Eric Willett’s top travel tips

A member of the Breck Epic Team, Eric Willett accounts his journeys as a professional athlete here. To read more from Eric, search his name in the top right, or click here. 

To me, traveling is just as fun as snowboarding. I love everything about it — hanging out in airports, flying, and getting to see new places. I’ve definitely learned a lot from traveling, and here are a few of my top tips.

Something I didn’t realize in the beginning is to pick an airline and stick with it. I’m with Star Alliance, which covers many different airlines including United, Lufthansa, Air Canada, and

SWISSAir to name a few. So, the more you travel the more perks you get, and the easier traveling becomes. Some of the Star Alliance perks I’ve received include access to lounges and clubs in international airports (in which they all pretty much have free food and beverage), multiple free checked bags and extra weight to travel with, free flights and complimentary upgrades, which sometimes includes first class. Who wouldn’t like to fly first class to Europe!?

Another major thing I’ve learned from my travels is that I am not to keen on trying new foods, so I stick to stuff I know. Fast Food places like McDonalds become my American Embassy and I always know where the closest one is in case I get in a bind, ha!

Anytime I’m traveling strictly for competition, I never venture out on food. A good buddy of mine got food poisoning the night before a big competition in China, and couldn’t compete the next day. That was a long trip to basically be stuck puking in a hotel room.

Additionally, If I’m traveling to Europe and planning to take local transportation, I try to pack light as light as possible. The busses and trains aren’t always luggage friendly, and running from one train to the next is never fun when your lugging all the stuff around.

Last, while in Europe, if you’re out snowboarding or skiing, make sure to check out the Apres Ski. They definitely know the true meaning of Apres Ski, and is not uncommon to see people full on partying and dancing on the tables in their ski boots. It’s awesome! However, I wouldn’t recommend dancing on a table in your ski boots.

 

— Eric Willet