In the last year, the anchor of “NBC Nightly News With Lester Holt” has traveled to places as others have fled, including Paris, Brussels and Nice. On a moment’s notice, he has also flown to Orlando and Dallas to cover gun violence and, with more planning, to Cleveland and Philadelphia for the political conventions. Next is Rio de Janeiro, where he will anchor “Nightly News” from Copacabana Beach during the Summer Olympic Games, Aug. 5 to 19. Rio will be his eighth consecutive games.
Holt took a break from the Republican National Convention to talk about his news-driven style of travel and the challenges and rewards of attending the Olympics. Following are edited excerpts from that conversation.
Q: Given the unpredictability of your travels, do you keep a bag packed at the office?
A: There was a time when I had a suitcase that was ready to go. The problem is you never know what kind of story you’re going to be sent out on. It always seemed that when I needed suits, instead I had flood gear in it, or vice versa. I have a closet at home that I largely dedicate to alternative work gear. So there’s things like rain slickers, wading boots, tourniquets, flashlights, because I never know if we’re going to be in a hostile environment or a disaster zone. I even have dog tags with my blood type on them. But I can tell you many a time my travels have started with a stop at the local J. Crew or Banana Republic or whatever the local version of that is to get something to wear beyond Day 1.
Q: What were your favorite Olympic host cities?
A: I had a blast in Athens. In Greece, the food is wonderful, the people are wonderful, the weather is wonderful. It was one of those places I went and I said, “I’ll be back.” Vancouver was another favorite. It’s just so cool, that whole Pacific Asian vibe, and it’s got great restaurants.
Q: For those who may be making their first Olympic trip, what’s the best way to approach the event?
A: I think you have to do some planning in terms of tickets. But I always advise people the Olympics extend beyond the arenas and the stadiums. They usually envelop the entire city. People are thrilled to have the Olympics in their town. They’re friendly, they want to talk. I love if I can break away and enjoy a city and its people and get off the beaten track. That’s the way I like to travel anyway, but I think the Olympics are an exceptionally good time for that.
Q: What events do you look forward to?
A: The swimming is one that is really worth seeing in person because as great as the TV coverage is, until you sit there and see how fast these people travel the water, you really can’t appreciate it. It’s like watching torpedoes. And you also get a sense for how the difference between No. 1 and No. 8 is sometimes hundredths of a second.
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Q: Any tips on navigating the language soup of the games?
A: When they sent me to Beijing in 2008, I came off a 12-hour flight and checked into the hotel and then I wanted to go to our workspace. I took the shuttle bus over there. I thought I knew which shuttle bus to get on to go back to the hotel, but I was so jet-lagged I got on the wrong bus. The driver didn’t speak English. She dropped me at the last stop, which was some hotel that was miles from where we started and the hotels were locked nearby to only guests. I had no way to communicate how to get back. So it’s something as simple as making sure you get a card from your hotel in the local language with the name and address because I was really in a predicament.
Q: Rio, of course, is a work trip. Any favorite places you like to vacation?
A: I love Paris. I say that wistfully because unfortunately many of my recent trips there have been to cover terrorist attacks. But it’s a city that my wife and I just love to visit, and we will continue to visit. Domestically, I used to go every other year to the Mendocino coast of California. Mendocino’s this charming little artist colony about 3 1/2 hours north of San Francisco. It’s got these beautiful headlands and rocky cliffs overlooking the ocean. It’s a great getaway.
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