For years, the folk-pop duo Tall Heights was a fixture on the Boston busking scene — most notably at Faneuil Hall. Now signed by Sony Masterworks, Tim Harrington, 29, and Paul Wright, 30, who both hail from Sturbridge, are touring the world to promote their latest album, “Neptune.’’ They’re playing The Sinclair in Cambridge on Dec. 16. “After a crazy few months touring the country and Europe, we’re looking forward to finishing out the year with an exclamation point of a hometown show,’’ Harrington said. We caught up with Harrington and Wright, who are both married and live in Beverly, to talk about all things travel.
Favorite vacation destination?
TH: Vacation? We’re touring musicians; we can’t afford vacation. We travel a lot and we’ve seen some amazing stuff, but rarely does it resemble vacation. [When I was] a child, my parents brought my brothers and me to Grand Cayman Island and that was off the hook. We swam with stingrays and I loved it. I’ll go back if ever I make money.
PW: As musicians, we get to see and stay in some incredible places — thanks to the generosity of music lovers — that the off-the-beaten-path traveler would kill for, but will never find on Airbnb. I’ll never forget looking at the stars from a tiny cabin in Bozeman, Mont., or stepping outside a Redwood home in the Santa Cruz Mountains to feel the salt air from the Pacific rushing over the hills.
Favorite food or drink while vacationing?
PW: Whatever the locals are eating and drinking. We just got hooked on Kölsch — a delicious light beer — in Cologne, Germany.
TH: Agreed. I feel an enormous amount of pressure to not just eat good food when I’m traveling, but to eat the food, the iconic cuisine of that town/city/county/culture. It results in unnecessary anxiety on the road, actually. We’re hungry and I’m combing Yelp not just for a good option, but the perfect option.
Where would you like to travel to but haven’t?
PW: I would love to see the rain forests in Borneo while they still exist.
TH: Alaska in the summer when the sun is up all night.
One item you can’t leave home without when traveling?
PW: Money belt. Just kidding. Running shoes, maybe.
TH: My face wash, St. Ives Apricot Scrub. It makes me feel fresh and at home after long travel days.
Aisle or window?
PW: Aisle for the airflow and freedom. I’m also incredible at sleeping upright and don’t need the window pillow situation.
TH: I was once a window man. I liked to gaze at the earth below. Then we started flying tens of times a year and the novelty wore right off. Now I’m with Paul: The extra legroom and easy access to the bathroom make the aisle spot king.
Favorite childhood travel memory?
PW: Meeting the Australian side of my family in Sydney and Melbourne when I was 11 years old and making fun of each others’ accents.
TH: Oooh. Already spoke of Cayman. Hmm. Let’s go with Myrtle Beach, S.C., when I was way young. The sweet smell of damp earth in the air; I remember the smell vividly. We’re out to a dinner at a tacky waterside joint and I just ate a cheeseburger off the kids’ menu. My dad gets us fish food pellets from a coin-op dispenser to throw into the water and the orange and white fish go wild. Those were simpler times.
Guilty pleasure when traveling?
PW: Excusing laziness as jet lag upon returning home.
TH: Two pillows: one under your head, one between your knees. It’s the best when we can swing it. Sometimes it’s a struggle to get just one.
Best travel tip?
PW: Laugh at yourself and encourage others to join you. It’s way better than feeling uncomfortable.
TH: It’s like swimming at night; it’s OK to be nervous, but to panic is to die. Keep processing things at a normal speed for heaven’s sake.
Juliet Pennington can be reached at writeonjuliet@ gmail.com.
