Juliana Canfield is trying to be more chill on vacations these days. “Traditionally, historically, I like to go to a place where there are museums to visit and lots of active walking and sightseeing and restaurants and music,” says the actor. “But as I’ve gotten a bit older, the idea of a beach vacation where I get to lie down and read for a couple of days straight feels more and more appealing.”
The newfound desire to relax just so happens to coincide with a stacked time in her career: After wrapping up her role on HBO’s Succession last year (where she played the beleaguered assistant Jess), Canfield now stars in the Broadway smash Stereophonic, which recently became the most Tony-nominated play in history—including a nom for Canfield for Best Featured Actress in a Play. Ahead, she spoke with Condé Nast Traveler about the wonders of Guatemala, Austria, and Norway, and what she looks for in a travel pal.
How early she arrives for flights:
I'm somewhere in the middle. I definitely don't have a habit of missing flights or running to the gate, but I also don't like being at the airport for hours on end and spending precious daylight hanging out in a strange purgatorial space. I give myself just enough time that I don't feel like I need to take an anxiety medication to make it to the gate.
How she spends flight time:
I love sleeping on planes. I usually fall asleep the second I sit down, before the plane even takes off. I sleep as much as I can, and when I'm not doing that, I like to watch movies. There are always a handful of movies every year that come and go in theaters that I miss, or those old chestnuts that I've somehow never seen. I try to knock out a couple between naps.
On her basic accommodation needs:
I’m not a hotel head. As long as the sheets are nice and there’s a bathrobe in the closet, I feel good.
What’s in her carry-on:
I usually have a couple of books, one that's a little more intellectually demanding and one that’s fluffier. Chewing gum, a big thing of water, face cream, and a toothbrush and toothpaste so I can brush my teeth before I land. Then I like to bring a big scarf, almost a blanket scarf. Even if they give you a blanket on the flight, it never goes all the way, so I need something for my shoulders or feet. And in spring or summertime, I like to bring a pair of comfy cashmere socks so that I can take my shoes off and have something cozy on my feet.
The best vacation she’s ever taken:
I went to Lake Atitlán in Guatemala with my family for New Year’s many years ago, and that was a pretty magical trip. Atitlán is the most beautiful volcanic lake, and it's balmy and the food is delicious. It's close to the wonderful colonial city of Antigua, which is so architecturally beautiful, and Guatemala as a country has such a vibrant culture. It combined the two types of vacation that I like, because I did a lot of resting and relaxing and reading, but I also got to enrich myself and learn a little bit.
A place that really surprised her:
I loved Vienna. It was never really high on my list, but I had friends who lived part-time in Austria, so I flew into Vienna a few times. The [Kunsthistorisches Museum] is the most insane embarrassment of riches I've ever seen. It's like walking through an art history class—greatest hits times 8 billion. And just across the [square] there's the natural history museum, and I love rocks and stones and geological trinkets. There are rooms upon rooms of cases of beautiful stones. I've done that [museum-going] day a couple of times now and I could do it every year easily and happily.
The coolest filming location she’s ever experienced:
Norway, hands down. Everybody there believes in trolls, I think pretty earnestly, and I was tickled by that when I first got there because you can buy troll tchotchkes in every little shop on every corner. Then you're driving around these mountains, and they look like something out of a fairy tale. Seeing that vista made me understand why someone would believe in trolls!
What she looks for in a travel companion:
I like traveling with people who have a sense of ambitious flexibility. Traveling with someone who has an immovable itinerary can feel so constricting. I like to seize the days, so being with people who are curious and open to what a place offers feels really important to me.
The place she could go to a million times and never tire of it:
Greece. Someone told me that there are enough islands in Greece that you could go to one every year for your whole life and not even come close [to seeing them all]. It’s a bottomless well of nuanced, interesting cultural histories, but also just the most gorgeous, relaxing, lovely beachy, hang-out places you could possibly go to.
Where she wants to go next:
I'd love to do a safari in Zimbabwe—just see some big animals and be moved by nature's glory.
