Is it true that many Americans will never visit another country

[cinaminvanilla]

I remember reading an article where it says that many Americans don't have a passport or leave the USA ever in their lives. Just wondering does anyone with knowledge know if this true. Because the US is so big I could imagine people never travelling to another country. I think I read that for those who visit other countries the two most popular countries for people who live in the US to visit aside from their own is Canada and Mexico.

I find it weird when Americans say that they have everything in their country so why go anywhere. Because that's not really true... Historical sites are pretty thin on the ground, you can't see things like the Vatican or Matchu Picchu or Petra in the US.

An American can go to, for an example: New York, Chicago, Las Vegas, Disneyland Florida, Disney world California, Hawaii, Alaska, The Grand Canyon, The Deep South, LA, Maine, Utah... all vastly different experiences and no need to worry about changing currencies, foreign languages or out of country health insurance etc.

A few years ago my bil had to spend a few weeks at a clients office in texas. He was surprised to find that quite a lot of the staff had never even left texas.

So many amazing places to see in the US. I don’t blame them for never visiting anywhere else. I say that as someone who has travelled a lot and also lived in the US for a few years.

I have a friend in her 50s in the Midwest. She doesn't own a passport. She went to Mexico aged about 38 because it was before Americans needed a passport. That was the first and only time in her life to date that she saw the sea.

But it's only really because she lives so darn far from the sea. It's a thousand miles or more in any given direction. She doesn't travel much outside the few states around hers, although she'd like to. It wouldn't surprise me there are many like her.

But then, while I've travelled in the past, I haven't been outside the UK in 10 years. It's just circumstances.

I remember a conversation I had with a lovely American couple that were sat next to us at a show in Florida, they were an older couple who had never left the states as they said there was no need too as they had so much there to see and do which seems a fair comment to me. Personally I think traveling around seeing other countries and cultures is fantastic and thoroughly enjoy it but each to their own

The United States has the geographical equivalents to pretty much everywhere else in the world. Take any holiday destination spot, and there is an equivalent within the United States, with culture to match. Big mountains, vast forests, broad rivers, huge deserts, beaches, arctic, volcanoes, water falls, geysers, canyons, sand dunes. About the only major thing along those lines that the USA does not have is a true tropical rain forest, though there are temperate rain forests, national parks with more land area than some entire countries, two oceans, a tropical gulf with islands, huge lakes. Pretty much anywhere one would want to go on holiday can be found within the United States.

The US also has stupidly short holidays. 10 paid days a year after a year of service.

No, America has 0 paid days of holidays mandated. 0. The average worker gets 8 days of paid holidays and they mean the ACTUAL holidays: Christmas, New Years, 4th of July.

www.thebalancecareers.com/what-are-paid-holidays-in-the-u-s-1918150

So people on minimum wage and our equivalent of zero hours contracts usually have no holidays at all. Maybe just Christmas and New Years, if they’re lucky, and just the days themselves, and they’re not even required to have those days off. So that’s a huge part of it.

And then the cost to get “out” of the country. An airline ticket can cost £500+ to get across the country, much less out of it and to another country, and then hotel costs.

And then you have no holiday time to spend there.

People with “very generous” salaries (like $50,000 - $100,000) sometimes get two weeks of paid vacation per year.

I live in the US. Before I lived here I was a bit bemused that so few Americans have passports, but now I've been here 7 years I totally get it.

I think PPs who have compared it to Europeans only visiting Europe have nailed it. New York is as different to the Napa Valley as London is to Tuscany. Why fly to Chamonix to ski when you can go to Tahoe? Etc.

RE: holiday time, I have the same amount of holiday here as I did in the UK. Most of my friends have minimum 15 days a year and loads of companies have moved to unlimited vacation. I find the big difference is the way people take their holidays - it's not common to do a 2 week chunk of time away, it's far more common to take loads of shorter trips through the whole year - usually tacked onto a bank holiday.

As far as historical sites, true, places like Vatican City, Machu Pichu are not found within the United States, but then again, those types of sites are pretty thin on the ground in most places of the world, because they are literally one of a kind, and most people never see them in their lifetimes, even if they are passport holders and have the time and money to do so.

It's true - we are fortunate in Britain that it's so easy and cheap to get to countries in mainland Europe. I find it more amazing when I hear of Brits who have either never left their own country even to cross the many British borders!

@allfurcoatnoknickers

I live in the US. Before I lived here I was a bit bemused that so few Americans have passports, but now I've been here 7 years I totally get it.

