Yes that is what I used to say. But I was fortunate to find a modicum of spare income, in middle life, and to travel. It was such a good experience, that I would now be happy to spend my last cent on travel and then lay down and die, in the knowledge that I had done as much as I could, to see as much as I could, of this wonderful planet, which is all the justification for happiness in life that is needed I think.

Ah, well, fair enough. Thanks for your honest answer. One day, you might be able to travel in Europe and NZ. A friend of mine and his wife retired together only a few weeks ago. They sold their house and bought a motor home. They've gone to travel around in Europe for 9 months!

Many Americans' focus is so much on travelling within their own country because it is vast, which is understandable, and therefore, they seem to assume that Brits also only travel within Europe, which is also vast, even larger than the US. It's kinda inward looking if I'm honest. Many Brits also travel outside Europe. The USA is the most visited country outside of Europe.

Good points.

SOOO true!

Ha, ha, there is nothing wrong with liking your own country. I must admit, though, that the concept that because your country is so great that you don't need to know the outside world baffles me.

Fortunately, there is no connection between our political/social worth and our land. Our natural qualities leave nothing to be desired. That is all I ever travel to experience.

Thanks for the stats from 2017. I don't mean to be rude, but I'm not sure what point you're trying to make here...

Europe is larger in land area than the U.S., i.e., Europe has a bigger land area (3,910,680 sq miles) than the U.S. (3,531,905 sq miles), yet many Europeans love travelling out of Europe. The size of one's country and one's interest in visiting other countries don't seem to be connected. It is an interesting notion I'm getting here that Americans don't visit other countries because there is "no need "to do so. Personally, I love visiting other countries and have glimpses of different cultures. I don't "need" to do so; I "want" to do so. Some Brits are not interested in travelling abroad, either. They are perfectly comfortable with what they have.

@Ryo1 Just not as easy, Mexico and Canada are easily gotten to the rest required air travel. And the varied cultural differences within our country and neighbors

@Ryo1 Great Britain is only 80, 823 sq miles the US is 3,500,00+ square miles Brits should have a much higher percentage of their population with passports, Since you left the EU, don't you need one to take a quick trip through the chunnel?

@glennlab EU citizens (including Brits before Brexit) still have to have their own national ID cards/passports, but don't have to show them when travelling from one border-free Schengen EU country to another. The UK was never a Schengen member state, so Brits have always needed to have their passports when travel to Europe. BTW, the EU and the Schengen area are two different things. Neither of them cover the entire Europe, so, even if you are an EU citizen, once you are out of the Schengen area (although you're still within Europe), you are asked to present your passport.

@Ryo1 so how far can you travel without a passport currently? that would explain a lot. depending omn the direction it can take me 6 hours at 70-75 mph just to get out of Texas.

@glennlab I live in the south. I went to Edinburgh (Scotland) once by air. It would've taken 6 hours to get there by car, at 70-75 mph, easily. If you had enough money and time, would you be interested in visiting foreign countries? Some are not interested in the outside worlds, i.e., some never travel out of the UK, in which case, there is no need for them to obtain passports, naturally.

@Ryo1 I have traveled to other countries and may again if we ever get out from under this plague. I am not up to the 20+ hour flights to Asia anymore. I have wanderlust in my soul, but my wallet limits my travels.

"One does not necessarily need a passport to understand much of the world." Point taken, but IMO, you can't beat hands-on experience. After all, we are tactile animals. For example, you can find so much about the Sahara Desert on the Internet beforehand (covers an incredible 9.2 million km², which is almost the same size as China), yet you actually go there and feel overwhelmed (again) by how vast it is. You feel the sand as you walk and realise it is nothing like walking on a sandy beach. You hold some in your hand and realise how hot and dry and fine it is. You then go on a camel ride and find how different it is from riding a horse. Back in the local town where you are staying, the streets smell different from the smells you are used to back in your hometown in the US. You pop in a souvenir shop and find no price tickets attached to any products, and then you realise that you have to haggle (lol), etc., etc. You get my drift.

Thanks for your honest response. Yes, it is a matter of priority. Your parents had their priorities right. A fool like me put travelling ahead of needing to replace my old boiler. Lol

BTW I have been to Canada. Although, I'm only a 20 minute drive away. No passport needed.

