In my perambulations around this little world of ours I have met people from a helluva lot of nations and cultures.

Now, these meetings have not always been mutually beneficial (or even pleasurable, but they have always been interesting), however, although I have encountered hordes of Europeans of various nationalities (in addition to the local "natives"), Americans have been novelties.

Living, as I do, in a University town surrounded by golf courses, I get to see three types of American at close quarters.

These types are:-

1. Students from affluent backgrounds
2. Golfers
3. Spending the inheritance types

Type 3 could convince me to nuke America.

All of which leads back to the original question - why are most Americans reluctant to travel?

I don't think we are. I travel all the time, on both business and pleasure.

I think what you see is the lack of Americans in Europe. That would kind of gel, though, with the lack of Europeans travelling to the States.

The fact of the matter is that flying halfway around the world isn't cheap, so Europeans tend to travel in Europe, and Americans tend to travel in North America.

Judging by what I see at the airport every week, trust me, Americans are not reluctant to travel...

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Obama's New "57 State Patriotic Pin":

Are americans really reluctant to travel? Not many people from any nation cross continental borders more than a few times in their life.

I don't think Americans are reluctant to travel. We tend to travel within the US and in a lot of cases those travelling may not go very far. I think it comes down to time and money. I'm guessing most Americans have 10 days of vacation time a year and most of that is spent a day or two at a time to create long weekends. The idea of going on a two week vacation just isn't happening anymore. I had recently read that more and more Americans are even opting out of lunch breaks.

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Well, that's just the silliest fucking idea I've ever heard...

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Obama's New "57 State Patriotic Pin":

USATODAY.com - Lunch break becomes briefer as 'hour' shrinks
Why the lunch break is going extinct - Your Career - MSNBC.com

People refuse to take off work.

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Maybe they are just not going to where you live.

As someone who has traveled to Europe on 4 different occasions, I find myself wondering why I would ever go back.

No offense, but why would I want to spend all that money and time to go some place where the weather and scenery is not better, to look at bunch of old buildings and art in Museums(something I honestly do not care about) and to meet locals who will cop an attitude with me just because of where I am from?

Hey no thanks.

Give me California, Miami, the Rocky Mountains, the Caribbean or the deserts of the Southwest anyday.

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One day, I will sneak across the border into Canada and be an illegal alien. It will be fun.

Oh, I'm not saying it's not happening, I'm just saying it's a silly fucking idea.

I dunno', I can take at least an hour off for lunch, and still get my work done...

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Obama's New "57 State Patriotic Pin":

terrorism, the weak us dollar, and anti americanism I would say. We got everything we need here climate wise.. want to ski, go to the beach, grand canyon, deserts, forests, pretty much everything we need is here. If we do travel its usually to another part in the US or to canada or mexico or the caribean.

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www.myspace.com/crusade7

LOL. This scene from Office Space just tells the truth about that in so many cases:

YouTube - Office Space

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I think it's a reluctance to travel outside of the States rather than a reluctance to travel period, and I think this stems from the fact that the landscape here is so varied that you can basically get any sort of vacation you want. Keep in mind, the mainland US is roughly the same size as continental Europe; if you get on a plane in the UK, you're over Italy 2 and a half hours later. If you get on a plane in Los Angeles, two and a half hours later, you're barely over Texas.

They do travel, just not to Europe at the same percentage and frequency as Europeans travel to the US.

A few beliefs come to mind:

1) Travelling in Europe is very expensive for the majority of Americans who live on lower or middle class salaries. The costs in many parts of Europe are high, and the euro and some other currencies like the UK's pound sterling are stronger than the American dollar on exchange rates.

2) Flights to European destinations are generally more expensive than domestic and nearby destinations. They also require a flight whilst most American and many regional destinations do not.

3) European nations do not market tourism in the US like domestic organisations and regional countries do, especially with deals. When deals are made, they are not as well known as domestic and regional ones that concentrate heavily on the American tourism market.

4) The US is a huge country with many things to see and do and the same is true with many regional destinations, and this provides heavy competition with Europe.

5) The majority of white Americans are now ethnically intertwined and have been in the US for several generations which puts a huge mental distance between them and their ancestral nations. The passing of generations also gradually removed family bonds with their ancestral homelands. Thus, whilst many might be proud of their backgrounds and take some interest in it, the vestiges of the Old World have been conglomerated, fused and/or altered to have a very American personality. Seeing an Irish bar, Italian and Greek restaurants, etc, adoptions of different styles of musics and foods from abroad, etc, are seen as part of the American scene.

6) Black and Asian Americans have no identity with Europe.

7) "White Hispanics' have at best an indirect ancestral relationship with Spain and most likely a remote one like white Americans whose ancestors came to America a long time ago. A good number of Hispanics are of Native American and/or black descent and have no identity with Europe. Recent immigrants and their children and grandchildren have their relatives and ethnic identity with Latin American nations. Thus, that is where they are far more likely to travel.

8) Americans receive far less holiday time than many Europeans do. Therefore, they must select their travel plans sparingly and by priority. For example, a family may choose to spend it with relatives who do not live nearby. It's the same with seeing other places in the US and regionally. Thus, a family with two weeks holiday may choose to take the kids to Disneyworld one holiday, and use the other to see their grandparents in Michigan.

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yup the last posted nailed it for me..

lack of money..

seriously.. the rich people who inherited money.. Dont worry that is over. our healthcare problem has created a whole new way to take all of that money away from people. THat combined with the FACT that people arent able to save the way they did before and still live comfortably. So.. dont Nuke america yet.. we had a good run.. We are all getting poor again.. its not getting better any time soon. You hear the rhetoric about the middle class from some candidates this election time.. but I am sure there will be some other uber awesome enemy that is going to be attacking us by then.

I am waiting for the next staged attack on this country myself. So we can align the country against this enemy and anyone else who would question it.

Sorry would love to visit a few of my friends in Belgium, Germany, Norway.. but.. just cant afford it..

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