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Though she recently released the paperback edition of her memoir, Sunshine Girl: An Unexpected Life, the actress Julianna Margulies admits she struggles to read on planes. “I always have this idea that I will read all the books I’ve been waiting to read if it’s a long flight. When it’s a short flight [it’s easier]—I just flew to Chicago and back in 24 hours, and I finished a book, so that’s a great way to do it!” she says. But on longer hauls, the actress explains, not without an apparent amount of guilt, “I’m not going to lie. I do like to binge watch shows I haven’t seen—to settle into my seat.”
Sunshiny indeed, Margulies was thrilled, on a recent phone call with Condé Nast Traveler, to share past trips and recommendations from around the world, including an onion dish in Florence, summer events in the Berkshires, and two hotels in Paris.
Her approach to packing:
I always start thinking days ahead, and I’m a light packer. If you pack for two weeks, you should be able to do a carry-on, because everything you pack for one week is what you need for two weeks. And I cannot bear waiting at an airport. I like to have everything with me and just get off the plane and go straight to where I’m going. Waiting for luggage is, to me, a nightmare, so I try to avoid it at all costs.
The suitcase that actually makes her excited to pack:
I was traveling so much during the pandemic because of The Morning Show; I had to go back and forth from L.A. to New York. I had seen everybody with these Away suitcases and I was like, ugh, everyone has the same suitcase—but then I found one that was rose gold. It’s my favorite piece of luggage. I get so happy when I’m packing it. By the way, I bought it, I’m not advertising! I love it because if I get to a foreign country, I can charge my phone in it, then not worry about bringing adapters. Also I’m a very good folder, and the way that it holds down your clothes—nothing’s wrinkled. It has a strap in the back so my knapsack can fit on the handle and I’m never hurting my back carrying anything, and I know that my computer’s safe. It’s just an easy way to travel.
Her travel pet peeves:
I have several. First of all, when you’re standing in line waiting to get on the plane, don’t make the rest of the line wait because you don’t have your ticket out. I never understand that! Have it out. If you’ve been waiting for hours to board, just be prepared, because it holds everybody up. Another is when, in the airport, people are texting while they’re walking with their bags. If you need to text, I get it. Just move to the side and stop. We all have places to go and it’s dangerous because when you’re a fast walker [like me], you end up slamming into people. And don’t try to bring more stuff on the plane than you’re allowed, because it holds everybody up. It drives me crazy.
https://www.cntraveler.com/story/how-i-travel-julianna-margulies
