Best 17 Backpacker Songs Ever – Alternative Travel Songs for your Playlist

Take your MP3 Player, plug your headphones, and enjoy the world! Music is the backpackers rhythm, and who doesn’t love good music?

This is why you are here right now to get some inspiration around travel songs, right?!

There are some great travel songs out there for travel inspiration.

Here we collected our 17 favorite songs around travel and backpacking!

We are not just listing songs in English, we are also including travel songs in French, German, and Spanish. Find the

• 10 best songs for backpackers
• 31 best travel songs 2023 by One Week In
• the perfect travel playlist for your iPod (with 29 songs)

Before you hit the road, make sure you have comfy and reliable traveler headphones.

Even better, speakers for traveling.

We found this water-resistant one.

It is small, light and perfect for the road. Anyway, let’s listen to some epic music tracks…

At the end of this article we share how you can download these songs.

Listen to 29 Songs about traveling

UPDATE: We included 10 more songs about traveling!

1. Radical Face – Wandering

Well, I know it’s a good life

Yeah, I know it’s a good life

But I’ve gotta keep moving

I was made to keep moving

And I know it’s a long shot

It was always a long shot

But I’m trusting my aim now

Yeah I’m trusting my aim

Get the full EP of Radical Face.

For more travel spirit, check out this stunning place of Dragon Dive Komodo.

2. One day baby we’ll be old – Asaf Avidan

One day baby, we’ll be old

Oh baby, we’ll be old

And think of all the stories that we could have told.

Get the song: One Day Baby We’ll Be Old (+ more releases of Asaf Avidan)

3. Peps – Liberta Acoustic Version (French)

Là-bas trop de lumière

J’ai dû fermer les yeux

Mais rien que les odeurs

Remplissaient tous mes voeux

I just wanna be free in this way

Just wanna be free in my world

Vivere per libertà

Vivere nella libertà

4. You’re so worth it – Giles Palmer

You are so worth it

You are the only one it takes to know what love is

You are so worth it

There is not any part of me who would want to let you go

5. Summercat Billie the vision & the dancers

The plane took off and my love went with it.

The chilly wind whipped my both cheeks hard.

And the man next to me said ‘Everything is gonna be alright’.

I said ‘Nothing is gonna be alright, but thank you anyway’.

And then I saw your face in the airplane window.

I waved my hands and I shouted to you:

Tonight tonight tonight tonight

I wanna be with you Tonight tonight tonight tonight

I wanna be with you tonight

Download the full song by Summercat.

6. Best Day of My Life – American Authors

I’m never gonna look back

Woah, never gonna give it up

No, please don’t wake me now

Ooooooohhhh

This is gonna be the best day of my life

My liiiiiiiife

Download the full song for your device here.

7. STAY: Video of the 5 Star Hostel in Rhodes, Greece

Sometimes the music itself is enough, lyrics are not important to stress what you wanna express.

Don’t you think?

Have a look at the STAY Rhodes video, it really did not need any lyrics at all.

8. Home – Edward Sharpe & The Magnetic Zeros

Ahh, Home

Let me come Home

Home is wherever I’m with you (2x)

La la la la, take me Home

Baby, I’m coming Home

I’ll follow you into the park,

through the jungle, through the dark

Girl, I’ve never loved one like you

Get the full song here.

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You will also love these 10 best songs for backpackers.

9. Machu Picchu – The Strokes

Waves turn to grey.

Life in the shade.

A violent cloud,

And that’s the USA

Platinum’s on the rise,

Playboy’s in disguise

I’m just trying’ to find…

A mountain I can climb.

Get the song by The Strokes here.

Do you like 5 Star Hostels?

We collect for you the most awesome Hostels around the world: the 5 Star Hostels!

Jump over to 5 Star Hostels.

Have a look – you will be surprised how awesome Hostels can be!

10. The Sound of Silence – Simon and Garfunkel

In restless dreams I walked alone

Narrow streets of cobblestone

‘Neath the halo of a streetlamp

I turned my collar to the cold and damp

When my eyes were stabbed by the flash of a neon light

That split the night

And touched the sound of silence

The Greatest Hits of Simon and Garfunkel are legendary.

11. Applejack – The Triangles

Raise your hands and sing it with me

Sometimes the strongest and most wonderful things are those we cannot see

Sing a song, sing a song

About how things seem more important at night

So sing apples, sing drum kits

Sing moonlight, sing lungfish

And sing a song mitochondria

Whoa whoa whoa whoa whoa whoa

Another summer-theme song you cannot skip – NO WAY!

Get San Juan by The Triangles here.

12. Buenos dias mundo – Rosana

Si está dentro de ti con ganas de volar

¿Quién va a amarrar el viento cuando quieras despegar?

Si está dentro de ti, forrado con tu piel

¿Quién va a decirte no es posible?

¿Quién te va a romper lo que sueñas tú?

Rosana has endless albums published. Get the LP of Rosana here.

13. All die Augenblicke – BAP feat. Clueso (German)

Geht klar, keine Frage – es ist alles okay,

Auch die kostbarsten Momente gehen vorbei.