I think PPs who have compared it to Europeans only visiting Europe have nailed it. New York is as different to the Napa Valley as London is to Tuscany. Why fly to Chamonix to ski when you can go to Tahoe? Etc.

RE: holiday time, I have the same amount of holiday here as I did in the UK. Most of my friends have minimum 15 days a year and loads of companies have moved to unlimited vacation. I find the big difference is the way people take their holidays - it's not common to do a 2 week chunk of time away, it's far more common to take loads of shorter trips through the whole year - usually tacked onto a bank holiday.

Yeah, I have four weeks paid per year, beyond the normal Christmas, New Years, Memorial Day, etc, and have done for 20 years. This year was the first year I have ever taken more than 4 day of that time in one chunk. I had always just taken a couple days here and there, tied to the other holidays and would regularly end up with 9 days off in a row with only using four days of vacation pay combined with weekend days.

If I lived in the US I wouldn’t have a burning desire to leave. Such diverse and beautiful scenery. You’d be spoilt for choice.

YABU. Hth

I'm American and have lived in Europe for nearly 30 years. I'm.tired of hearing about how Americans don't broaden their horizons by traveling. Plenty of them would love to, but as other posters have repeatedly pointed out, most people dont get much vacation time and the cost is simply prohibitive. British people travel, sure, to a beach with a bar in many cases. Not so much to soak up the culture. So give it a rest.

Anyway do you really want even more American tourists underfoot?

@Doingtheboxerbeat

I have heard that only 10% have a passport and most have woefully short holidays, so yes maybe.

I have met quite a number of Americans who have never been more than 2 states away.

It's true that the US doesn't have many ancient man-made tourist sites but it does have lots of dramatic natural wonders that give you that wow factor -- the Grand Canyon, Niagara Falls, the Rockies, Redwood Forest, etc etc

@dreamingbohemian

It's true that the US doesn't have many ancient man-made tourist sites but it does have lots of dramatic natural wonders that give you that wow factor -- the Grand Canyon, Niagara Falls, the Rockies, Redwood Forest, etc etc

Sure but the claim that everything is in the US is just not accurate. The US is excellent for natural beauty but that's not the only type of holiday

Well, Americans don’t legally have a set amount of days they are allowed off like other countries. To travel to the U.K. and Europe is expensive and out of reach for many Americans. The shortest flight from the US to the U.K. is about 6 hours and 4 hour time difference.

We have 50 states and five territories, mountains, hills, beaches (on lakes, seas, and oceans, regions that are warm year round and others with more temperate climates. If I remember correctly (may be mistaken), only a passport card is needed to visit Canada and Mexico and that is $30 compared to $145 for a passport.

To visit my parents alone from the U.K we have the two hour round trip to the airport (have to leave the house three hours ahead of time for the flight) )14 hour round trip flight and that doesn’t count the 10 hour round trip drive to their house (no direct flights to the airport nearest them and don’t want to chance waiting around or missing a connecting flight). My sister lives in Texas and it’s a 11/12 hour drive to my parents and about a three hour flight.

Percent of Americans with no paid vacation: 23 percent

Percent of Americans with no paid holidays at all: 22 percent

www.google.com/amp/s/www.washingtonpost.com/travel/2019/08/28/what-does-america-have-against-vacation/%3foutputType=amp

I have met quite a number of Americans who have never been more than 2 states away.

And in a lot of places in the United States, travelling just two states away is over 1000km. Hell, San Francisco California to Denver Colorado is further than London to Rome, and that is only three states, and well less than 1/3 of the way across the United States.

We live in California and it is so goddamn far from EVERYWHERE!!!

I met a lot of Australians who hadn't left Australia. The country is so huge and varied there is little point and I suspect it's the same in the US. Deserts, snow, forests, beaches and every other terrain you can mention. Don't get me wrong, I met plenty of Australians who went to one of the pacific islands, South East Asia or New Zealand but those aren't the quick jump to Europe the rest of us can do and it didn't seem as common. A lot of Australians met any discussions of travel with "why would I need to go overseas? Have you seen this country?" Or " I haven't finished visiting Australia yet".

To all those who believe Americans have very little vacation, I will just say that my husband has 30 days of vacation, 14 sick days and 4 personal days. He works for the State and all his colleagues have the same amount of time off.

America is a vast country. It takes 6 hours to fly from the East Coast to the West Coast. I think people from smaller countries have no idea of just how large the country is.

British people travel, sure, to a beach with a bar in many cases. Not so much to soak up the culture. So give it a rest.

Agree with this from the experience on various trips outside of the U.K. I noticed quickly that many British tourists were no better in behaviour than the American tourists that they like to sneer at.