It's worth the sometimes tedious journey.
Where is the exploration? Where are the interactions in towns? Why do I walk 20 steps and trigger a cut scene? Why is Vanille so annoying? Why is everything automated?
But after about 15-20 hours, the game opens up in a big way. The missions start becoming engaging and rewarding...and some of them are extremely challenging. I found myself mixing strategies and abandoning the automated system. I was no longer going through the motions to get to the ending sequence.
Hours of play started ballooning and the side missions and stats upgrades were a lot of fun. I started caring about the characters which made finishing the game something I wanted to do instead of what I initially perceived as a chore. Plus instead of walking on rails, I got to explore and I realized how beautifully detailed this game really is.
That first (large) chunk of the game is not much fun. But it's worth it in the end. What started out as one of my least favourite FF games now ranks as one of the most memorable.
If you can handle a bit of initial torture, it will pay off. Trust me (or not...it's really up to you :)