I would hate traveling alone for work, too. I've only traveled for work once, and I convinced my sister to go with me, so we did fun Chicago things in between my work stuff.
Also, what you're describing isn't so much the travel but the transit. The transit part of travel really is the worst--I love the Viking River Cruise slogan "spend less time getting there, and more time being there." This is why I prefer planes over car trips, and fewer layovers (I'd rather spend an extra $100 or $200 to NOT have a layover), and why I like to cook at my destination when possible. My DH and I are good travel partners, which helps tremendously. Some people find that they don't enjoy traveling with their spouse, and find a buddy to go with instead.
What traveling looks like for me: spend as little time as possible getting to destination, rent an apartment for at least a full week (longer is better), go grocery shopping, and settle in like a local. Walk around a lot, look at architecture, maybe see one major 'sight' per day, spend time reading at cafes or parks, visit libraries or book stores (a tote bag from a book store makes a great souvenir, usually very cheap), take rest breaks as needed, cook simple meals 'at home,' eat out once per day, and most importantly, talk to people. My DH is much better at starting random conversations with locals than I am, so I let him take the lead on this, and it's always very interesting.