Schon klar, doch – hey – das tut nicht mal weh.

All die Augenblicke nimmt mir keiner mehr.

Ganz bestimmt, die nimmt mir keiner mehr.

Find all songs by German musician Clueso here.

14. Good Life – One Republic

This has gotta be the good life

This has gotta be the good life

This could really be a good life, good life

I say oh

Got this feeling that you can’t fight

Like this city is on fire tonight

This could really be a good life

A good, good life

One Republic with Good Life.

15. Viva La Vida – Coldplay

Coldplay is one of my absolute favorite music bands out there.

This is their full album Viva La Vida, loaded with epic hits.

I hear Jerusalem bells a-ringing

Roman cavalry choirs are singing

Be my mirror, my sword and shield

My missionaries in a foreign field

For some reason I can’t explain

Once you’d gone there was never

Never an honest word

And that was when I ruled the world

16. Without a Map – Sam Roberts Band

All the time I’m wasting, all the dreams I’m chasing

are leaving me behind

all the roads I’m facing, all the days erasing

well I just about lose my mind

I woke up this morning, the idea was forming

that I’m always on the losing side

but I never believed in resurrection

so I just lay down

lay down and cried

Get the full Song “Without a Map” here.

17. Hakuna Matata – The Lion King

Hakuna Matata! What a wonderful phrase
Hakuna Matata! Ain't no passing craze

It means no worries for the rest of your days
It's our problem-free philosophy
Hakuna Matata!

Get the full song Hakuna Matata from the Lion King.

18. Just say yes – Snow Patrol

I’m running out of ways to make you see

I want you to stay here beside me

I won’t be ok and I won’t pretend I am

So just tell me today and take my hand

Please take my hand

Please take my hand

Just say yes, just say there’s nothing holding you back

It’s not a test, nor a trick of the mind

Only love

Get the full song “Just Say Yes” by Snow Patrol here.

19. Part-Time Friends – Here We Are

Something rise and fall

thought we never lost control

Here we are

something rise and fall

Thought we never lost control

Here we are

Get up

we are nothing but trouble

Nothing but shamble

Here we are

Instead of staying in this bow

Let’s have a bloody row

Here we are

It’s unfair to love someone who wants to beat you down so much

here we are

Get the full song “Here we are” by Part Time Friends.

20. Jose Gonzalez – Step Out (The Secret Life of Walter Mitty)

Living life feeding appetites

Stake through every heart stop, every go

Being glad, breathing half the time

Time to step outside, time to step outside

Time to step outside, Time to step outside your life

Get the full song “Step Out”.

This song is from the travel movie The Secret Life of Walter Mitty.

Read: 33 best wanderlust movies.

21. Sons Of The East – Into The Sun

As the train, it starts to go,

And it takes our bodies slow

And I know you wanted to for some time now

All this time you’re gone In your wake

I stumble on

But the smoke is nothing that I haven’t seen

So I walk into the sun

I thought you’d be there

But you could fool anyone In the red water dust

Will I see you soon,

Or did we move on?

The crowd begins to break up

They’re calling their goodbyes

My head’s above the water

But I’m drowning in your eyes

So I walk into the sun

 

22. Passenger – Travelling Alone

Australian man, Scandinavian tan,
Kicking stones round a square.
Sat for a while and carved out a smile,
As if someone would care.

Said I’m a long way from the Gold Coast.
Furthest I’ve ever known,
Oh and this just ain’t my home.
It was my wife’s idea, but she’s no longer here.
She left me travelling alone.

I never heard silence ring out like a bell.
I never heard silence like last night in my expensive hotel.
Well, I’m loving a shadow, I’m trying to catch the rain.
But I never heard silence ’til I heard it today.

23. Trip The Light – Alicia Lemke

We’re gonna trip the light

We’re gonna break the night

And we’ll see with new eyes

When we trip the light

Remember we’re lost together

Remember we’re the same

We hold the burning rhythm in our hearts

We hold the flame

Alicia Lemke cannot be missed on any of these playlists.

It’s the must-have on travel songs.

24. Mumford & Sons – Hopeless Wanderer

I wrestled long with my youth
We tried so hard to live in the truth
But do not tell me all is fine
When I lose my head, I lose my spine

So leave that click in my head
And I won’t remember the words that you said
You brought me out from the cold
Now, how I long, how I long to grow old

So when your hope’s on fire
But you know your desire
Don’t hold a glass over the flame
Don’t let your heart grow cold
I will call you by name
I will share your road

Get “Hopeless Wanderer” on your device.

25. Ed Sheeran – Perfect

Baby, I’m dancing in the dark, with you between my arms

Barefoot on the grass, listening to our favorite song

When I saw you in that dress, looking so beautiful

I don’t deserve this, darling, you look perfect tonight

Get the full Song “Perfect” here.

