The Next Backpacker Hotspot: The Middle East?

I was struck by this comment from a reader about a recent blog concerning the tour company Contiki starting in South-East Asia: “In the words of the great T.V show…
Goodbye, Farewell and Amen.  I am so glad i have already been.  Although I think it will spark the next great backpacker destination.  The Middle East maybe.  * Posted by: Stu on September 10, 2008 11:56 AM”

I wasn’t concerned so much about the good, bad or indifference about Contiki, but rather in a World more accessible than ever where will be the next cool, hip, and eventually well-trodden ’secret’ destination for backpackers? Indeed, will it be the Middle East?

Maybe you like me have been around long enough to see and enjoy the opportunities of travelling in what was called ‘Eastern Europe’ before budget airlines started sending every man, woman and screaming child to places they couldn’t pronounce for cheap holidays.

Maybe you’ve plodded through South-East Asia at your own pace before accommodation was called hostels there and all served banana pancakes as if it was the authentic staple food in each country.

I never made it to South America before or even after seemingly every single friend of mine recounted how amazing Machu Picchu was and how good their Spanish language skills were.

I did roam through India sheltering in places recommended by the Lonely Planet before going to internet cafes to tell my friends about the burning bodies I’d seen and to complain about the pollution like everyone else.  I can only say thanks to the Maoists for keeping less fool hardy travellers from some of the places I visited in Nepal.

So where’s going to be the next place to twitter uncontrollably via your Facebook site about?

The Guardian newspaper in this article suggests Northern Iraq aka Kurdistan might just be the place. Certainly makes sense along with Iran and Syria to avoid the crowds and feel special. No one else will know you weren’t dodging bullets. So maybe ‘Stu’ is onto something.

I’m hopeful ‘the Stans’ will have better exposure.  China has been on everyone’s lips for a while but nearby Turkmenistan, Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan seem ripe for a tourist invasion if the Russians can hold off.

Africa.  Now the Olympics are over, no doubt every Gap Year kid will consider a jaunt through Southern Africa in the footsteps of Wills and Harry, timed perfectly with a few pints at the 2010 Football World Cup football.

I’m thinking Rwanda, Congo, Mozambique and Uganda will attract alot more press as the more discerning African choice.  Far enough away from a civil war but close enough to relatively recent upheaval.

Maybe it’s just a case of staying from the trend spotting/promoting Lonely Planet Blue List each year and taking your own road less travelled.  Dam, I’ve realised LP already suggests Mozambique is a go-to place for 2008.

Your turn
Where do you think will be the latest hotspot? Where are your friends talking about going?

Thumbnail image provided courtesy of Joe Loe’s photos on Flickr