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Location: We_tside PNW (Columbia Gorge) / CO / SA TX / Thailand
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Quote:
Originally Posted by cityandmore
I doubt this. I've seen many Americans traveling too. They're like us. Though we have different cultures we have individual choices, and exploring the world is what we all(?) wish to do.
"AMERICA" is VERY comfortable for many.
Exploring the WORLD is not a high priority for many Americans, who consider the USA 'adequate', or even preferred.
It's an easy path, and you'll find lots of people on the easy path. +/-
Thank for this interesting info, but what I wonder is what percentage of Europeans undertake a trip to the Americas or Asia?
"The 10 Places Britons Want to Travel" Daily Mail link you gave are all European destinations, that is equitable to Americans who only want to travel in the US. A Brit going to Spain or a Scandinavian to Italy is similar to someone from New Jersey heading to Florida or New Orleans. The US is a vast landmass & a large percentage of citizens prefer to travel domestically for both easy convenience & costs, same as Europeans traveling within Europe. And the US doesn't have the advantage of LCCs like Ryanair, etc...
I think it would be interesting to compare percentages of Americans/Europeans who travel over oceans, ie., long flights. A nonstop NYC - Hawaii flight, domestic, is just under 12 hours; NYC - Los Angeles 6 hours nonstop, similar to London - NYC/DC. If we are to compare apples to apples I think it would be interesting not to compare intra-Europe travel, but 6hr+ air-travel, to other continents, the Americas, Asia, or NZ or Australia as you mentioned.
(I'm omitting Africa / So America because they seem to be less on the tourism wish lists.)
I agree, our travelling to neighbouring countries in Europe is not that different to Americans travelling across the US and North America.
Spain could be compared to Florida, and other parts of Southern Europe to California etc.
New England could be compared to other parts of Europe, and there are numerous other comparison, such as NYC being comparable to London and Paris etc etc.
1. Lack of interest in exploring the world, being told America is the best. Being told the world outside is scary and inferior. Not worth visiting. This mindset is indoctrinated and conditioned into all Americans.
2. Lack of paid lead. Most folks just don't get a lot of days off.
3. Money. America is isolated and it takes a considerable amount of money to travel to the biggest tourist destinations in Europe (Paris), Middle East (Dubai), or SE Asia (Thailand).
Per the underlined - I don't think this is true overall. For me, I come from a family of travelers, near and far. Everyone travels in my family, it's awesome and encouraged. Some go big, others closer in, but all have the curiosity and love for new and different. I also feel this way although as mentioned many times, I can't take off a lot of consecutive weeks nor do/did I have the money to go every year.
That being said, I have met more Americans in the last few years who really don't want to travel. Their comfort level is low when branching out, their tolerance is low for accepting ALL kinds of folks, and their curiosity to meet new people or see new (to them) things is low. I honestly don't understand it. I don't think that's an "indoctrinated" thing...is it? Since I'm not around that sort of thinking typically, I don't know if it's specific to the family that person comes from...I knew a guy recently who said his wife's family would pay for him, the kids and his wife to go to Hawaii for two weeks paid. He said he didn't even want to go. He might enjoy playing golf for a few days, but his idea of a good time was hanging out on his multi-acre farm, drinking beer and watching golf or playing golf near by. To me, that was a head scratcher.
Perhaps, it's not ALL Americans - perhaps all the excellent points mentioned about cost, money, time and trying to discover our own country first is outweighing we thinking everyone else is inferior. Don't worry though, there are plenty of Americans who have an "attitude" about that and take it with them when they travel - but I also think its fair to say that most countries have their stereotypes too.
The diversity with the U.S. is insane, it's a stunningly beautiful place in so many regions. Even a lifetime is not enough to see it all.
During the 2000s, I met a wealthy couple and their kids while visiting Hopewell Rocks on the Bay of Fundy in New Brunswick. They spent much of their time traveling in their large RV all around the U.S. and Canada, homeschooling their kids. They also had residences in Beverly Hills, California, and London. They said that they had been traveling that much in an RV around the U.S. and Canada for 25 years (since before they had kids), and that they still hadn’t seen everything in the U.S. and Canada that they wanted to see.
