If you want travel tips and tricks, consult Coco Rocha. The Canadian native’s busy modeling career makes her a frequent flier, but she also carries the knowledge of an insider. Known for her poses — she literally wrote one of the definitive books on the topic, Study of Pose — Rocha comes from an airline family. Both of her parents and other relatives, including an uncle who founded Canadian airline Air Transat, worked in the industry — which meant she grew up on airplanes.
Before Rocha jetted off to Paris Fashion Week, we caught up with the mother of three during some downtime to discover her travel hacks, favorite hotels and go-to plane outfit.
What do you pack in your carry-on?
I’ve gotten into the habit of taking my daughter’s Nintendo Switch with me if I can sneak it out the house. After the stress of security, it is fun to play a game or two when you finally have that moment to relax.
I also always carry a charger for my phone, some good moisturizer, a protein bar in case snacks don’t come around fast enough, and post-pandemic hand sanitizer and masks are still a must for me.
What are your favorite travel destinations?
I’ve been lucky enough to see so many countries, but my favorite places I’ve gone to are Botswana, the Greek Islands, Iceland and Turkey. All these places are extremely different, but I think what they have in common is they are all unique on this planet and give you moments of tranquility, beauty and, of course, amazing food.
Do you have any go-to hotels?
Four Seasons hotels are one of the top for me. I stay with them during the chaos of fashion weeks, and I just had an amazing weekend getaway with my husband at their [Forbes Travel Guide Five-Star] Grand-Hôtel du Cap-Ferrat location [in the French Riviera]. Hotels themselves should be an experience, and the Four Seasons most definitely is that. Great service and locations.
What are your travel hacks?
A recent travel hack that has really helped me to catch some z’s whenever and wherever possible is my new travel pillow, the Pluto POD. I’ve tried all the other pillows and there isn’t anything like this. It has a hood and an eye mask tucked in the top of the hood for easy access. Overall, it gives me a sense of privacy and comfort that I’ve not felt with previous travel pillows.
Another travel hack is that as soon as I arrive at my hotel I quickly unpack — no living out of suitcases — and if it’s a new place, I immediately go for a walk around the neighborhood to get a good sense of where my local grocery store, coffee shops are and to get the blood pumping.
What’s your go-to travel outfit?
Growing up as the daughter of a flight attendant, I was taught to always dress up when flying. I was never allowed sweatpants or jeans. As an adult, I think finding a balance between style and comfort is still important. So chic-looking cargo pants with lots of pockets is a great idea, and I always bring a few layers not knowing how cold or hot I will be on the plane or when I land. Think socks and easy shoes that I can slip on and off are helpful.
What’s your in-flight skincare routine?
Honestly, not much. I try not to travel with much, if any, makeup so that my face can breathe. I usually have some sort of thick cream or oil on to stay hydrated and, of course, drinking as much water as you can when traveling will always help your skin and your rest.
What’s left on your travel bucket list?
So much! Now that I have children, I even want to go back to many places I went as a single person or with my husband just to revisit through their eyes. They are extremely adventurous children — they love new sights, sounds and flavors and will literally try anything. Having them makes all trips, even the mundane, so exciting.
