I think you have it somewhat backwards though. Europe is small. Unless you live in Europe, you are quite restricted in terms of how much variety you can experie

I think you have it somewhat backwards though. Europe is small. Unless you live in Europe, you are quite restricted in terms of how much variety you can experience without flying. For example, a trip from San Francisco to Los Angeles takes over 6 hours of driving (bus is even worse). And that's "just next door" as far as US metropolitan cities go. And no, this isn't americanism or defending car culture. Consider also that rail system coverage in South America or Africa is severely lacking if compared to Europe. And for better or for worse, a very large number of popular destinations are indeed insular. Ironically, Europe is also effectively inaccessible without planes for tourists from elsewhere (either because of geography or sheer distance)