“If a hotel has a good room service burger, you’ve got me for life”

Busy Philipps is… busy. The actor, best known for the TV series Freaks and Geeks, Dawson’s Creek, and Cougar Town is also an author, podcast host, hands-on mom and, incidentally, a highly discerning hotels enthusiast.

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“I really do love hotels,” says Philipps. “I love staying in a hotel and I love staying in a nice hotel.” What defines “nice” for Philipps of course depends on the type of trip she’s planning, whether it’s with family, friends or, if things are really going her way, just herself. “I am my perfect someone to travel with,” she tells us.

When her kids are along, hotels like Four Seasons Resort Hualalai in Hawaii draw her back year after year. “We love Hualalai for a family vacation,” she says. “It’s all contained, everything’s there, they’ve got a great kids club, the food is delicious—the snow cone alone is worth the price of admission.”

There are other times, though, that Philipps is looking for a solo trip or much-appreciated time away with friends. “I love Zero George in Charleston,” she says. “It’s a smaller boutique hotel—not a place I would necessarily go with kids—but it’s so chic,” she says. “They have this little restaurant, cocktails on the porch every night, and you can rent bikes and tool around Charleston—it’s the perfect location.” Years of travel experience have made her a pro at finding her perfect somewhere: “I think it’s a luxury to be able to stay in a hotel,” she says, “and you should get exactly what you want.”

Martina Sheehan

Writer

Martina Sheehan is a Chicago-based travel writer-editor who has written for the New York Times, Condé Nast Traveler, Budget Travel, Forbes Travel Guides, and Time Out guidebooks, among others. She has traveled to 38 countries and 46 states, and never leaves home without a good map app, a themed playlist, and her daughter.