Do you purposely skew polls?

[Tap]

And yet, so far, only 5% have answered no or other.

Yep, looks like I am wrong.

Maybe I used false logic. Since there is only one person working, maybe there is more time to travel. LOL ...and all those home school field trips to boot!

[abacus2]

Yep, looks like I am wrong.

Maybe I used false logic. Since there is only one person working, maybe there is more time to travel. LOL ...and all those home school field trips to boot!

 

I'd say people who see the value of classical education are likely well educated and well traveled.

[NancyNellen]

That fact doesn't debunk the data. I do not have a passport at the moment, at least not a current one, but I have traveled to other countries. I only get my passport updated when I need it.

 

Kelly

 

This is me, as well. I have traveled abroad on more than one occasion, but let my passport expire when I had small children. I knew the likelihood of foreign travel in the near future was slim.

[catz]

OMW, did she really say that? False dichotomy is right! I've worked since I was 13, and I've traveled outside the US three times. I paid my own way every single time. Even my parents, who are plenty blue collar and who have also worked since they were 16 and never went to college, have traveled internationally. What a bizarre characterization!

 

Yikes - me too. My parents did help me to go to France in high school and took me to Mexico and Canada, but I paid for all my foreign travel beyond age 18. I only get my passport updated when I need it too. Mine was expired, but we just redid them for all of us because my DH has been traveling overseas for work and we thought it'd be nice to be ready if that were ever an option for us to tag along.

 

And if the original poll took Canada and Mexico into account it makes a little more sense.

[Miss Marple]

Wow! I'm surprised! In my "world" many haven't been across state lines. My family is considered an anomaly in my circle of friends and acquaintences because we've traveled extensively. Even many college students my sons are friends with are shocked that my boys have traveled internationally quite a bit. A scholarship interviewer discussed ds's travel extensively in his interview - he was surprised at the extent of travel ds had done. We work a lot with inner city kids/families who have never been out of state. Of course these same people would probably not have access to the Internet poll.

 

We took a group of youth from our church to Honduras several years ago for a missions trip. Many had not been out of the state before that trip.

 

As a child we traveled extensively. My mom always claimed to be part gypsy. We had little money but travel was important to my family. We traveled across Canada one summer living in a camper shell on a 1965 ford pickup - 2 parents and 3 daughters! dad was self employed so we always took off about a month every summer. Great memories.

[prairiebird]

I've only ever been to 4 states, let alone any countries. But we've been broke our entire lives and are still squeaking by.

 

I've never seen big hills, a mountain, or the ocean, so I hope we can do that one day!

[SKL]

I am not surprised by the 78% (keeping in mind that most major population areas are close to Canada or Mexico). But the 61% who have been to 2 countries surprised me. No matter where you live in the USA, you're not very close to more than one foreign country. And most Americans don't have such recent foreign roots that they "must" go back and revisit the "old country." On the other hand, many people have gone out of country for honeymoons, big anniversaries, etc.; and those who are immigrants or have overseas relatives will probably have tried to visit at least once.

 

Did it say 61% have been to 2 countries, or have gone out of the country twice? As in two trips to the nearest neighbor country?

[Abigail4476]

I would guess that probably 78% of the adults I know IRL have traveled somewhere outside the U.S. at least once.

 

All 3 of my children have been to Canada, and my oldest was a flower girl in her godfather's U.K. wedding (she got to go and I didn't :glare:).

 

:iagree:

 

At least to Mexico or Canada, if nowhere else. All of my sisters and their husbands have been over the border one way or the other, and my oldest sister has been to the Philippines for a missionary trip. Others have travelled for military purposes, which I suspect would account for a fair amount of traveling abroad.

 

When we lived in Louisiana, I had friends who went into Mexico to shop at least a couple of times per year.

 

I actually can't think of that many friends or family who haven't been out of the country at least once.

[elegantlion]

Yep, looks like I am wrong.

Maybe I used false logic. Since there is only one person working, maybe there is more time to travel. LOL ...and all those home school field trips to boot!

 

We traveled when we had money. I've never been to Mexico and neither of us has been to Canada. My mom and some side of her family has never traveled out of the country.

 

We always drove places when I was a kid, the biggest employer in our area was TWA. I was so jealous of the kids that got to fly on vacations.

[LucyStoner]

This is all I can find about the methodology:

 

"The LivingSocial Vacation survey was conducted online in February 2012 among 4,000 Americans in the top 20 media markets (DMAs) and 1,600 additional respondents in Australia, Canada, Ireland, and the United Kingdom. The survey was conducted by Mandala Research, LLC. Respondents were not limited to LivingSocial members. "

 

Do I think 78% of people who have internet access and interest in a travel-rlated website have traveled overseas? Yeah, probably. That really doesn't say anything about U.S. travelers in general, though.

 

It would be interesting to rule out Canada and mexico, too, and get results. For some of us, Canada is closer than many other U.S. cities. ;)

 

Also, this is in in the top 20 media markets, so fairly urban areas.

