Carry On or Check?

Celebrities are practically travel fanatics, forever on the road and globetrotting from one event to the next, whether it’s in Cannes, New York or L.A.  However, the logistics may differ from one person to the next. We at Travelsquire.com posed the debatable question, “Do you carry on or check your luggage?” to a random list of A-listers. Here’s what we found out.

First, we caught up with the Bella Twins wrestling duo at the American Heart Association’s Red Dress fashion show. Brie said, “I carry-on if it’s two days. If it’s more, I check.” Nikki responded, “I’m an awful packer, so the majority of the time, I carry on.

Bella Twins on the Carry on or Check dilema for TravelSquire
The Bella Twins

Actress Rosanna Arquette told us she “usually takes too much, but she’s learning to compact.”  She added, “I’m beginning to get into carrying-on if I can. But, usually, I need a bag for all of my vitamins and stuff!”

Celebrity stylist Micaela Erlanger, whose clients include Lupita Nyong’o and Meryl Streep, shared with us at an Accessories Council preview: “I travel between LA and NY the most, so I try to keep it light. I have a home in LA, so I keep a lot of my belongings there, which lends itself to carry on.”

Actress Kelly LeBrock revealed at a Jez magazine party that she prefers to check. “I pack way too much, but I’m getting better. Often, I have too many shoes and the totally wrong clothes. I live on a ranch north of Santa Barbara, and there no one cares how I dress!” she laughed.

Rosanna Arquette on TravelSquire
Rosanna Arquette Courtesy of American Heart Association

 

“Despacito” darling and Grammy-award nominee Luis Fonsi told us at the Marriott #Lovetravels Beyond Barriers launch: “A lot of the times I check. I’ll carry on electronics for recording and perhaps a mic, a small amp, headphones and personal stuff.” Sometimes also what I’m going to wear onstage.

Oscar-winning director Florian Henckel von Donnersmarck said at a screening for “Never Look Away”: “I only carry-on. I want to have every moment with my kids before I depart, so I usually arrive late to the airport. If I was more fashion conscious, I would check. I’ll have the same clothes on tomorrow, as I did today because it’s all I could fit in the carry-on!”

At a luncheon for American Heritage Chocolate & First Book, pastry chef Daniel Skurnick shared: “If I’m doing an event where I must bring knives, because of regulations, I check. One time I had to fly from New York to San Francisco carrying 600 truffles on my lap – they were more valuable than anything else! I didn’t want to let them out of my sight.

Daniel Skurnick of American Heritage Chocolate on TravelSquire
Chef Daniel Skurnick Courtesy of American Heritage Chocolate

Titus Burgess, host of Heritage Tours “Indulgent South Africa” admitted, “Depends on how long I’ll be there. I try to travel light if I can and carry-on, especially if I’m filming – then I’ll be in someone else’s clothes. I just wear sweats on the plane.

Richard C. Grant, who starred in Fox Searchlight’s “Can You Ever Forgive Me?”, supported his opinion with a few reasons:  “I carry on because my luggage has already been lost and I’m impatient so I never want to wait at the luggage carousel; plus, you can shop at your destination. My wife doesn’t agree. She says, ‘A woman cannot travel with one pair of shoes!’ ”

Chef Jacques Torres, whom we ran into at Taste of the Upper West Side and at a Holland America reception, exclaimed: “When I don’t have to check, I won’t!

Jacque Torres on TravelSuqire
Chef Jacques Torres

At the launch party for XEOMIN by Merz Aesthetics, Christie Brinkley admitted, “I check – I travel with too much stuff!

Kenneth Cole stated: “I carry-on for flexibility. Less is more. It forces you to make decisions which makes traveling easier.”

Tennis player Victoria Azarenka explained at the Loews Regency: “Both. We travel with so many things: clothing, shoes, even rackets — can’t possibly carry those on. In my carry-on, I have a computer, books, and toys for my son now. We had luggage missing for a couple of days recently. So, my coach carries my rackets.”

Christie Brinkley on TravelSquire
Christie Brinkley

Fellow player Amanda Anisimova said, “I check because my bag is too heavy. And a couple of times my luggage got lost.”

Chef Stephanie Izard’s response took the cake. At an event for Stacy’s Rise Project in the International Culinary Center, she shared: “I always check my luggage because my hair products cannot go through the scanner. But I did lose my luggage yesterday and ended up getting it at 10 o’clock at night. So, I had to buy a new outfit. From now on, I think I’m going to try to carry on.

How do all our readers feel?  Let me know!

thom@travelsquire.com