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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]I agree with the more disposable income. Also, travel is much easier than it was 20/ 30 years ago. There are many more resources available for people who want to travel. You can look up rates and book with airlines directly instead of relying and booking with a travel agent. Discount airlines exist. AirBnb and VRBO exist in a space where there used to be hostels and hotels.

I also think COVID kept people home, and now they are doubling down on travel in a way no one has seen before. DH is m overseas, and after not having the ability to easily see family and home for a long time, will find ways for us to travel there.

I also don’t think the concept and role of social media isn’t a factor. So many people view themselves as potential influencers, and what are you if you’re not having exotic travel pics to share?

And my last thought it that people are always looking for ways to make their children “better” than their friends (cough cough seen as competition). They’re no longer getting ahead on tutoring and travel sports, so there is something left in international travel to make them (or the family) seem more worldly. I agree that travel makes s Peel more worldly, but what I often see is a ski resort in Colorado being set apart for two in France and Switzerland, even though the kids will never do anything other than fly in and ski. [/quote]

Agree that your last point is definitely a thing among UMC people, at least in the DMV. There's a strong push for your kid to be worldly. Language immersion is part of this too, and tangential to people who make a big deal about their foreign nanny or housekeeper and how their kids are learning about another culture through her. I also know people who are very weirdly boastful about their friends who are not American. That last one is so specific to DC, I think, where there are many people from other countries living and working here, but it's still kind of funny to hear sometimes, when I hear people going on and on about their friends who are this or that nationality, and then you meet them and they are just regular UMC professionals in DC.

But yes, the thing about making their kids worldly via travel is funny when people then spend a lot of money to make sure travel is easy and smooth and perfectly entertaining and comfortable. I guess there is a kind of worldliness that comes from being able to say you went to some Michelin starred restaurant in Barcelona at the age of 5 or went skiing in the Swiss Alps at 8. But to me, worldliness from travel comes from discomfort and having to adjust -- the challenge of navigating another country and maybe a language you don't speak or barely speak, dealing with jet lag and imperfect accommodations, and the unexpected surprises of travel. To me that's character building and memorable in a way that really is good for kids (and adults). But most people don't want that because it's harder.[/quote]

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