A student who is not interested in drinking alcohol may not find a fraternity/sorority-centered school like Dartmouth, Washington & Lee, or Depauw to be a very pleasant environment. A heavily religious school like BYU may not be a good environment for someone who is not an observant member of the school’s religion.
On the other hand, it is probably true that there are many other environmental characteristics that are greatly overrated by both students and parents posting here. These include distance from home (students commonly want to go far from home or out-of-state, while parents commonly want to keep the students close), size (can be relevant to academics, but often considered outside of academic context), perceived (not always accurately) racial/ethnic/political mix, and first impression from a visit.
For students with tight cost limits and/or unusual academic interests, putting up with a less than ideal college environment may be necessary to get the desired academics at an affordable price.