Disclosure: I’ve traveled and I’ve lived abroad in two different countries and been dozens of places outside of my ‘home’.
But I don’t get this obsession people have with travel being the uber alles thing you can do and how if you don’t do it all the time or as much as possible you are a ignorant incurious person. I don’t see my travel as being this amazing thing… it was just a nice thing that I did and frankly I don’t remember very much about it and what I do remember I don’t think is a more important memory than lots of other things I did in life.
I don’t think I am superior or ‘worldly’ because of it compared to someone who has never traveled abroad. But it is an extremely common belief/attitude I encounter on a regular basis and it confuses the hell out of me. I’ve met plenty of people that just go on the attack when you don’t want to ‘exchange amazing travel stories’ with them or daydream with them about all the places you’d like to go. There are some places I’d like to go, but again, it’s not a big deal to me that I see it as some big important part of my life and I certain do not condescend towards people who aren’t as ‘well traveled’ as I am like it’s some contest or achievement.
Compared to some bumpkin who’s never been more than 100 miles from home, though, you definitely have more perspective on the world.
What if the non-traveler had an internet connection and wasn’t mentally incompetent? What if the person who travels just does it so they can be hedonistic somewhere nobody knows them (as it tends to happen, like Brits in Spain and all the "eat, pray, love girlies)? Sometimes it’s a cultural experience, most of the time it isn’t, from what I’ve seen.
This is the biggest selling point of travel for me. Traveling expands your worldview and allows you to see firsthand other people and cultures. To realize that all humans are the same no matter where we’re from.
I’ve never met anyone snobby about travel, but the experience and worldview is why I’m passionate about it and think everyone should do it at least a little. Empathy is severely lacking in the world.