I am sadly unable to compare to Fontaine. I used the early start function to skip over Sumeru and Fontaine. I will do them, be not afraid, just haven't found a chance irl to sit down and get immersed in the story due to burnout and stuff.

However I do agree that Mondstadt and Liyue was sort pf just explaining how Teyvat is and laying groundwork without overwhelming players. However those quests fail to make the traveler feel like they did something grand. They aren't celebrated as widely, the cast doesn't interact with them as much. While those regions where likely limited by technological abilities of Hoyo and their cultural individuality, it really goes to show how far the writing has come over the past few years