Per the underlined - I don't think this is true overall.
I don’t either.
Quote:
For me, I come from a family of travelers, near and far. Everyone travels in my family, it's awesome and encouraged. Some go big, others closer in, but all have the curiosity and love for new and different. I also feel this way although as mentioned many times, I can't take off a lot of consecutive weeks nor do/did I have the money to go every year.
That being said, I have met more Americans in the last few years who really don't want to travel. Their comfort level is low when branching out, their tolerance is low for accepting ALL kinds of folks, and their curiosity to meet new people or see new (to them) things is low. I honestly don't understand it. I don't think that's an "indoctrinated" thing...is it? Since I'm not around that sort of thinking typically, I don't know if it's specific to the family that person comes from...I knew a guy recently who said his wife's family would pay for him, the kids and his wife to go to Hawaii for two weeks paid. He said he didn't even want to go. He might enjoy playing golf for a few days, but his idea of a good time was hanging out on his multi-acre farm, drinking beer and watching golf or playing golf near by. To me, that was a head scratcher.
Perhaps, it's not ALL Americans - perhaps all the excellent points mentioned about cost, money, time and trying to discover our own country first is outweighing we thinking everyone else is inferior. Don't worry though, there are plenty of Americans who have an "attitude" about that and take it with them when they travel - but I also think its fair to say that most countries have their stereotypes too.
Look at it the other way around. We do not get as much annual leave in Australia as some Europeans but it is still quite a bit. Often people are required to take it as it costs the company more to let it accumulate indefinitely.
So if people have to have three or four weeks of leave, what are they to do with it? Can be pretty boring sitting around at home.
Also, being a country of immigrants with 30% of the population being born overseas, many feel obliged to travel to their countries of origin to visit their families.
Look at it the other way around. We do not get as much annual leave in Australia as some Europeans but it is still quite a bit. Often people are required to take it as it costs the company more to let it accumulate indefinitely.
So if people have to have three or four weeks of leave, what are they to do with it? Can be pretty boring sitting around at home.
Also, being a country of immigrants with 30% of the population being born overseas, many feel obliged to travel to their countries of origin to visit their families.
Australia is beautiful but unfortunately 70% of the country is not habitable, compared to only 10% uninhabitable area of the continental USA. So even though Australia is the same size as USA minus Alaska, the places people can travel within Australia are just some big /medium cities on the Coast, a couple of visits to the Outback and Tasmania. After a few years you have pretty much seen most of the OZ. So you have no choice but to go to nearby countries like NZ, Fiji, Bali and other South East Asian countries and sometimes even to Europe or North America,
In terms of the UK, over two thirds of the population travel overseas, so figures are just starting to get back to pre-Covid levels.........The top overseas destinations for Britons are Spain, France, Italy, Greece and Portugal, r revealed - and it's Mallorca that's No.1 - Daily Mail (2023)[/url][/b]
That's analogues to Americans traveling to Mexico. Europe is closer to Britain than Tijuana is to San Diego. "Overseas" to Europe isn't much more than crossing a wide river.
OK , I exaggerate a bit. 20 miles from San Diego to Tijuana and 31 miles from Britain to France.
Location: We_tside PNW (Columbia Gorge) / CO / SA TX / Thailand
34,741 posts, read 58,090,525 times
Reputation: 46231
Quote:
Originally Posted by oregonwoodsmoke
That's analogues to Americans traveling to Mexico. Europe is closer to Britain than Tijuana is to San Diego. "Overseas" to Europe isn't much more than crossing a wide river.
OK , I exaggerate a bit. 20 miles from San Diego to Tijuana and 31 miles from Britain to France.
or... a step across the border from Northern Ireland to Ireland, many times / day.
Some US residents won't think of crossing a river or state line either... much less travel overseas.
It's just Too Much.
We'll all be fine (in our own little worlds)
until;
1)...
2) ...
3)...
100)...
Many people have been surprisingly interrupted (coming soon to a country near you, including the 'secure' USA)
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