Interesting points. Let me first say that people who travel are in no means better than non travellers. Secondly I can only speak for myself here. I travelled quite a lot and for me it's quite different than spending my time gaming, sporting or whatever activity at home. For me it makes me more complete as a human being. Putting myself out of my comfort zone as much as I can. That's why I also lived abroad when college/work gave me that possibility.

I do have to say that I never was the "party" traveller. Of course I had some grand drinking nights and went to parties but that was/is never why I go travelling. I agree with you that you can't really learn a culture, but you can experience it in a short time if you want and it does enrich you if you're open to it. I learned about people and countries on all my journeys. Things I still cherrish.

Plus I got to meet so many people who're different then me. Many of whom I still have contact with. And I don't mean Facebook contact.

And last for now it made me independent and grown up faster when I was younger. And still maybe. I always arrange everything myself when travelling. Try to sleep with local people through making contacts. Travel with normal public transportation. It helped me becoming an assertive person.

I would never have been who I am without travelling. I would always advice people to do it once. And the absolute bonus of course is that you get to see awesome places around the world.

 

I've only left New England once, and it was to go to Florida. I didn't feel much, but the idea of going to another country does interest me. I don't think just being somewhere new is special, I think it's dependant on what you do, and what new things you experience during the travels.

 

What differs travelling from other ways to spend time is the amount of money involved. To visit countries, to have airflights, to book hotels, especially in Western Europe and America, you need some good cash. That is why regular travelling is a thing to be proud of for many people. It's definitely a measure of success. Other things like fishing or playing games don't take a lot of money from you so almost everyone can do this. Just from my experience, 9/10 people I work in the same company with can't travel because they don't earn enough money. Most of them have to work really hard for 11 months of the year, limiting themselves in foodstuff, clothes, etc, to go abroad on vacations. At the same time, almost all of them are fans of fishing since it's available.

 

You need time and be really invested in it to expand anything. In reality it's just an another type of consumption. Also like 90% of "travellers" know shit about their native city, region or country. Their are partly brainwashed with the desire just to see some place or do some stuff, because it's on TV, Instagram or some other mainstream source.

... I get your point.If met my fair share of chicks who have badly wanted to go to France because of.. well,you know... the Eiffel Tower.......... Novelty factor 101 & lots of tv and whatnot and that gets into their head that it's a must see.



From the countries that I've been to and the towers I've been on,bridges crossed and other monuments seen in person I can say that after a very short time you just shrug your shoulders and say 'Meh,now where?'...

 

Travelling is a luxury. I personally much prefer the luxury of travelling to the one of buying/owning material things. It is not better per se than other ways of spending your time and money, but I do know a whole lot of people that would greatly profit from a lengthy stay abroad - the type that is stuck in their daily grind and almost willingly deliver themselves to the constraints of material consumption and pseudo-experiences they are captives to.

 

Cities are definitely overrated. Couldn't care less will I see Mona Lisa in Louvre or on internet.

Nature OTOH...but it's not enough to just see it, it takes time to enjoy it properly. I can go back to the same place over and over if I know I can find peace and quiet there. Also enjoy the act of traveling, but not being transported by a plane or a bus.

 

There's a few things to it, namely

1) Travelling is said to be a sign of prestige.
2) Travelling is thought to be a sign of accomplishment.
3) Travelling is supposed to satisfy hunger for new experiences and cultures.

People who travel do so because they: have the money (or wish to spend the money), and they have the time to do so. It is much harder to go on holidays without those two options. Incidentally why students might do so (though probably backpacking and short time in each city to conserve money with some help from parents perhaps) as they have the time before they need to settle for work, and near retirees or retirees to get thinking about travelling. Often places to go to are thought of as 'bucket list' locations - things to do and see before they die. Thus there is a sense of accomplishment as well, that you have achieved something great is being able to travel. We want to be able to say we did something exciting over the weekend, and travel seems to fit that bill among things.

