Guster’s Adam Gardner has traveled the world on tour and has played at some of the most popular festivals and venues, but the alt-rock band’s July 26 performance at the Newport Folk Festival is next level, he said. “We’re all very excited to be there,” said the 51-year-old New Vernon, N.J., native. “We’ve never performed there and I’ve never even been there as an audience member, either. It’s really something special, and if you look at the lineup … we are going to do some collaborations and other things, but I don’t want to let the cat out of the bag.” Guster, formed in 1991 by three Tufts University students, released its ninth album, “Ooh La La,” in the spring and is holding its annual On the Ocean festival in Portland, Maine, on Aug. 9, 10, and 11. “It’s a great time … almost like a destination wedding,” Gardner said. And while Guster has been a major part of his life, the father of two teenagers is also committed to REVERB, a nonprofit he founded with his wife, environmentalist Lauren Sullivan, that focuses on promoting sustainability in the music industry — from reducing the carbon footprint at concerts and festivals to encouraging music fans to take action that promotes environmental sustainability. We caught up with Gardner, who lives in Cape Elizabeth, Maine, with his family (including a mini labradoodle named Bernie) to talk about all things travel.
If you could travel anywhere right now, where would you go? I just came home from a trip to Costa Rica with my family that was a major check on my dream list. It was the perfect blend of natural beauty, wonder — howler monkeys, sloths, butterflies, wild boar, volcanoes, cloud, forest — and adventure … zip-lining, surfing, and driving on curvy dirt roads with seemingly no rules. We all are trying to improve our Spanish, too, which was also a big plus.
Do you prefer booking trips through a travel agent or on your own? I generally book on my own after doing a bunch of research online and asking friends.
Thoughts on an “unplugged” vacation? I’ve been thinking a lot about a digital detox for my family — especially my teenage kids. It’s getting harder and harder to unplug from work and social media for all of us. Since my wife and I are co-executive directors of our nonprofit, REVERB, it’s especially hard to fully unplug from work, but it’s something we work on daily and try really hard to ask ourselves when an urgent text or email comes in, “Do I really have to respond to this right now or can it wait a beat?”
What has been your worst vacation experience? I got food poisoning in Puerto Rico the night before an early morning flight home. I was barfing all night and the whole way in the car to the airport. Because I was flying back separately from my family — me to Guster tour, them back home to Maine — I had to return the car with zero sleep and a queasy belly … and somehow fly to tour and start a month of shows with the band.
What is your favorite childhood travel memory? Hawaii stands out to me. I ate so much of the tropical fruit that I made myself sick. I’m starting to see a theme in my vacations around GI issues.
Do you vacation to relax, to learn, or for the adventure of it all? Totally depends. Typically, with the family, we aim to expand our kids’ experience and knowledge of other cultures and ways of life while also seeing natural and/or man-made beauty. We tend to also go to Spanish-speaking countries to work on speaking the language. But then sometimes we all just need to chill on a beach and do very little — especially during the long and cold months of winter we get at home in Maine.
What book do you plan on bringing with you to read on your next vacation? I tend to bring nonfiction and self-helpy-type books, which isn’t the most fun on vacation, [and] which is probably why I don’t end up reading very much.
If you could travel with one famous person/celebrity, who would it be? Any celebrity chef who could get us in to the best restaurants.
What is the best gift to give a traveler? A versatile day pack that can carry a computer and fit what you need on the plane, but also can be used as a hiking day pack.
What is your go-to snack for a flight or a road trip? I bring a reusable water bottle, some sort of snack bar, and gum because I hate paying airport prices for that stuff.
What is your favorite app/website for travel? I use TripIt to organize and have all my travel information in one place. It auto populates my calendar, too.
What has travel taught you? How fortunate I am to live the life I live and to be born into such privilege. I hope this is what my kids see, too.
What is your best travel tip? When you plan a trip, try to pace it so it’s not stressful. You can’t do and see everything, so prioritize and allow yourself to enjoy each thing you do and see more fully.
Juliet Pennington can be reached at writeonjuliet@comcast.net.
