If you feel like you are not missing anything, then more power to you. It really has a lot to do with how you relate to people, it seems like for you it’s activities only and you don’t seem to bond intellectually too much or you wouldn’t be asking.

I’ve had several long distance friendships, in fact I still have and they are among my most stable relationships outside of family. It’s having those people you can rely on when things get tough for support, and also to share thoughts and discuss opinions or whatever - to have a conversation knowing we understand each other in a way most people don’t. That can be very rewarding even if I don’t see them face to face anymore, or, in some cases, even if I’ve never met them in person.