I never travel without ...

good reading material - fiction, non-fiction, biographies. I love reading. I always carry a small notebook because I love writing, and I take my little digital camera.

My idea of paradise is ...

comfort, good food and good weather. I'm not one of those people that has to be on a beach. I love snow too, if I'm dressed for it.

The luxury I can't live without is ...

baths and massages. You just have to make sure your boyfriend knows how to give you a good massage! If you can travel to the best spas, why not?

Good service is ...

a smile and sincerity. Sometimes people don't have what a customer wants, but a genuine smile and sincerity and trying your best always helps. Hong Kong is particularly good for its service. If you go to a good hotel once, they remember your name and preferences.

I always bring back ...

nothing. There is never enough room for collecting. Your memories are your best collections.

My most memorable meal was ...

in New York at a small Japanese noodle place. We'd just been to see the play Spamalot and I was hungry as hell. I love Japanese food and I saw this place and charged straight in.

My first trip was ...

to Kuala Lumpur. I lived in Ipoh in West Malaysia as a child, and my first trip away from the family was on a bus to a swimming contest. I was about 14. It was a major deal. I didn't imagine my mother, who is very protective, would let me go.

On childhood holidays ...

my dad always took us fishing. I remember weekend trips and going out to a kelong, a fishing platform, about two hours out to sea. It was great.

I've always wanted to ...

go on a dog sled trip, a safari in Africa and diving in the Maldives. I like places that are completely different from the cities I visit normally, and I love discovering new ones that will take my breath away.

As a traveller ...

I am very curious. I always have a list of places to visit and it keeps growing. There will always be a place to go and an experience waiting to happen.

I love ...

Japan. We filmed Memoirs of a Geisha in California, but I go to Japan two to three times a year. I love the food, the culture, the shopping and roaming the old cities. The countryside is beautiful too.

· Michelle Yeoh stars in Memoirs of a Geisha, now on general release.