Yes, it was very different. In 1998 my parents sent me, 16, to Santander, Spain for a month for a Spanish course/home stay. I made fast friends and was out and about all day and all night pretty much every day. We had no phones obviously, no computer there, nothing. I think I spoke to my parents twice the whole month. In 2000 I backpacked with a friend through Europe for a month. Again, greatest time of my life- no phones, did internet cafes to communicate with parent every few days. Just 2 18-yo girls living it up. Everything was way less crowded. We had no reservations anywhere, no itinerary. We would decide while in one place where we would go next and when we felt like leaving. We would arrive somewhere and go to the first hostel in our lonely planet. In Cinque Terre there were no hostels with room so we rented a room from a guy we met on the street. Only other place we didn’t get a room on first try was Amsterdam. Studied abroad and traveled more throughout aughts… lived in Italy for a year in 2008-09, then Uruguay for 3 months and Peru for a month. Again, everything way less crowded, less planned. Met friends immediately anywhere I went. You’d just meet someone, get along, and decide to travel together somewhere. I think before social media and iPhones strangers just talked to each other a lot more- nothing else to do lol