Celebrity Travel: Go Away With Derek Hough
A. Chicago. I'm not kidding you! I just did a tour this summer with my sister (dancer Julianne Hough) and had two days off in Chicago. We had the most beautiful weather. It wasn't too hot or too cold. We walked for miles around the city and enjoyed the architecture. I loved how clean it was, the energy, walking by the lake and watching people play volleyball. It felt a lot like home to me.
Q. When you're touring for work, how much of a city can you actually explore?
A. I'm not going to lie -- it's pretty grueling when I'm traveling for work. It's like running a marathon every single night, but in a fantastic way. But I almost always will find a little time to get out and see what the cities have to offer. Sometimes it'll just be getting to a new restaurant, but it's important to do even that.
Q. What was the first trip you took as a child? And did you love it ... or not so much?
A. When we were kids, we traveled a lot, but by car. We did big road trips. We did Zion National Park, Bryce Canyon (National Park), all the beautiful national parks in Utah. We visited the Grand Canyon. One of the first vacations that we flew to and was a big deal was to Hawaii. We stayed at the Turtle Bay Inn (in Oahu) and it's still a very fond memory for all of us. I remember playing with those poi balls and seeing those fire-dancing dudes.
Q. How important are weekend getaways to you?
A. I would say that everyone needs weekend getaways on a regular basis, and that's what I need to work on, because I don't get to do that enough. I need to reconnect with nature and adventure and find that place I can escape to. It's important to work hard, but it's also important to have that balance in life. Thanks for reminding me. That's going to be one of my focuses and goals over the next couple of months.
Q. What are your favorite hotels?
A. St. Regis in Bora Bora was pretty phenomenal. Can't beat that. The W hotels are great, too. Any Starwood hotel is really good for me.
Q. What are some of your favorite cities?
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