Claudia Schiffer’s Favorite Travel Destinations
The legendary supermodel and global fashion icon reveals her go-to worldly haunts.
18 March 2022
Amalfi Coast, Italy
‘Chanel introduced me to Amalfi when we were shooting a campaign in the 1990s, and I now return every year on holiday. The coastline is bewitching, as are the string of villages entwined with bougainvillaea, lemon, and olive trees. The train from Naples to Sorrento is a lovely way to take it in. Positano, as John Steinbeck wrote, “bites deep”, with its steep winding lanes: Il San Pietro hotel is divine. On Capri, I love taking the chairlift to Anacapri where there is a master sandal maker.’
Zugspitze, Germany
‘The landscape around Zugspitze, the tallest mountain in Germany, is breathtaking. I remember hiking in the flower fields in summer with my best friend Uta and her mother. It was the early 1980s, and we stayed in the rustic town of Garmisch-Partenkirchen. It was the most magical trip – Uta taught me how to dance, and there were funny moments, like when the bathtub in our hotel room overflowed! I returned to the area when we were filming The Kingsman; this time in the snow!’
Pompidou Centre, Paris
‘As a young model living in the Marais, I spent a lot of time wandering around galleries. I remember visiting an Andy Warhol retrospective at the Pompidou in 1990 and telling myself that one day I’d own one. The first gift I bought myself was a camouflage Warhol painting that now hangs in my study. The post-modern aesthetic of the Renzo Piano and Richard Rogers building still thrills me, and I have vivid memories of the street style around neighbouring Les Halles.’
Residenz Palace, Munich
‘With its gardens, lakes, and extravagant baroque galleries, this sumptuous place feels like a mini version of Versailles to me. I’ve always loved the quiet beauty of Munich. A particularly fond memory is of shooting a Chanel campaign with Karl Lagerfeld here in 1993, when we tried to get the entire crew to sample and rate delicacies such as hefeklösse, German sausage, and sauerkraut. I’m not sure they were all totally convinced, but it was such good fun.’
Kunstpalast, Dusseldorf
‘I grew up near this city, so the Kunstpalast was part of my cultural upbringing. However, I only got to know the museum’s brilliant team when I was asked to curate Captivate! Fashion Photography from the ’90s, which recently showed there. I found it so rewarding to plan how the exhibition’s chapters would segue from room to room. The museum, which dates from 1902, has a diverse permanent collection that spans from Rubens to Richter. It was such an honour to work in that space.’
‘Captivate! Fashion Photography from the ’90s’, edited by Claudia Schiffer is out now.