As to satisfaction of hunger for new experiences, the hedonic adaptation means that any experience that creates pleasure will produce a diminished response to the same stimulus over repeated exposure. Thus short term, travel is supposed to stimulate the senses to new experiences. Certainly when you visit a new country, there's a lot you have to take in. Nevertheless, the hedonic adaptation also applies to travel. How is it that on so many long trips, the person who goes says they cannot wait to get back home!
Someone once told me they went on a ski trip in the mountains in Canada with his wife. Had a full session of lessons booked for 5 weeks. They opened the door of the cabin, clicked in the skis and went off. It was lovely a sight. Yet after 2 weeks, he was wondering to himself, "what am I doing? All that I am doing every day is going up and down a mountain, up and down a mountain. The chair lift takes me up but I don't need to go down again. Why am I doing this?"

Indeed, if anyone does one thing enough they will lose their interest in it, no matter how much fun it might seem. And often chasing fun things doesn't quite turn out to be as fun they might have appeared. Many things that we do are considered fun. Eating a pizza, watching a movie, going on holidays feel fun. But imagine eating a pizza alone, watching a movie alone, and holidaying alone. After a while, you realise they aren't really that fun. So the quest for fun is not necessarily the experience but finding the right person/people to share that experience with. And perhaps that's why people when they do these things alone, they still like to share the experiences on instagram or facebook. Maybe finding the perfect party is about finding the right people to be with moreso than the party itself.

So all in all travel is overrated if we consider it as something that defines who we are, and that our success lies in it. Because it won't do that for you. You will get tired of it and disillusioned. This goes for every fun thing people can dream of.

They say there is no place like home and home is where the heart is. But the world is also your oyster. Go out into the big world and enjoy yourself, whether it be a small boat cruise down the harbour, or a full trip around Europe, but remember, it's not what you do or where you go, but the people you're with that really matter.

 

So all in all travel is overrated if we consider it as something that defines who we are, and that our success lies in it. Because it won't do that for you. You will get tired of it and disillusioned. This goes for every fun thing people can dream of.
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I never, ever got tired of scuba diving and finding new destinations.

It seems you neglected to consider the reason that some people do it is because they WANT to.

 

I find it's overrated, honestly. I travelled for two months around Europe few years ago and couldn't wait to get back home.

 

Travelling is generally for wealthy pampered white kids who think they'll gain some type of rich self-discovery ideas just by going overseas to some third world country. The poorer the people, the more self-enlightement obtained.

 

Why would I want to go to a third world country?

 

As a kid, I have always dreamed of travelling, even though I grew up in a village and only airplanes we saw were in the skies. Luckily for me, after university I managed to get a job which is basically made up of travelling almost on a monthly basis to many international destinations. After 10 years, I started experiencing travel anxiety (airports, the whole phobia related to flying, family obligations, etc,) I had to cut it down for the past two years. However I glad I was able to experience so many places, in hindsight, I should have done more with my travel escapades, maybe I can write a memoir. It's always good to meet new people, and some I have remained in contact with and can really on them when you need information. I also find that people who travel more, and interact with other cultures tend to be more open-minded and accepting. Go on, travel OP.

 

I agree people who love traveling are not better than people who love fishing (video games is a bad example though imho). So, using traveling as an argument for superiority is dumb. I also agree that travel is a way to spend time.

Having said that I have to admit that traveling does help a person to learn, to grow and eventually to develop as an individual. It's not only about what you see, it's about action and interaction. So keep on travelling if you can afford it, just don't feel entitled because of that :lol:

 

It's probably important to see somewhere new at least once.

 

I'm not going to lie, as a kid, I couldn't wait for university because that was my best chance of traveling abroad. Living in a different country is great experience and expands your horizons, so that's a benefit.

Now that I did that, yeah, traveling for the sake of it can be overrated for me. It's a balance. I would want to travel abroad once or twice a year, but I don't want to be like some of my friends that seem like they are trying to travel to every country in the word, like it's a contest. It's almost like it's for instagram. But to each his own.

 

Some very interesting points.

Here is my take....

Traveling is important for 3 reasons

1. Great memories. Pics to look at in future and stuff.
2. Telling stories and conversation topics
3. It is great for experiencing different cultures too. The world is an amazing place and is experienced in such different ways by everyone. There is so much to see and learn

 

Depends.