Go Away With … Tyler Hoechlin

By Jae-Ha Kim
Tribune Content Agency
July 19, 2016

Tyler Hoechlin has played a lycanthrope (“Teen Wolf”) and will portray an author in the upcoming “Fifty Shades of Grey” sequels (“Fifty Shades Darker,” “Fifty Shades Freed”). And later this year, he will appear as Superman in the series, “Supergirl.” But in his latest film, “Everybody Wants Some!!” (now available on DVD and Blu-ray), Hoechlin played a part he knows well: a college baseball player. He played infield at the University of California at Irvine. Based out of Los Angeles, Hoechlin, 28, stays in touch with fans via Twitter and Instagram.

Q. What is your favorite destination?

A. I would say anywhere with water, whether it be a beach, lake or river. But one specific place would be Chicago.

Q. What would you recommend that people do in Chicago?

A. Eat every different kind of pizza you can find, and go to Joe’s Stone Crab — my favorite restaurant from the time I spent there filming “Road to Perdition.”

Q. What untapped destination should people know about?

A. I don’t know if I can say that it’s untapped, but I would say Biarritz, France. It’s a beautiful beach town in the southwest of France with some great waves to surf.

Q. What was the first trip you took as a child? And did you love it … or not so much?

A. The first trip I can remember is a trip that my parents told us was to Hawaii. When I turned 13, I finally found out that it was Galveston, Texas. I enjoyed being in a new place, but the sunburns weren’t very pleasant.

Q. What’s the most important thing you’ve learned from your travels?

A. That it’s an incredible thing to open up your eyes and mind to the way other people live. That it’s such a blessing to learn to enjoy different things in different ways than maybe you were always taught to. Experiencing different cultures is such an enriching thing to do. And to just go with the flow. I enjoy traveling most when I don’t have a plan for the day or try to get to the things people say you have to see or have to do. Instead, I just keep moving until something grabs my attention. It feels more personal for me.

Q. Where are your favorite weekend getaways?

A. San Diego is always a fun weekend trip. I also still have friends who live in Scottsdale, so in the baseball off-season we head out there.

Q. Where is the most romantic destination?

A. I would have to say Zermatt, Switzerland. It’s such a beautiful place and not too big. It has a really cozy feel to it. And, of course, the Matterhorn is also there.

Q. If you’ve ever gone away for the holidays, which was the best trip?

A. There are two that stick out with my family. The first was to Lake Tahoe, such an incredible place. The second was to Cabo San Lucas. Both were around Christmas/New Year’s, but drastically different settings, of course.

Q. What are your five favorite cities?

A. New Orleans, New York, Chicago, London, Rome, Amsterdam and Paris. Sorry. Just picking seven was hard enough!

Q. Where have you traveled to that most reminded you of home?

A. I’d have to say Australia — Brisbane or Melbourne. The suburbs outside with a big city nearby reminded me a lot of where I grew up, along with the weather there, in the summer anyway.

Q. Where would you like to go that you have never been to before?

A. The more I travel, the longer my list gets somehow, but the two places I would love to go to next are Croatia and Southeast Asia.

Q. When you go away, what are some of your must-have items?

A. My camera. I love photography. I love to find a way to take a picture of a place that has been photographed so many times, and somehow find a way to make it unique and personal.

Q. What would be your dream trip?

A. Probably a week at George Clooney’s place on Lake Como with family and friends. Of course, George would be welcome to join us if he didn’t have anything better to do.

Q. What kind of research do you do before you go away on a trip?

A. As little as possible. Just enough to know the best way to get to and from airports and train stations to the part of town where I’m supposed to be staying. And maybe if there’s a good place to take a day trip to.

Q. What is your best and/or worst vacation memory?

A. I think the answer could be the same for both questions. In the moment, running to catch the next train before it leaves you behind is the worst. But looking back, those are some of my favorite memories.

Q. Have you traveled to a place that stood out so much that you felt compelled to incorporate it into your work?
A. I’d say the list is too long. Almost every place I’ve traveled to, I would love to at some point to find a way to go back and work there.

Q. What are your favorite hotels?
A. Ones that have a good bar and 24-hour room service. And free Wi-Fi.

Q. What are your favorite restaurants?
A. Tao – Las Vegas; Joe’s Seafood – Chicago; Miguel’s Jr – Southern California; and Sushi on Fire – Orange County.

Q. What is your guilty pleasure when you’re on the road?
A. My Spotify playlists. Some are more guilty than others.

© 2016 JAE-HA KIM
DISTRIBUTED BY TRIBUNE CONTENT AGENCY, LLC.