26. Oceans – Cold aint for me

It was a summer night
Such a perfect day
We were so laid back
Just watching the waves
It was our time
There was no rain
We would just love
Then do it all again

27. Bon Jovi – it’s my life

This ain’t a song for the broken-hearted
No silent prayer for the faith-departed
I ain’t gonna be just a face in the crowd
You’re gonna hear my voice
When I shout it out loud

It’s my life
It’s now or never
I ain’t gonna live forever
I just want to live while I’m alive
(It’s my life)
My heart is like an open highway
Like Frankie said
I did it my way
I just want to live while I’m alive
It’s my life

28. Oasis – Wonderwall

Today is gonna be the day
That they’re gonna throw it back to you
By now you should’ve somehow
Realized what you gotta do

I don’t believe that anybody
Feels the way I do, about you now

Backbeat, the word was on the street
That the fire in your heart is out
I’m sure you’ve heard it all before
But you never really had a doubt
I don’t believe that anybody
Feels the way I do about you now

29. U2 – Beautiful Day

The heart is a bloom
Shoots up through the stony ground
There’s no room
No space to rent in this town

You’re out of luck
And the reason that you had to care
The traffic is stuck
And you’re not moving anywhere

You thought you’d found a friend
To take you out of this place
Someone you could lend a hand
In return for grace

It’s a beautiful day
Sky falls, you feel like
It’s a beautiful day
Don’t let it get away

30. Lenny Kravitz – Always On The Run

My mama said
That your life is a gift
And my mama said
There’s much weight you will lift
And my mama said
Leave those bad boys alone
And my mama said
Be home before the dawn
And my mama said
You can be rich or poor
But my mama said
You can be big or small

But I’m always on the run (always on the run)
But I’m always on the run

31. Green Day – Time of your Life

Another turning point, a fork stuck in the road
Time grabs you by the wrist, directs you where to go
So make the best of this test, and don’t ask why
It’s not a question, but a lesson learned in time
It’s something unpredictable, but in the end it’s right
I hope you had the time of your life

So take the photographs, and still-frames in your mind
Hang them on a shelf in good health and good time
Tattoo’s of memories and dead skin on trial
For what it’s worth, it was worth all the while
It’s something unpredictable, but in the end it’s right
I hope you had the time of your life

32. The Place to Stay by Álex y Julia

When I wake up in the morning
and you’re lying in my bed,
then I sing for you
then I sing for me
then I sing la lalalala.

Then I try to write down
If I had a dream again,
And it’s you and I
and it’s you and I
and it’s you and I together
it just feels so fine,
Oh you and I together
it just feels so right,
Oh you and I feels so right.

Mediterranean, where we want to stay
you and I always together
dancing night and day.
It’s summertime again
and it feels so great,
you and I always together
dancing night and day
and night and day and again.

33. Matchbox Twenty – 3AM

She says it’s cold outside and she hands me my raincoat
She’s always worried about things like that
She says it’s all gonna end and it might as well be my fault
And she only sleeps when it’s raining

And she screams, and her voice is straining
And she says baby
It’s three a.m. I must be lonely
When she says baby
Well I can’t help but be scared of it all sometimes
And the rain’s gonna wash away I believe it

She’s got a little bit of something, god it’s better than nothing
And in her color portrait world she believes that she’s got it all
She swears the moon don’t hang quite as high as it used to
And she only sleeps when it’s raining
And she screams, and her voice is straining

EXTRA 34. Sweet Home Alabama

Big wheels keep on turning
Carry me home to see my kin
Singing songs about the south-land
I miss ‘ole’ ‘bamy once again and I think it’s a sin

Well I heard Mister Young sing about her
Well I heard ole Neil put her down
Well, I hope Neil Young will remember
A southern man don’t need him around anyhow

Get the full song “Sweet Home Alabama” here.

Extra 35. Steppenwolf – Born to be wild

Get your motor runnin’
Head out on the highway
Lookin’ for adventure
And whatever comes our way
Yeah Darlin’ go make it happen
Take the world in a love embrace
Fire all of your guns at once
And explode into space

Get the full song “Born to be Wild” here.

Extra 36. Xavier Rudd – Follow The Sun

Follow, follow the sun
And which way the wind blows
When this day is done
Breathe, breathe in the air
Set your intentions

Dream with care
Tomorrow is a new day for everyone,
Brand new moon, brand new sun
So follow, follow the sun,
The direction of the bird,
The direction of love

Breathe, breathe in the air,
Cherish this moment,
Cherish this breath
Tomorrow is a new day for everyone,
Brand new moon, brand new sun

Get the full song “Follow the Sun” here.

Download the tracks

Would you like to use some of the songs for your travel video?

Be aware that all songs produced have a copy right. You cannot simply use them for your travel videos.

You can use Youtube owns creative tracks. There you can find a lot of songs to use in your travel video for free.

More Backpacker Songs to explore

Do you want more songs? Fair enough!

• 29 songs for the perfect travel playlist
• best 31 travel songs collected by One Week In
• cute instagram captions

Subscribe to our YouTube Channel for more songs. We always keep it up to date.

So make sure you stay connected.

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