The Daily Telegraph - Saturday - Travel
KELLY PRESTON MY LIFE IN TRAVEL
The actress explains how growing up on an island made her love the ocean – and reveals the perks of having a pilot husband
I NEED TO DISCONNECT from my busy life and have family time. It’s the key thing John [Travolta, her actor husband] and I need on a holiday and it doesn’t matter where we are.
MAINE IS OUR HAVEN. When we bought the coastal estate 20 years ago, there was no electricity, I was five months pregnant, it was just a few months before Christmas and we had both sides of our family coming to stay. We lived in a shack down the lane with snow drifts keeping us indoors. Our aim was to be the best possible hosts and we wanted it all done perfectly, even if it meant staying up into the next morning.
THE PEOPLE ARE SO KIND AND DOWN-TO-EARTH which is what I love most about Maine. The water is gorgeous, although it can be a bit cold even in summer. In winter, it’s like being in a Norman Rockwell scene – snowy, traditional and recalling a time when things were simpler.
Maine lobsters are legendary, too.
I ADORE SOUTH AFRICA. It has such an extraordinary beauty at such a deep level. The space, the expanses and the spirituality that you feel… people are so kind and welcoming. We go on safari every few years and as a family we’ve been at least six times. We try to go during the months when it’s not extreme heat.
IT’S GREAT BEING MARRIED TO A PILOT. John and I travel all the time. He’s had his licence for almost 30 years. At our house in Ocala, northern Florida, we have the planes parked out front because we have a runway attached. I never get nervous when John’s piloting because he’s cool in any situation and can handle the pressure. He’s flown us all over the world – Russia, South Africa, Australia, Tahiti, the UK, the US and the Far East.
PEOPLE WERE AFRAID TO FLY after 9/11 so John and I went on a world tour in our 707. John was heartbroken, both personally and as a pilot because he didn’t want people to live with this fear. It was his idea, after speaking to Qantas and becoming an ambassador, to fly from continent to continent to try to bring people together and encourage peace, and to show that we couldn’t be beaten. It was very emotional for us. The kids travelled with us.
ONE OF MY EARLIEST MEMORIES OF TRAVELLING was going to Disneyland in California with my step-grandmother, who’s Tahitian. It really was one of the happiest places on earth and to this day I still love it.
HAWAII IS PERFECTION TO ME. I was born and raised on Oahu in Hawaii, and when I was little we were constantly travelling back and forth to the other islands such as Kauai and Maui. Going to the mainland was a really big deal. It was very concerning, though, speaking to my mother recently as Category 4 Hurricane Lane bore down on them. Thankfully, she and other members of my family are all safe.
I’M AN OCEAN BABY and that’s why Tahiti and Bora Bora are some of the favourite places that Johnny and I fly into. I love scuba diving, jet skiing, water skiing and surfing. Although the last time I was surfing, I was practically crying because of the offshore winds and I was trying to go against the current. I felt like I wasn’t going to make it back to shore. Thankfully, a sweet surfer helped tow me in.
LIVING IN IRAQ WAS QUITE A CHANGE. My step-dad worked for an agricultural firm and when I was five we were sent to live in Amarah, in south-east Iraq, while he helped teach local Arab farmers to be more self-sufficient.
EVERY PLACE HAS SOMETHING MAGICAL ABOUT IT even if it’s barren or desolate. We lived in a compound for westerners and I remember being shuttled in by armoured vehicles. It was right after the Six-Day War in 1967 so there was a lot of political unrest, but I have wonderful memories. I learnt to ride a bike there, I had lots of local friends and I made the shipping boxes into my play huts.
At our house in Florida, we have the planes parked out front because we have a runway
I’VE ALWAYS WANTED TO VISIT JAPAN. In my teens, when I was starting out as a model, I did a lot of Japanese commercials, but the crews would always come to Hawaii because they loved the location.
the new film starring Kelly Preston and John Travolta, is out on DVD on Sept 24