be people who grab stuff, but that's not a reason to stop traveling).
- BIKE. That's for sure my favorite way of travelling. You are free. You are INTO the landscapes. You go faster than walking, and enough slow to appreciate where you are, and the real distances between places. You are not polluting. You are healthy. You have enough hunger to eat A LOT of the typical nice dishes of the region.
- Hiking. Walking with a big bag can be awesome. And you have the advantage to not carry too much things with you, so you are liberated from any material issue.
To sleep:
- Couchsurfing.com is an amazing site to sleep at locals for free. Just be nice and don't consider it as a free hostel.
- Warmshowers.com is the same concept, made for bike travelers. Nice community
- Just grab a tent or a hammock. The app Ioverlander gives good advices for spot where you can wild camp without problem. Don't forget to leave places as they were before, and to clean them if there are some garbages.
To eat:
- Have you ever try dumpster diving? Yes, it means eating food from the trash. But you could be so surprise about how good this food can be. And you avoid creating more waste.
- Do woofing or helpx. For few hours of work a day, you get free meals and accommodation, plus amazing expériences, meetings... I learned so much by using those sites !
- Avoid chains, buy local food. It will be better for the taste, your travel discoveries and environment.
Just go and you will see how much possibilities will open to you !
Gabrielle
Hello - great concept and good idea to link in other sites. Have you tried and tested them all?
Tell me the HItchwiki link takes me to a blog about Alfred HItchcock...I'm guessing this is not intentional since he is the master of creep and I'm not sure this would encourage people to hitchhike.
Hitchhiking is an interesting subject because in the UK it is very rare. People feel that it is far too dangerous. However, in the south of France, particularly in the Cévenes, everyone does it, mainly because there is little public transport so if you need to get somewhere in a hurry hitchhiking is often the most pratical way. Two of my favourite safe hitchhiking tips are…