I have just lived a month of my life that I’ll remember forever. My experience backpacking in Thailand was absolutely fantastic – though drastically different than I expected.
I left beautiful Queenstown, New Zealand, hoping to ‘get away from it all;’ I wanted a place to clear my head, focus on Backpackingmatt.com, and determine what was next. Shortly after arriving in Bangkok, I began meeting fellow travel bloggers who helped to make my experience in Thailand what it was.
About one week ago, I boarded my first of four flights and 45 hours of travel that would land me back in the US of A. Despite two long-haul flights of 14 and 8 hours, it was a surprisingly painless experience (these tips on surviving a long haul flight surely helped). Since arriving back in US, I’ve been catching up with friends & family and readjusting to life in America.
In the coming weeks I’ll be trying to stay warm in Iowa while figuring out the details for the next step in my journey.
Mentions Throughout the Travel Blog Community
This past month saw Backpackingmatt.com mentioned in a couple places throughout the travel blog community:
- Christine Gilbert of AlmostFearless.com included Backpackingmatt.com in The Best of 2010: 100 Inspired Travel Blogs. It’s a great honor as Christine runs one of the best-read travel blogs online. If you’re not following her and her fascinating story, you’re missing out.
- Amanda of Dangerous-Business.com included my recent travel video Exploring Bali in her ‘Best Blogs of the Week‘ post.
- The Never Ending Voyage recently hosted the Gen Y Travel Blog Carnival and selected my First Impressions: Southeast Asia post in the best of the month’s “Travel Stories” category.
Thank You & Your Chance to Win $250
It’s been quite the inaugural year for Backpackingmatt.com; I’ve been truly overwhelmed with the support I’ve recieved from the travel blog community & friends who have followed my journey. Be it a tweet, a comment, a shared beer, or a supportive email, I’ve enjoyed getting to know all of you.
In an effort to thank you for your support in the past 12 months, I’m giving away $250.
This $250 gift comes in two forms.
- First, I’ve teamed up with HotelClub.com, and we’re giving away a $200 voucher that can be used at any of their almost 70,000 accommodation options worldwide.
- Second, I’m going to send you $50 that you can use however you like. I considered an Amazon.com or equivalent voucher, but as many of you are on the road I know cold hard cash is hard to beat.
How to Enter:
- First, simply leave a comment on this post telling us where you’d use your $200 voucher from HotelClub.com.
- Second, tweet this: “Find out how to win $250 at Backpackingmatt.com http://su.pr/3GWLuy (cc: @backpackingmatt)”
- If you’re not on Twitter, simply share the link to this post on your Facebook wall.
You can only enter once, and you have until 11:59pm (Central Standard Time, US) on December 21st, 2010 to do it. The winner will be chosen using Random.org, and then announced on December 22nd.
Thanks again for your support, happy holidays, and good luck!
About HotelClub:
HotelClub is a world leading global accommodation website offering hotel and accommodation bookings for up to 12 months in advance, listing hotels in cities big and small, from grand hotels in NYC to boutique accommodation in Madrid. Established in 1996, HotelClub provides consumers with over 69,000 accommodation choices in over 7,300 cities worldwide throughout 138 countries. HotelClub is a truly global offering with its services available in fourteen languages. The company operates three websites – HotelClub.com, RatesToGo.com and AsiaHotels.com.
Backpacking Matt 
Congrats on your adventures! 🙂
If I win, my workaholic hubby & I will probably blow most of your wonderful voucher on a one-night stay at the AbFab Rhett House Inn in Beaufort, SC! We are, please G-d, going to have a bit of a road trip in January, and the Rhett House is on my “lust list” and our route, and I found it on hotelclub.com! Yay!
I Re-Tweeted too! @elkhorninn : http://twitter.com/#!/elkhorninn/status/16719039850090496
Ah Thailand. Too bad our paths never crossed, but Thailand was lovely, eh?
If I won the $200 voucher, I would use it on my planned first-ever trip to Europe next year. I’ve never left Asia – or Southeast Asia, for that matter – and next year is the year to check out another continent.
Also, I tweeted (I’m @hyperren). 😀
Hi Matt, thanks for your help in the past. If I won I’d use the money to treat my girlfriend 🙂
Have a great Xmas!
Hey Matt,
I’ve definitely enjoyed reading about your adventures over the last couple of months and am looking forward to seeing what you get into next!
If I won the $200 voucher it would come in handy for me to get in some extra destinations as I finish my time in Europe. Otherwise, I would save it so that my boyfriend and I had one less things to worry about when we finally plan our trip to the US in the summer (his first time there!).
Hiya Matt! Happy Holidays to you in the States. I would use the voucher for the visa run I made need to make–South Island, NZ. Cheers!
Congratulations on your mentions and completing the trip!
I’d use a voucher to visit Los Angeles before my trip to work in Italy or use it in Switzerland pre-Italy 🙂
A comment on this post!
I would use the voucher for my honeymoon in Spain! We’re planning to go next summer throughout Southern Spain, but haven’t booked any accommodations yet!
I really need this for our upcoming trip Europe. Wife won’t let me stay in Venice, Italy. Too expensive. My favorite poet and hero Ezra Pound is memorialized there. I would really mean a lot to pay a visit and offer my tribute.
Pick us random number gods!
While I can’t leave a new backpackers hostel on its own for too long, I’d use the voucher to slip out of Cusco for a few days to the Sacred Valley, switch off my phone for a few precious hours each day, and take a very, very deep breath. Oh, and get about a million massages.
Hiya Matt,
Happy Birthday!
I’d use the voucher to book various accomodations around vietnam/laos or the phillipines…the next destinations i’ve set my eyes on for excurisions in SE asia 🙂
Hope all’s well and u have a fab 27th!
Congrats on your inaugural year!
I would use the $200 voucher for my 2011 trip to Buenos Aires, where I plan to learn the tango, live it up in the nightlife and hike to the Iguazu Falls.
In Central America this January -February… Be nice to come out of the jungle and treat myself.
Stay Adventurous, Craig
I would spend the voucher in Auckland when I’m going there mid of January. Thanks Matt!!