Why is traveling such a big deal for people?

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…

When air travel became available, it was super expensive, which meant that only rich people could do it. About a century later, it became cheap enough that middle-class people could travel occasionally. Because of that history, travelling got a shimmering magic aura in our minds.
I live 20 minutes from the French and the Swiss borders. When I visit Basel or Straßburg I’m not “being like rich people”.
Attitudes have changed a bit since short distance flights aren’t prohibitively expensive any more. However, that’s still a bit of an exception. To many “air travel” refers to flying to a tourist destination once a year instead of attending a quarterly business meeting.
It’s worth travelling to Straßburg just for the melty cheese goodness.