Backpacker tourism and economic development

International tourism is often perceived by LDC (Less Developed Country) government tourism planners as an engine of economic growth, but the focus is commonly upon mass tourism while ignoring the subsector of backpacker tourism. The case study of Gill Trawangan island in Lombok, eastern Indonesia, indicates that the encouragement of backpacker tourism may alleviate some of the excesses of international mass tourism. Backpacker tourism is compared with conventional mass tourism, discussing the leakage of foreign exchange earnings, issues of local control, ownership and participation, and the political economy of who gains or loses from tourism in less developed countries. (C) 1998 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.