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But what if the seeing the world part came almost 20 years after the rock band was formed, and happened in a whirlwind 20 days?
That's more or less the way it went last year with Canadian rock mainstays 54-40. Last summer they set off for Morocco, Kenya, Thailand and Hong Kong, not to perform, but to see the sights, sort of, and document their journey as a promotional and thematic tie-in to their latest release, Casual Viewin'.
"It wasn't about a holiday," says the Vancouver quartet's bassist Brad Merritt, who explains the band used the record company budget normally allotted for shooting videos.
"The pace doesn't really allow you to appreciate everything on the level that one could experience it at. But at the same time we were careful to take lots of photographs and every day we spent time uploading to our website.
"If there's one theme to the record, it's that the world has become a very, very fast place and it's just impossible to stay on top of it all, which people try and people start going crazy doing so. Essentially it's like -- don't do that."
To prove people shouldn't do that, 54-40 did.
Results can still be seen on www.5440.com, and the artwork for Casual Viewin'.
According to Merritt, the photos and videos are pretty much the only way he can remember specifics of the trip.
Which begs the question: Was the whole experience worth the time, money and effort?
"Was it worth it? In financial terms: Definitely. In terms of experience: Definitely. In terms of having a shared experience with my fellow bandmates: Definitely, again. In terms of helping identify certain similar thoughts and ideas we've had: Definitely, again."
Casual Viewin' itself, is yet another worthwhile experience from one of the country's most consistent musical acts. It's full of wonderfully meaty pop hooks and everything else you've come to expect and then be surprised by from 54-40, who play the Palace tomorrow.
Recorded in their own West Coast studio, it's already been nominated for the best rock album award at this year's Junos.
And unlike many Juno nods, which seem to be merely given out as a reward for longevity in the Canadian music industry, the nod seems like a genuine testament to how good 54-40 have become as a band through the course of two decades and nine studio recordings.
As Merritt says, that quality can only come with familiarity: "All of the personal kinds of things, all of the issues were dealt with so long ago. The staking out of your territory intellectually and musically, that's all been dealt with, so now we're like a family, for better or worse," he says.
"So the challenge in our situation, after being in a band for 20 years with the same guys, is to challenge yourself as a player as a writer and as a contributor."