National Geographic Traveler USA - 04.2019 - 05.2019

APRIL/MAY 2019

UPGRADES

STRATEGY

bench there in her honor.

One of my last overseas

trips was to Portugal. I

stayed in a hotel in Cascais

that had been converted

from a fort to a hotel called

Pestana Cidadela.It’s

funny how places become

trendy, and Portugal

certainly is right now. I was

really grateful to be there

for a conference of LGBTQ

leaders from several

multinational corporations

around the world. Some

of these executives were

based in countries where

it’s still not safe or legal to

be out. It just convinced

me once again that we

have work to do from a

human rights perspective.

I use anAwaycarry-on.

It’s lightweight. It’s black—

I’m a New Yorker; all black,

all the time! This is silly,

but I love the wheels.

And I love to support

women-owned businesses.

A couple of my neat and

tidy friends introduced

me to Flight 001 packing

cubes (above). They zip up

and have sides for clean

and dirty clothes. I use a

handful of those. They’re a

mix of colors. Of course I

looked for gray and black,

but I ended up with a

rainbow in my bag and

I embrace it.

I almost always am in

black jeans from Rag &

Bone and a gray, black,

or white top. I’m often in

a graphic T-shirt from this

brand called Wildfang

(right). They’re another

women-owned business.

I grew up going back and

forth between London,

New York, and New Jersey.

went to the American

School in London and my

best friend was from South

Yemen. That changed my

view of the world and really

mpacted my desire to

travel and my appreciation

for diversity as an adult.

In my 20s, I sprinted to

the airport and almost

missed my flight every

time. Now I’m not afraid to

get there 1.5 hours before

and organize how I’ll use

those first few hours on

the plane. Oftentimes from

the airport, I call my mom.

She’s used to tuning out

background noise.

I move aroun

the plane. I pac

aisles and do a lo

of stretching. On

10-hour flight, it’s a

lot of water and

PowerPoint and

Excel for three

to four hours, then a

glass of champagne

and sleep.

I had a very special trip

to Malaysia with my wife

for her 40th birthday.

We stayed at The Dusun

[a small, former family

retreat], tucked into an

orchard on a mountainside.

It was the most amazing

off-the-grid experience.

The gentleman who helps

run it participated in the

Red Bull Music Academy,

and that was a couple

steps removed from how

I found out about it.

My advice to people

traveling is to never feign

sophistication. Ask naive

questions, dig in with your

cab driver, be open, and

take advice from bartend-

ers. Then stay in touch with

people you meet.

I S b Y v i t f t m t g

BRET HARTMAN (PORTRAIT), ALLARD SCHAGER/GETTY IMAGES (ARCH), FLIGHT001.COM (PACKING CUBES), WILD FANG (T-SHIRT)

I go to Austria on a regular

basis. Red Bull’s global

headquarters is in Fuschl

am See, which is right

outside of Salzburg. It’s

this really beautiful, quaint,

small village where our

founder established Red

Bull in 1987. It’s quite an

unusual place to have

what has become a large

company. When I stay in

Salzburg, it’s always at the

Hotel Stein.It has a surreal

view from its rooftop. I like

to go there by myself

when I first get in.

I’m not much of a ritual

person, but the one place

I have to visit is the High

Line in New York, where I

lived for awhile. I lost my

wife at age 40 to a brain

tumor. The High Line was

a special place for us in

the last few years—just to

walk and talk and process

things. Our friends and

family placed a special

How Red Bull’s

Amy Taylor Travels

The Los Angeles–based president of Red Bull North

America spends some 150 days a year on the road,

from Austria to Malaysia

As told to Elizabeth Sile

In Portugal, Lisbon’s Rua Augusta Arch, built to celebrate

the city’s recovery from the 1755 earthquake, offers

views of the harbor and beyond from its roof.

ton

ethe

ot

a

a

p

APRIL/MAY 2019

UPGRADES

STRATEGY

bench there in her honor.

One of my last overseas

trips was to Portugal. I

stayed in a hotel in Cascais

that had been converted

from a fort to a hotel called

Pestana Cidadela.It’s

funny how places become

trendy, and Portugal

certainly is right now. I was

really grateful to be there

for a conference of LGBTQ

leaders from several

multinational corporations

around the world. Some

of these executives were

based in countries where

it’s still not safe or legal to

be out. It just convinced

me once again that we

have work to do from a

human rights perspective.

I use anAwaycarry-on.

It’s lightweight. It’s black—

I’m a New Yorker; all black,

all the time! This is silly,

but I love the wheels.

And I love to support

women-owned businesses.

A couple of my neat and

tidy friends introduced

me to Flight 001 packing

cubes (above). They zip up

and have sides for clean

and dirty clothes. I use a

handful of those. They’re a

mix of colors. Of course I

looked for gray and black,

but I ended up with a

rainbow in my bag and

I embrace it.

I almost always am in

black jeans from Rag &

Bone and a gray, black,

or white top. I’m often in

a graphic T-shirt from this

brand called Wildfang

(right). They’re another

women-owned business.

I grew up going back and

forth between London,

New York, and New Jersey.

went to the American

School in London and my

best friend was from South

Yemen. That changed my

view of the world and really

mpacted my desire to

travel and my appreciation

for diversity as an adult.

In my 20s, I sprinted to

the airport and almost

missed my flight every

time. Now I’m not afraid to

get there 1.5 hours before

and organize how I’ll use

those first few hours on

the plane. Oftentimes from

the airport, I call my mom.

She’s used to tuning out

background noise.

I move aroun

the plane. I pac

aisles and do a lo

of stretching. On

10-hour flight, it’s a

lot of water and

PowerPoint and

Excel for three

to four hours, then a

glass of champagne

and sleep.

I had a very special trip

to Malaysia with my wife

for her 40th birthday.

We stayed at The Dusun

[a small, former family

retreat], tucked into an

orchard on a mountainside.

It was the most amazing

off-the-grid experience.

The gentleman who helps

run it participated in the

Red Bull Music Academy,

and that was a couple

steps removed from how

I found out about it.

My advice to people

traveling is to never feign

sophistication. Ask naive

questions, dig in with your

cab driver, be open, and

take advice from bartend-

ers. Then stay in touch with

people you meet.

I S b Y v i t f t m t g

BRET HARTMAN (PORTRAIT), ALLARD SCHAGER/GETTY IMAGES (ARCH), FLIGHT001.COM (PACKING CUBES), WILD FANG (T-SHIRT)

I go to Austria on a regular

basis. Red Bull’s global

headquarters is in Fuschl

am See, which is right

outside of Salzburg. It’s

this really beautiful, quaint,

small village where our

founder established Red

Bull in 1987. It’s quite an

unusual place to have

what has become a large

company. When I stay in

Salzburg, it’s always at the

Hotel Stein.It has a surreal

view from its rooftop. I like

to go there by myself

when I first get in.

I’m not much of a ritual

person, but the one place

I have to visit is the High

Line in New York, where I

lived for awhile. I lost my

wife at age 40 to a brain

tumor. The High Line was

a special place for us in

the last few years—just to

walk and talk and process

things. Our friends and

family placed a special

How Red Bull’s

Amy Taylor Travels

The Los Angeles–based president of Red Bull North

America spends some 150 days a year on the road,

from Austria to Malaysia

As told to Elizabeth Sile

In Portugal, Lisbon’s Rua Augusta Arch, built to celebrate

the city’s recovery from the 1755 earthquake, offers

views of the harbor and beyond from its roof.

ton

e the

ot

a

a

p