5 Best Backpacking Magazines For Budget Travelers That Make Big Trips Possible

Dreaming of a thru-hike on the Appalachian Trail or a week in the Rockies can feel financially out of reach when high-end gear costs thousands. But the biggest barrier to adventure isn’t your bank account; it’s your knowledge base. The right magazines are more than just glossy pages—they are affordable masterclasses in gear, skills, and destinations that unlock the world’s wild places on a shoestring budget.

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How Print Magazines Unlock Affordable Adventures

In an era of endless blogs and YouTube reviews, a well-curated print magazine offers something invaluable: expertise and focus. Instead of wading through sponsored content and conflicting opinions, you get distilled wisdom from seasoned professionals. For the budget traveler, this is a critical tool for avoiding costly mistakes. One bad recommendation for a $400 tent can derail an entire season’s adventure fund.

Magazines serve as a filter, separating the genuinely innovative from the merely trendy. They teach you the why behind the gear, so you can identify a high-value, durable shelter, not just the lightest or most expensive one. More importantly, they build your skillset. Articles on map navigation, backcountry cooking, and gear repair empower you to be self-sufficient, reducing the need for expensive guided services or frequent equipment replacement. A single $20 annual subscription can easily save you hundreds by helping you buy the right gear the first time and keep it running for years.

Backpacker Magazine: For Thrifty Gear Guides

Think you’re setting up for a rainy three-day trip in the Pacific Northwest. You need a rain jacket that works, but you can’t afford the top-of-the-line $500 shell. This is where Backpacker Magazine becomes your most trusted trail partner. While known for its comprehensive annual Gear Guide, the real budget gold is found by looking for their "Editors’ Choice Gold" and "Best Buy" awards. The Gold awards highlight gear that has proven its worth over years of testing, and older models are often available at a steep discount.

The "Best Buy" award is even more direct, pointing you to products that deliver exceptional performance for their price. These aren’t cheap knockoffs; they are intelligently designed pieces that make smart compromises, like using a slightly heavier but more durable fabric to keep costs down. Beyond reviews, Backpacker‘s skills section is a money-saving clinic. Learning how to properly patch a sleeping pad or re-apply a jacket’s water-repellent coating extends the life of your most critical gear, keeping your money in your pocket for the trip itself.

Outside: Big Adventure Ideas on a Small Budget

The single biggest expense of any major trip is often getting there. A flight to Patagonia or the Alps can cost more than your entire gear kit. Outside magazine excels at widening your definition of "big adventure" to include incredible destinations that are closer, cheaper, and less crowded. It inspires you to think beyond the famous national parks and international hotspots.

You might pick up an issue and read about a stunning bikepacking route through a national forest just one state over, or a feature on the best off-season hikes in a region you thought was too expensive. Outside provides the spark, showing you that a world-class experience doesn’t require a trans-continental flight. By showcasing diverse activities and under-the-radar locales, it helps you design trips that maximize adventure while minimizing travel costs and permit fees. This shift in perspective is often the key to turning a dream trip into a reality.

Backpacking Light: The Minimalist Money-Saver

At first glance, a publication focused on ultralight backpacking seems like an odd choice for a budget-conscious adventurer, as specialist UL gear can be notoriously expensive. But the core philosophy of Backpacking Light is the ultimate financial hack: the cheapest and lightest piece of gear is the one you don’t bring. This magazine is less about buying specific products and more about adopting a minimalist system.

Backpacking Light dives deep into the skills that make minimalism possible. You’ll learn how a simple, inexpensive flat tarp can replace a heavy, costly tent in many conditions. You’ll discover how to make a sub-1-ounce alcohol stove that costs pennies, freeing you from buying expensive fuel canisters. By focusing on multi-use items and shedding redundancies, you fundamentally reduce the amount of gear you need to buy, carry, and maintain. This is advanced-level thinking that pays dividends for beginners and experts alike.

The Great Outdoors: UK Skills for Frugal Treks

For those planning trips in consistently wet and challenging environments, like Scotland or the Pacific Northwest, the UK-based The Great Outdoors (TGO) offers an invaluable perspective. British hillwalking culture was forged in damp, boggy, and unpredictable conditions, breeding a focus on practical skills and bombproof durability over chasing the absolute lowest weight. This emphasis on self-reliance is a massive boon for the budget traveler.

TGO is packed with articles on navigation in poor visibility, managing gear in constant rain, and understanding mountain weather—skills that build the confidence to plan your own trips instead of paying for a guide. Their gear reviews often highlight robust, no-nonsense equipment from European brands that offer fantastic value. They champion gear that lasts, which is always the most frugal choice in the long run. Reading TGO prepares you for the worst conditions, ensuring your gear and skills are up to the task, preventing a trip-ending failure that could cost you far more than the price of a subscription.

Adventure Journal: Prioritizing Experience, Not Gear

Sometimes the biggest barrier to a budget trip is the mindset that you need a perfect, Instagram-worthy gear kit to even start. Adventure Journal is the antidote to this gear-obsessed culture. It is a beautifully crafted quarterly publication that prioritizes story, photography, and the soul of adventure over product reviews and "Top 10" lists.

Reading Adventure Journal is a powerful reminder of why we go outside. The stories feature people having profound experiences with imperfect, well-used, and sometimes cobbled-together gear. It shifts your focus from acquiring more stuff to appreciating the experience itself. This perspective is liberating for a budget traveler. It gives you permission to use the tent you already have, to repair your old backpack, and to find adventure in your own backyard. It proves that the quality of an adventure is measured in memories, not in the price tags of your equipment.

Finding Budget Gold in Any Outdoor Magazine

No matter which magazine you pick up, you can use it as a tool for saving money if you know how to read it. Instead of just looking at the shiny new gear, apply a budget-focused lens to every section. This strategy turns any publication into a resource for affordable travel.

• Read the skills sections first. Learning to tie essential knots, repair a zipper, or purify water without a filter saves you money and makes you a more competent backpacker. Competence is free.
• Hunt for last year’s award-winners. The "Gear of the Year" from two years ago is often on clearance, yet it’s still a fantastic piece of equipment that was celebrated by experts.
• Focus on "Best Buy" and "Value" picks. Let the editors do the hard work. They’ve tested dozens of items to find the one that offers 90% of the performance for 50% of the price.
• Study trip reports for logistics. Pay attention to how authors managed food resupplies, transportation to trailheads, and permits. These details often contain hidden tips for cutting costs on your own journey.

Your Next Affordable Adventure Starts Here

The path to a big trip doesn’t start in a gear shop; it starts with a plan. Magazines are one of the most cost-effective investments you can make in your outdoor education. They provide the inspiration for the destination, the knowledge to choose the right affordable gear, and the skills to use it safely and effectively.

Stop letting a limited budget hold you back from the wild places you want to see. The most important gear you’ll ever own is the knowledge between your ears. By learning from the collective wisdom of experts, you can buy less, buy smarter, and build the confidence to turn that dream trek into a well-worn path under your feet.

Ultimately, these magazines teach a single, powerful lesson: competence and confidence are the true currency of adventure, allowing you to do more with less.