[swampangel]

While fictional, the Canterbury Tales portrays pilgrimages as a kind of extended carnival, where some of society's normal rules are suspended. You can argue that tourism was born out of catering to pilgrims: http://blog.museumoflondon.org.uk/pilgrim-badges-birth-touri...

Of course there are more serious traditions of pilgrimage, but people are people, and for every one with a deep connection to their faith, there are others who will use the excuse of pilgrimage for a break from the routine.

[emodendroket]

That's a fair point. It'd be interesting to see a comparison with the modern phenomenon of the Hajj, which seems like the best point for comparison of something in the modern world. People do, of course, do tours of Christian holy sites too, but I think that, in general, the seriousness of purpose of the average Hajj-goer is likely greater.