I’m Paul Ram from Amsterdam, and GoBackpackGo is my own travel site. I have been writing it since 2013, based on my own trips through 32 countries and more than 1,000 days on the road: backpacking in Asia, road trips in Australia and New Zealand, and long bike tours in Europe. Where I write from my own experience, I say so; where facts come from other sources, I name them and the date I checked.
The short version
- Writing since: 2013
- Travelling Asia since: 2014, including eight months through Southeast Asia in 2023–2024
- Countries visited: 32
- Days on the road: 1,000+ days abroad since 2014
- Lived and worked abroad: in Melbourne, Australia, as a marketing manager
- Cycling: long tours through Europe (Tour du Pisa, Tour du Germany, Tour du Europe)
- Giving back: 3,546 Kiva micro-loans in 83 countries since 2014
Why I write this site
I started GoBackpackGo to share my adventures and, honestly, to improve my English. It grew into a place where I answer the questions I had myself before a trip: how many days you need, how to get from A to B, what it really costs, and where the scams are. For costs I use my own spending, not estimates: on the Asia trip we logged every expense for two people.
How I work, and how this site makes money
- Own experience first. Where I write about a place, I have been there. Where I haven’t, or where facts like prices and rules change, I give the source and the date I last checked.
- Affiliate links. Some links to bookings, eSIMs or car rental are affiliate links: if you book through them I may earn a small commission, at no extra cost to you. Where a local option is better, for example a local SIM card, I say so. Read more on how GoBackpackGo makes money.
- No paid links and no sponsored guest posts. I no longer publish guest posts or sell links.
- Mistakes. English is not my first language and prices change. Spotted an error or something outdated? Let me know and I’ll fix it.
Kiva: giving back while I travel
When I started travelling in Asia in 2014, I wanted to help local people a step further, not just pass through. Since then I add money to Kiva every month, for a micro-loan in the country I am visiting when Kiva has one there. Entrepreneurs and students pay the loans back, and I lend the money out again.
- Every month since October 2014: I add $25, 146 months so far
- Compounding: what borrowers pay back, I lend out again, so a small monthly amount keeps growing and reaches more and more entrepreneurs
- Loans: 3,546 entrepreneurs and students in 83 countries
- Mostly: small shops (34%), food (29%) and farming (18%); more than half in the Philippines
Figures from my Kiva account, October 2026. More on why I support Kiva.
Want to do the same? Start with $25 a month and join Kiva via my invite link.
Working together
I work with local businesses I would recommend to a friend: tour operators, drivers, rentals. Every partnership is marked on the page. Are you a local business in a place I write about? Send me a message.
Besides travelling, I work as an online marketer. More about my online marketing work.
Countries I have travelled
Australia, Austria, Belgium, Cambodia, China, Croatia, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Italy, Laos, Latvia, Lithuania, Macau, Malaysia, Myanmar, New Zealand, Norway, Philippines, Poland, Portugal, Singapore, Slovenia, Spain, Sri Lanka, Sweden, Thailand, United Kingdom, Vietnam.
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Last updated: October 2026.
