After Taking His Mom on a European Adventure, Anthony Anderson Shares What He's Learned About Family Travel

The "Black-ish" star told Travel + Leisure that traveling with family "adds years to the relationship" while reminiscing about his epic Eurotrip with his mom.

Mama Doris is running late, as to be expected. She is the queen of the bingo hall, after all.

Scheduled to chat Emmy Award nominee Anthony Anderson, about his mother-son travel show on E!, Trippin' with Anthony Anderson and Mama Doris, ahead of its finale episode, I was told by the Black-ish star himself that his mom, Doris Hancox, affectionately known as Mama Doris, was busy. She was in Vegas living her best life with her friends at a bingo tournament.

“This ain't your grandma’s bingo,” Anderson shared with a laugh.

Anderson, who grew up with his mother in Compton, California, decided to take his mom along for a six-week trip of a lifetime through Europe as a way to thank her for giving up her own Hollywood dreams to raise him. And, of course, he brought cameras along to capture all the fun in eight adorable episodes as they explored France, took part in cooking classes, walked through Italy on truffle hunts, and visited England.

“The trip was really to thank my mother for supporting me in everything that I've done,” Anderson said. “It’s my thank you to her for the sacrifices that she's made.”

As for how the show came to be, Anderson says it all just came down to his mother’s dreams of traveling more and his ability to put together a great television show. So, as Anderson recalled, he told his mother, “Let's go. Let's go live the 'Life of Riley.'”

The show is most certainly a fun one, with plenty of laugh-out-loud moments for viewers, putting what Anderson calls the “brother-sister” relationship with his mom on full display. But most importantly for Anderson, it was a trip that brought him even closer to Doris.

“I learned a lot of new things about my mama,” he shared. “First off, I learned that my mama doesn't like animals and is definitely afraid of dogs and cats in particular.” And perhaps an even more poignant takeaway, Doris also shared memories of her childhood, a time that Anderson says he had no idea about until now.

“I learned that my mother used to go to her grandfather's farm as a child,” he said. “I told my mother, in my 52 years of living, 'I've never heard this before.'”

That new knowledge and ability to connect, Anderson said, is the reason he believes we should all travel with our parents or parental figures throughout our lives.

“I think it adds years to the relationship. And adds years to your life and theirs,” he said. “As much time as we can spend with our loved ones, our siblings, our children, our aunts, our uncles, our parents in particular, we should do that.”

There is, however, one thing he learned as an adult kid traveling with an older parent — not to be a know-it-all.

“What I've learned is that we can't only do the things that I want to do,” Anderson explained. “We can't always do the things that we had planned. Sometimes we just have to sit back and be like, ‘well mom, what is it that you want to do?’ Because I can plan this entire trip, but then my mother doesn't want to do anything. She might want to just sit in the lobby of the hotel and ride a bus.”

To prevent this, Anderson suggested talking openly and honestly with whichever family member you’re traveling with, and meet in the middle.

“I should consult with her and ask, ‘Hey mom, what is it that you'd be interested in doing while we're on this trip? Because these are the ideas that I have and I want to incorporate what some of your ideas are as opposed to thinking for you,” he said. “That's what I learned on this trip. To listen and to ask questions.”
 
See the final episode of season 1 of Trippin' with Anthony Anderson and Mama Doris this Thursday on E!

Trippin’ with Anthony Anderson and Mama Doris is a reality show and does not fall under the SAG-AFTRA strike.

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