Yes, and when that choice is universally made, it becomes the bog standard. In the seven years 5E has existed there's not been a single group I've played with or ran for that didn't include someone with outlander, a ranger, or someone with tiny hut, the food & water spells, or some grand combination of all of them. It's also a choice to put your high stat in the main stat for your class, but it's so ubiquitous that it's not even really a "choice". Likewise with picking a race that has an ability bonus that helps your class. When it's so universally made it's no longer a "choice". Which is why they put customizing your lineage in Tasha's. Now players feel empowered to not just pick a race/class combo that gets them max ability scores for their class...because any race choice they make will still get them those max ability score bonuses. That's how much of a non-choice that's been. Same with travel. It's such a non-choice that literally everyone does it. Almost in the same way all groups just happen to have a healer. It's a "choice". But it's so universal it's a non-choice. You either make this choice or some part of the game sucks. That's not a meaningful choice.
A travelogue isn't engaging. The risks of wilderness travel and exploration are what makes it engaging. Without those risks, there's nothing to be engaged by. I like sandboxes and hexcrawls, so yeah, I get that wilderness exploration and travel are more than just navigation, travel time, and foraging. But those are interesting, too. It bothers me that they're basically removed in 5E.
I make outlander advantage on survival checks to navigate and forage. And I do just that with rangers and Tasha's.
