Thanks Bubette, not sure if any statistics on US citizens travelling abroad are useful for comparison purposes. Didn't I read somewhere that only 18% of US citizens had ever been abroad?
In the UK, children of Jewish acquaintances are encouraged to visit Israel by their parents, and many used to do this through the Kibbutz system, often taking a "Gap" year between school and Uni.
I am sure that someone will correct me, but I don't think there is a Jewish equivalent to the Muslim Haj. Doesn't the urge to visit Israel stem more from the prophesy in the Bible, that God promised Israel to the Jews?