Searching for a countercultural life abroad: neo-nomadism, lifestyle mobility or bohemian lifestyle migration?

This article outlines a phenomenon whereby people of affluent countries move abroad in search of a countercultural lifestyle. The article compares the concept of bohemian lifestyle migration with those of neo-nomadism and lifestyle mobilities; the different concepts are understood as lenses that light different aspects of similar phenomena. The article uses two ethnographic case studies from India as lenses onto the phenomenon. Rather than merely focusing on what people say and how they define their identities and lifestyles, it is important to pay attention to the structures and circumstances within which they operate. Their transnationally mobile lifestyle not only is an individual choice but is embedded in political and economic structures that both enable and limit their actions. In particular, the article argues that paying attention to people's income strategies and to the prevailing nation state system is crucial when elaborating on the phenomenon. The article also discusses the limitations of the countercultural aspects of the lifestyle and asks whether such a privileged group of people can be defined as countercultural and if so, what kind of counterculturalism it is.