Why don't Americans travel overseas?[MERGED] (San Francisco, Denver, Atlanta, Chicago)
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
...which leads me to believe from that statistic that 2/3s of Americans don't (65%) and hence as a result never have been abroad.
The latter doesn't follow from the former. Remember, until fairly recently Americans could cover a quarter of the surface of the globe using only their birth certificate and driver's license. (Even today, Americans can take a closed-loop Caribbean cruise using only those two documents.) And a significant number have traveled abroad during military service. So "does not have a current passport" does not equal 'has never traveled abroad."
But it's both easier and less expensive to travel domestically than internationally, and since most Americans don't get a lot of vacation time (and often end up using part or all of it to visit family), and the US has an extremely varied geography (mountains, deserts, tropical forests, temperate forests, etc.), domestic travel predominates.
The point that travel to Canada and Mexico used not to require a passport is a good one. I had been to Canada twice before passports were required. From where I live, in Southern California, a jaunt down into Mexico used to be a common weekend outing--again, no passport required in my younger days.
I'm also pretty sure that the statistic of 65% includes people with expired passports. Most people I know have been overseas at least once or twice, typically to Europe, sometimes to Asia, and often in their young adulthood. Once they get a bit older, they tend to spend their vacations visiting relatives and old friends who now live anywhere up to 3000 miles away, but are still in the US. Or they take their children to go see America's wonderful and diverse national parks, or Washington, D.C., or Disneyland/Disney World. Before they know it, ten years have gone by with no need for a passport and it's now expired--and people from other countries assume they are in the category of "never been abroad."
I read on some website that only a 1/3s of Americans have passports which is 35% of Americans which leads me to believe from that statistic that 2/3s of Americans don't (65%) and hence as a result never have been abroad.
Just because someone doesn't have a passport now, that doesn't mean they've never been abroad. Passports expire.
I'm also pretty sure that the statistic of 65% includes people with expired passports.
That is the situation my parents are in; now in their 80s, they've let their passports expire because they are no longer up for traveling. But they traveled a few times internationally when they were younger, and my father saw Korea and Japan in the late 1950s courtesy of the US government (no passport needed, he was active military then). Anyone seeing their current passportless status and thinking they'd never left the US would be making a mistake.
Quote:
Originally Posted by eureka1
ALSO the countries are a lot smaller in Europe ! Crossing borders is a lot more frequent.
And the percentage of Europeans possessing passports has fallen as the EU has made traveling within the EU so much easier. Which is really no big surprise when you think about it. Why go to all the bother and expense of getting a passport if you don't actually need one for the travels you plan on doing?
Compared to Aussies (Australians), Kiwis (New Zealanders), Canucks (Canadians), Brits, Irish, Continental Europeans and potentially others too, it seems to me that so few Americans (Yanks) visit other countries in the world, I read on some website that only a 1/3s of Americans have passports which is 35% of Americans which leads me to believe from that statistic that 2/3s of Americans don't (65%) and hence as a result never have been abroad. Why is this the case, from what I read online so far is that the 2 most quoted reasons Americans don't travel abroad is either a) Time off and b) finances but to me its gotta be a lot more than just those 2 reasons (not saying those reasons aren't important factors) , is there anything deeper beyond Time off and finances that stop Americans wanting to go overseas, just a question I have wanted to know for a long time as an Aussie. Please enlighten me.???
PS. Don't mean to disrespect y'all.
First of all, this has been covered extensively in this thread
1. It's a LONG way just to get to the border. The US is a big country - MUCH bigger than most people outside think. Heck, it takes a long time just to get to a border, much less beyond it. And we don't have that much free time.
2. If you get 4 weeks vacation after 25 years in a job, you're lucky. Usually it's one or two weeks. And in a lot of jobs, you have to "earn" time off by working...plus employers have restrictions. For instance, my daughter works for a well known company in Orlando FL. You want to book a cruise, take a week of vacation? No problem, book in advance...but this company will not hesitate to suddenly demand that you come in for 8 hours in the middle of your vacation, never mind that you're booked and pre-paid. You come in to work or get fired.
3. It's expensive to go those long distances and beyond. Our wages have not kept pace with rising costs such as for medical insurance.
4. Yes, we get excoriated because so few of us speak second and third languages. But you can go your whole life without ever needing to speak anything except English. Even people coming here don't want to converse in their own tongue. They want to practice their English with English-speaking Americans.
..., and the US has an extremely varied geography (mountains, deserts, tropical forests, temperate forests, etc.), domestic travel predominates.
^ Agree.
I have been to a lot of European Countries. After awhile it seems to be the same--cobblestone streets, old churches, old buildings. I love visiting there, but I can see why Americans don't necessarily need to leave their country.
America--you can go to Nevada, Wyoming, Rhode Island, Florida, California, Utah, Alaska, Hawaii, Washington DC, etc. ---they are all so different, almost different Cultures. One can see different things without leaving their Country.
I have been to a lot of European Countries. After awhile it seems to be the same--cobblestone streets, old churches, old buildings. I love visiting there, but I can see why Americans don't necessarily need to leave their country.
America--you can go to Nevada, Wyoming, Rhode Island, Florida, California, Utah, Alaska, Hawaii, Washington DC, etc. ---they are all so different, almost different Cultures. One can see different things without leaving their Country.
I wonder if Europeans are completely shocked if they hear that someone has never left Europe.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
