For October our Traveler Spotlight is Neil Alvin Nicerio, the person behind The backpack Adventures, a Google Certified Educator, and he was one of the featured bloggers at Navi 2020 Travel Journal. His blog offers great tips for travelers that you won’t see elsewhere. You can tell Neil is passionate about his blog and loves what he does, which is why his writings are very encouraging and straightforward; and his photography skills are extraordinary. Get to know our Traveler of the Month as he shares with us some of his travel experiences by answering our 5 Travel Questions.

Traveler Spotlight Questions

What made you start traveling?

I have always loved the outdoors. However, what really inspired me were the stories and the travel photos of my late grandfather who had visited 50+ countries when he was a seaman. It made me want to see the world with my own eyes. However, I became a career-oriented individual so my travel dreams were shelved for years so that I could focus on building my career. I was lucky enough to have married my wife who fueled my desire to see the world. It was also this time when I started my travel blog The Backpack Adventures.

What have been some of your favorite destinations?

My favorite destinations are:

1. Atimonan, Quezon – Being my mom’s hometown, I have visited this seaside town numerous times and I could say I have fond memories of almost all tourist locations in it.
2. Kyoto, Japan – This historic city in Japan is my favorite go-to place whenever I want to experience Japan’s history. I have visited this place numerous times and I won’t get tired of revisiting it again in the future.
3. Osaka, Japan – This city is my second home. My Japanese godfather and his family live here. This is the first foreign city that I have visited in my life, with that I could say that it’s also the most memorable of all the Japanese destinations that I have already visited.

If you could travel anywhere in the world tomorrow, where would you go and why?

That would be New Zealand, I’m a big Lord of the Rings fan so I wanted to see its scenic filming locations in the country and probably do some re-enactments of the iconic scenes in the film.

Do you have any advice or tips for aspiring travelers?

Follow your dreams. Traveling is the best activity if you want to collect memories and experience unique cultures. Also, it deepens your respect for other people and their differences.

Please recommend three posts from your blog you’d like people to read (and why).

I would like to recommend the following posts from my blog:

1. http://www.thebackpackadventures.com/p/luzon-adventures.html – This is the compilation of all my articles about the places I visited in the Philippines. It will help you plan your trip to different destinations in the Philippines.
2. http://www.thebackpackadventures.com/p/international.html – This is the compilation of all my articles about the places I visited abroad. It will help you plan your trip to different destinations in the world particularly Japan.
3. http://www.thebackpackadventures.com/p/visayas-adventures.html – This is the compilation of all my road trip and DIY travel articles. It would surely help you planning your own trip to any destination.

How can people find you on the internet/social media?

You can follow and subscribe to my blog – The Backpack Adventures
You can also follow me on Twitter: @NeilNicerio

Traveler Spotlight Pictures

Traveler Spotlight Social Sites
Twitter | Blog

Previous Traveler Spotlight

• Traveler Spotlight: Mia Pascual, Nurse, Mom, and Overall Badass Woman
• Traveler Spotlight: Ellah Abad – Fearless, Independent, and Driven
• Traveler Spotlight – Irish Dunca, Nurse, Discover How To Travel in Style
• Traveler Spotlight – Neil Alvin Nicerio, Discover His Adventures in Japan
• Traveler Spotlight: Laura Childers-Maistros, Sales Engineer , Discover How this Metalhead travels from One State to Another