Searching for Authenticity in Gendered Touristic Experience

This book examines the ways in which female backpackers search for authenticity during their travels throughout Australia. Qualitative methods, using participant observation and open ended, in-depth interviewing techniques, were used for the generation of insights and theory from the data. The study explores salient issues related to undergoing the 'real' or 'true' experience while travelling Australia. Current research, for the most part, is conducted mostly in capital city settings. It is apparent that backpackers travel for longer than other tourists. They show a pre-occupation with their budget while travelling and travel more widely than other tourists. They differ from tourists because they eschew packaged tourist products but, infrequently and selectively, succumb to the packaged tour. Backpackers also create or use existing networks of support throughout their journeys. This book is well suited to studies in tourism, gender, sociology and grounded theory studies.