Skateboarding legend Tony Hawk has been able to ride his board all over the world, and is now offering some of his best travel tips and tricks for embracing the wonders of the world, while also appreciating the beauty of home.
Tony Hawk has literally skateboarded all over the world, and never leaves his home without a board.
“I always bring a skateboard, regardless of where I’m going, even if it just means it’ll get me around airports faster,” the 58-year-old skateboarding legend told Travel + Leisure.
“You’re not supposed to do it, but there is a subtle technique to skating through airports where you don’t make as much noise.”
Hawk said his main trick is to observe and find the smoothest floors and setting down his board quietly so as to not raise any heads when the wheels hit the ground. “Then, for the most part, you can kind of cruise and be undetected.”
Of course, the 16-times X Games medalist also makes sure to educate himself on the rules of flying with a skateboard whenever traveling to a new place, to ensure he doesn’t step on, or roll over, any toes. In the US, travelers can transport their skateboards as a carry-on, but going abroad is a different story.
“In Europe, you have to be careful not to connect in Frankfurt or London, because if they see you with the skateboard, you have to go out of the airport and check it. Coming home from South America, you can’t carry it on the plane.”
“You really should experience different areas, lifestyles, people, and language. If you’re stuck in a bubble, you have no context. There’s so much culture, and it really opens your mind to how big our world is, which is hugely important.”
One thing Hawk also appreciates is exploring areas around his hometown of Encinitas. Specifically, he loves to hop in the car and drive a couple hours north to Anaheim, California. He told T+L that in the 80s, his favorite place to skate was Sadlands, a public park that includes skateable crater features. The features were covered up by the city in 1989, however later on the Anaheim West Skatepark was built and given the nickname Sadlands.
Anaheim means so much to Hawk that he partners with Visit Anaheim to “celebrate nostalgia travel.” He told the publication that his first memory of going to the city was visiting famous theme parks like Knott’s Berry Farm.
“It was very overwhelming because there was so much to see…[it] blew my mind as a kid!”
Of course, Hawk also has a ton of memories going to Disneyland resort as well. He specifically cherishes the memory of going on the ride Adventure Thru Inner Space, which was removed in the 80s.
“There was a real motion sculpture of the cars getting smaller, and I thought they were shrinking real people—it freaked me out as a kid. But it was just because they were so good at the visuals—and have been ever since. That kind of stuff was magical!”
For families who are looking to experience the magic of Disneyland, Hawk recommends making time.
“The biggest misconception about Anaheim is that people who aren’t from California think it’s in LA. They would benefit more from staying in Anaheim, and then branching out to wherever they want to go in L.A., instead of being stuck in the traffic center. That’s my hack to anyone that doesn’t live here.”
One of the best parts of traveling in general is the dining experiences. For Hawk, in Anaheim he recommends Tacos Los Cholos and ordering the quesadilla birria from the secret menu.
Speaking of food, Hawk himself is a co-owner of Chick & Hawk, which is known for its fried chicken sandwiches and Korean influences.
The skateboarding legend has been traveling since he was six-years-old, when his family went to Hawaii, which he cites as one of the biggest impacts on him when it comes to his love of exploring different parts of the world.
“It might have been my first time on a plane, and everything seemed so foreign – the smells, the beaches, the heat. It was really cool.
As a father of four, Hawk was sure to instill the same wanderlust into his own kids. He told T+L that one of his favorite family trips was going to Iceland together. “It’s so different, and the landscape changes every 10 miles or so, so it’s like you’re in a completely different place,” he said, adding that his favorite spots were the Blue Lagoon and black-sand beaches.
Hawk then offered some of his best travel tips and tricks to the publication based on his past experiences traveling:
When it comes to getting over jet lag, “stop checking what time it is at home—that’s the killer. When I’m with a group of people or my wife, and they’re like, it’s 4 p.m. at home. Stop! This is where we are, this is what’s happening.”
When taking a flight, he loves to go for the classic snack boxes.
“Even if I’m sitting in first class and they have a meal, I want that snack box with the hummus, cranberries, chocolate, salami, and that kind of stuff.”
Reflecting on his past trips, he discussed not only his favorite hotel visit, but one of the most “surreal places” he’s ever had the pleasure of skating in.
“Aman Tokyo. That’s living large. Hopefully, when I go, it’s on someone else’s dime.
About 20 years ago, I skated at a school in Sierra Leone that had been actually bombed out from the civil war. I took kids for rides on my skateboard in the concrete hallway. That was powerful. They had never seen a skateboard before and called it ‘Roller Boogie.’”
Looking towards the future, Hawk would love to go to Africa.
“I don’t really have any bucket-list destinations. Kenya and Uganda have some really cool skate scenes. I would love to see the skating, and seeing that part of Africa would be really cool.”
Eric Mastrota is a Contributing Editor at The National Digest based in New York. A graduate of SUNY New Paltz, he reports on world news, culture, and lifestyle. You can reach him at eric.mastrota@thenationaldigest.com.