Yes, I have a passport. Until the pandemic began, I had travelled abroad every year. Apart from the countries where I have family and friends, I usually go on package tours with some free time incorporated in them. Package tours are often cheaper than travelling solo. It's safer, too. They cover typical touristy places and events, plus excursions you can choose from. Time and money can be a problem. I am self-employed, so, every time I go away, I lose money. But I'm prepared for it because I like travelling. If you so long to do something you tend to save money and make time for it.

@Ryo1 I'm the one that enjoys(ed) travel. My husband not so much. He would loath spending a vacation with a group. I plan it out and usually need to have us leave on a Friday and be back by Monday. Which doesn't leave room for international travel.

Myopic, indeed.

I live among a large number of Britons who have settled in/retired to Spain. I don't find the majority to be all that bright, either.

@Petter I found them to be nice people, but the "blokes" I worked with were shallow, even by American standards.

So far, I'm under the impression that many Americans are insular. It's not the first time I heard some Americans saying that they live in the best country in the world so there is no need to travel abroad... It's great that they are proud of their country, but that's not the point, is it? The size of the country also seems irrelevant to why Americans don't travel abroad. China is huge and the Chinese are great travellers. I'm curious about the outside world. When I visit a foreign country, I interact with locals, trying some words and phrases I picked up off the Internet on them (that normally makes them laugh); I try local foods including how to eat them (Italians fold a pizza in half and eat it on the street like a pasty for example, and a pasta dish is a starter to them); I admire old magnificent buildings that are centuries old and often have distinctive smells inside; I enjoy walking tours where local guides tell you funny stories; and much more. I basically enjoy hands-on experience. It's not the same as getting information about other countries on YouTube, etc.

@Ryo1 Yes, I could not agree with that more. See also if you like my reply to Charles1971 above.

@Ryo1 I live in the U.S. and I'd never say that I live in the best country in the world. Oh, sure, it has some pros but also a shitload of cons. But a lot of places aren't really all that better and plenty of places are worse. Many places are better in some regards but not so much better in other regards. There are some very nice places that just get way too much cold weather and snow for me.

Even if money were not an issue, there aren't many places I'd rather live... although I've never traveled to other countries so I don't know what they are really like. I think I might like New Zealand but there may be bad things about NZ that I'm not aware of.

@Charles1971 No countries are perfect, though. Plus, having a holiday (vacation) in a foreign country is completely different from actually living there as a citizen. You visit different countries, experience their cultures and have a glimpse of the good side and the bad. They may make you appreciate your country more or make you feel a little jealous or you may find it all eye-opening or shocking.
Incidentally, this is what Brits have to put up with (see the image), so if you ever fancy visiting England, come between May and August when the chance of rain is reasonably small. Lol

@Charles1971 It is not really about whether a country is better or worse. I would not like live full time in many of the countries I visited. Some of the Islamic states I have visited may well be absolute misery to live in long term, yet they were also some of the most rewarding places to visit I have been to. If only because of the way people respond to life, often with the greatest warmth and humanity, in countries where life is difficult, and they can often show you where your own country fails in some things even though they may not overall be as good.

I remember in one Islamic country we got lost, and were forced to stop at a tiny, family run, back street supermarket for toilets and food. It did not have any foriegn visitors normally, but an aunt who had been to Britain and spoke English was sent for, so that she could explain the menu in the cafeteria to us. And while we ate the young ladies at the till packed my shopping into bags. In the same country, a hotel porter who saw that I had bought some local food to take home with me , and insisted on explaining the cooking method at length, though he need not have done, and a cafe owner who seeing that we had a long wait for a bus, invited us to sit at one of his tables, and even gave us free teas for which he refused all payment. No doubt, the tea was cheap, it was a slack part of the day, and it was good for business to make it look like his tables were in demand. But none the less would that happen in England ? No.

And you learn things that you could never learn without the experience. For example, though I am wholly anti-religion, I have learned just what a lift to the heart the morning call to prayer can be, in a quite little village where the loudest other thing is the cock crow, and the emotive power of that.