Lia Tabackman
Photo: Jesse Bauer.
It's 8:30 on a Tuesday morning at JFK's Terminal 4, and Amanda Batula is between coasts — again. The Summer House star, Loverboy creative, and founder of Amanda Batula Swim is about to catch a flight to L.A., her second of three cross-country trips in less than a month. 'I've been doing an insane amount of traveling,' she says, settling into a couch at the Marshalls Upgrade Lounge, a free pop-up space offering travelers snacks, a beauty bar, and a chic break from airport chaos through Memorial Day weekend. 'I'm actually really surprised with how well I've handled it. Normally I crash after a trip, but I've just been on the move lately.'
That momentum is something Batula doesn't take for granted. Not long ago, even routine parts of travel — packing a bag, getting out the door, and making it to the airport — felt paralyzing. 'I'd back out of things, or just lie in bed telling Kyle [Cooke] I couldn't even start packing because I was so overwhelmed.' After being diagnosed with depression and anxiety in 2023, Batula began working with a psychiatrist and taking antidepressant medication. Now, tasks that once felt insurmountable have become manageable, which means Amanda is saying yes to events, trips, and work opportunities that she would have previously passed on. 'I don't get overwhelmed, it doesn't take me a full day to pack. I can throw together a bag. It's just so much easier,' Batula says.
Between destination weddings, business opportunities, and influencer engagements, Amanda is a certified frequent flier — which makes her partnership with Marshalls feel especially well-timed. "The most stressful thing about traveling is getting to the airport, getting through security, and then rushing to your gate,' she says. 'It's nice to have a place where you can just come and feel zen, especially if you're like me and don't have access to other [paid] lounges.' In addition to the Upgrade Lounge pop-up, the retailer offers an online shopping hub that features a collection of travel-friendly fashion and lifestyle finds curated by Batula to make packing and on-the-go style feel a little less stressful.
The reality star, now in her eighth season of Summer House (Batula joined the cast full time in Season 2), is well-accustomed to splitting her summers between NYC and the Hamptons, and is starting to embrace being a bit more strategic about what she puts in her suitcase. 'Kyle and I are notorious for bringing our whole closet, especially back when I was working corporate,' she says. 'Now I try to stick to a few staples and plan according to the weekend. We'll get a heads up about what the events are and then do a little shopping.'
As for sharing clothes with her castmates while filming? 'I'm always willing to share. Paige [DeSorbo] will only pack for the weekend, so she doesn't really have any other options to share, and Ciara [Miller] will always order clothes to the house and if you need an option she'll give it to you.'
Batula and I are meeting the day before the Summer House Season 9 finale aired, and naturally I ask about what's next for the series, which typically films from July through August. Bravo fans and cast members alike have been speculating about the show's future, including potential cast shakeups, but Batula doesn't have much to offer in terms of clues.
'There's no news yet… but no news is usually good news,' she says. 'We typically hear from production the week before filming starts, and half the time we get the address to the house the day of. You don't even know what house we're driving out to.'
If past seasons are any indication, fans will have to wait until after the reunion episodes, which begin airing next week, for any concrete answers about Season 10. For those in-the-know, the reunion seating chart — and who sits next to host Andy Cohen — can be a subtle signal of who played a central role that season. Batula didn't think much of it going into this year's reunion, which filmed on April 24, until she showed up on set and saw where she'd been placed.
"I was told by one of the crew members, 'Oh, Amanda, you're going to like your seat,' thinking that like I was on the end, because that would be somewhere that I'd like to be sat,' Batula laughs. "And when I walked out, like being right next to [Cohen], I was like, I'm either in big trouble and I did something really wrong or I'm being rewarded. I think I was more shocked than everyone else that saw the leak of the seating arrangement. It was crazy. I was not expecting to sit there… but it was great for me. I had a great time."
The Upgrade Lounge by Marshalls is open May 21 through May 28 in JFK's Terminal 4. Exclusive amenity kits will be available for visitors while supplies last.
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