 

I would say that the bulk of:

 

urban/suburbanites

who use the internet

who use Living Social and thus have some spending money

 

have travelled outside of the country.

 

I do not have a valid passport right now but I have been out of the country (and not only to Canada, which is closer to me than the border of another state.)

[vonfirmath]

Canada is a foreign country. In this state I would be surprised if I met someone who had not been to Canada. I would assume that more people who live farther south have gone to Mexico.

 

Growing up in TX and living in WA for 14 years, I've been to 2 foreign countries. Both of my parents have been to Mexico.

My sister has been to--lots. (She went to Germany when she was 16 or so. And our relatives in Germany took her to France, England, Switzerland, etc. while she was visiting. Then she went to Saudia Arabia last ear.)

 

In our small group, we have a family that goes to Brazil every year or so and a family that is planning a trip to England and another family planning a trip to Australia. So only 3 people in the entire group who I dont know if they've been to a foreign country or not. We've got a lot of families in our Sunday School class that have travelled to the Middle East for adoptions. Plus missions trips to various countries, and those who went to Haiti to help out...

[Murphy101]

Many more people are traveling outside the USA for work these days. Even those on lower incomes. My dh for example has been to Germany, costa rica, Canada, Mexico, the Phillipenes(sp!) and is expected to be given "orders" for south Africa and India by the end of this year.

 

His dad has traveled the world multiple times and so has both set of his grandparents.

 

My dad went to Europe and south America a couple times since he retired, he took my brother with him once and his sister another time.

 

My BFF has been to a couple asian countries for work.

 

Both my BFF and dh don't come anywhere near making lots of money or recreation travel type income, but they are both very good at their jobs. Which makes them perfect candidates to train outsourcing companies' new over seas staff. :(

 

So, recreational travel? I only know a few old folks that have done that.

 

Travel related to work? I don't know many that haven't had to do that over the last 10 years.

[tex-mex]

Haven't read the entire thread. Forgive me if this has already been said.

 

I would highly suspect the numbers of people count visiting Canada or Mexico would be the big factor. Even Senior Citizen snowbirds come from up north to the US/Mexico border and go across to get cheap prescriptions and dental cleanings, for example. Probably not a high number since the wave of violence... but you get the main idea. :D

 

And what about college students who go to Mexico for Spring Break? People who drive from the tip of Michigan to Canada to the West Coast of the US for a summer vacation? That is traveling thru a foreign country. There is also big money for buying cheap prescriptions in Canada too. And it is safer. ;) I even heard one tourist call visiting Hawaii a "foreign" trip. (I was stunned to say the least.) LOL

 

ETA: Travel related work? My spouse does that all of the time. I never get to go. He traveled to Switzerland, Germany, Easter Island, and Chile just this past year. Son and I only get to fly to Houston to see our specialist. Boo.

Edited June 5, 2012 by tex-mex

[tex-mex]

I agree. But I also think that very poor people don't have the $100 for a passport, much less the journey. There are an awful lot of poor people in this country, and they can't take a month off of work.

 

I've read that most passport holders are senior citizens, and immigrants and their children. I can't find the source, though. But obviously members of the military and their family have a more international life than the average citizen.

Keep in mind that not too long ago (before 9/11), many people could travel to and from Mexico and Canada with only their driver's license. It only was recent that one needed a passport for those 2 countries.

 

When we lived in the Mojave Desert of Southern CA, I knew a lot of poor people who did not have private insurance or medicaid. Often, they would drive the 2-3 hours to the Mexican border town of Mexicali to get a $25 dental cleaning, tooth pulled, or prescriptions. In Mexico, one did not need a doctor's prescription to buy drugs -- just go up to the counter and say the drug name. Pay the $$ and go to a restaurant to eat down the street. It was a big business with tourism for border towns. Then cross into the US border and drive home. It made for a long day. But they got health care taken care of. Cannot do that anymore.

Edited June 5, 2012 by tex-mex

[Murphy101]

I agree. But I also think that very poor people don't have the $100 for a passport, much less the journey. There are an awful lot of poor people in this country, and they can't take a month off of work.

 

No they don't. Which is why their company often pays for the passport. As was/is the case with my dh and BFF. And it IS work.;)

[ThisIsTheDay]

I went to British Columbia when I was 13. We took the ferry, and we were home before dark. Technically, that counts.

 

When one look at the demographics on the poll, it seems quite reasonable.

 

Even if 10% of people lied on a poll of any significant number of people, they would not all come up with the same answer. The margin for error is usually built in.

[KungFuPanda]

Unless I'm remembering wrong, (It has been 100 years since I got out) you used to be able to travel on military orders without a passport. If you factor that in along with expired passports and only recently needing passports for Mexico and Canada that can easily make up the difference in percentage. I don't think the poll HAD to be skewed to get those results. I've been overseas a handful of times and have yet to make it to Mexico or Canada.