Author and seemingly superhuman Tim Ferriss appears to have life down to a science. Ferriss is author of The 4-Hour Workweek and The 4-Hour Body—both of which hit number 1 on the New York Times bestseller list. He’s also been known to invest in some interesting start-ups, including Badongo, Foodzie, Posterous, and Twitter, among others.

Given his many interests, it’s not surprising that this man travels a lot. Tim is on the road about four months out of the year, three for vacation and one for work. He emphasized that his work trips are “still pleasurable.” He also spends a lot of downtime in his hometown of San Francisco.

Here’s what Tim told us about his gear and travel style:

PCMag: What’s in your bag?
Tim Ferriss: Here’s what I have at the moment: a SureFire flashlight, Corsair Flash Voyager thumb drive, iPhone, MacBook Air (which I’m typing these answers on), a Princeton Tec Aurora headlamp, and my Kindle (the last two are often used in combination when in rural areas). I also carry my second-favorite knife, a military ESEE-5 (I stupidly left my favorite in a carry-on and it was thrown away at the airport in Chile.)

PCMag: What gear or gadget would you never leave home without?
TF: The flashlight and my knife.

PCMag: What’s your typical travel routine—limos and private jets? Carry on and cabs?
TF: Carry-on for sure, and I only fly on other people’s private jets. I can get first-class security speed—or close to it—by picking the airline and terminal carefully (for example, Virgin America at the new Terminal 2 at San Francisco International). My two indulgences are last-minute business-class upgrades at a discount, which I use only when traveling overseas and need to sleep, and the private car service Uber(Opens in a new window), which was started by friends of mine: Garrett Camp, co-founder of tech darling StumbleUpon, and Travis Kalanick. Uber saves me an incredible amount of time and headaches in my most visited U.S. cities, like San Francisco, New York City, and Seattle. LOVE it.

PCMag: What technology do you use to communicate with people when you’re on the road? Or, do you disconnect?
TF: I disconnect as much as possible. For a recent three-week trip to Colombia, I didn’t use email, calendar, or a phone (except a private local phone for texting friends in Medellin). The breaks and recovery help me get much more done when I return to the U.S. and choose to be “on.”

PCMag: Do you use technology to help you choose your hotels, restaurants, and where to hang out when you’re in a new city?
TF: These days, I typically ask my readers via my Twitter profile(Opens in a new window) or public Facebook page(Opens in a new window). The latter is easier to organize. I also frequently take a quick look at the hot spots and common scams on www.virtualtourist.com(Opens in a new window).

PCMag: What advice would you give to travelers to get the most out of a place in a short amount of time?
TF: Get lost and have an adventure. Literally. Walk out and take random turns until you get lost and have to interact with people. Even if you’re staying in a hotel, take a trip to a bustling hostel and hang out there for an hour over drinks. The staff there will know infinitely more than the hotel concierge about the hidden gems of the city. Last tip: Get a haircut and see a movie. Both of these experiences are always fun in a truly foreign environment, especially if you don’t speak the language. (Note: Tim says seeing a movie in English with foreign subtitles counts, too.)