Celebrity Travel: Go Away With Karin Slaughter

A New York Times bestselling author, Karin Slaughter's latest book is the thriller, "Pretty Girls" (William Morrow, $27.99). "Since all of my stories are set in Georgia, I don't have to travel far to write about how beautiful the state is," says the 44-year-old Atlanta resident. "The mountains, the shore, the piedmont -- they're all ripe for wonderful descriptions." Fans interested in meeting Slaughter may check out her website for local book signings (http://www.karinslaughter.com/about-karin/appearances/). She also interacts with fans on her Facebook page (https://www.facebook.com/AuthorKarinSlaughter).

Q. What is your favorite vacation destination?

A. For the last two years, I've gone to St. Martin in the Caribbean with a group of friends. We rent a house on Baie Rouge and just sit around and talk and eat and read and eat again and nap and eat and read again and then we go to sleep and get up the next morning and do the same thing all over again.

Q. What untapped destination should people know about?

A. Atlanta! I mean -- more than the airport, because everybody has seen the airport. I really love it here. There's so much history and there's a lot to do and the restaurants are amazing and I highly recommend the Segway tour. I know that sounds cheesy, but it's an amazing tour that gives you insight into so many parts of the city, plus they let you stop for popsicles from King of Pops, the most awesome popsicles in the entire known world.

Q. What was the first trip you took as a child? And did you love it ... or not so much?

A. Since I grew up in Georgia, every trip we ever took for vacation was to the Florida Panhandle, aka the Redneck Riviera. These were miserable trips as I, the youngest of three girls, had to sit on the hump in the backseat the entire six-hour journey, trapped between my two sisters who would not let me breathe on them, look at them or think about them. My dad did not like to stop for anything, so there was occasionally a case of uremic poisoning, which was only lessened by the sensation of the skin on the back of our legs ripping off onto the vinyl seats. Then, of course, as soon as we got to the beach, I would step out of the car, immediately get third-degree burns, break out into a rash, spike a fever and have to spend the rest of the trip lying on my stomach in a dark room while my family had a great time at the beach.

Q. What's the most important thing you've learned from your travels?

A. That my dad can hold a cigarette in one hand, a drink in the other and still somehow manage to drive a car while slapping the fire out of our legs for fighting with each other.

Oh -- and as an author touring -- I've learned that you can always buy toothpaste when you get there. The name on the tube might be different, but the logo will be the same. It's amazing how interconnected the world is. I have literally bought Aquafresh in Dubai, even though the words were in Arabic, because I recognized the wavy white-and-blue gel on the label.

Q. Have you traveled to a place that stood out so much that you felt compelled to incorporate it into your work?

A. I do find that when I've done something unusual on a trip, like swim with the sharks in Australia or sit in a sauna in Finland, then jump naked into the iced-over Baltic, that it has given me an appreciation for the comforts of home. Nothing makes you love fried chicken and a warm biscuit even more than eating limp meat from a roadside stand in Croatia.

Q. What are your five favorite cities?

A. Atlanta, Amsterdam, London, Helsinki, Auckland.

Q. When you go away, what are some of your must-have items?

A. Books, whether they're on my reading device or not. My skin care products because I'm sensitive to everything. Lots of water. And I have the way coolest travel chargers that were ever invented. I like to fly seat 3C on Delta when I go overseas because no one has to crawl over you to get to the bathroom. Also, the plane will go down if I don't get that seat, so there's no way I can trade with anybody even if they just got married and want to sit together, so don't even ask.

Q. What would be your dream trip?

A. At least three months in Australia and New Zealand so that I could really see all those things I've missed when I've been before. Flying over the islands of New Zealand is like being inside "The Lord of the Rings." It's so verdant and magnificent. Anyone who has seen the movies should know that nothing was enhanced. That's really how it looks. Fun fact: New Zealand has its own internationally recognized breed of sheep dog. Because the grade is so hilly, the dog responds to voice commands rather than sight commands.

Q. What is your guilty pleasure when you're on the road?

A. Subway. Am I the most disappointing world traveler ever? I have a lot of allergies, so mostly I spend my mealtimes overseas praying I won't go into anaphylactic shock. I lost five pounds the week I stayed at Raffles in Singapore. There's something called Koan Float in Amsterdam where you float around in an isolation pod, then you can get a massage. That's always relaxing to me -- that sense of floating in the warm water in total silence. The facility is right beside the Hotel Ambassade, which is also a lovely hotel and I always try to get a float in when I am touring.

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(Jae-Ha Kim is a New York Times bestselling author and travel writer. You can respond to this column by visiting her website at www.jaehakim.com. You may also follow "Go Away With..." on Twitter at @GoAwayWithJae where Jae-Ha Kim welcomes your questions and comments.)