Hoda Kotb is trading in rainy New York City weather for the sunny beaches of Bermuda.
Kotb, 59, was absent from the Wednesday, May 8, episode of Today, during which Savannah Guthrie explained, “Hoda’s in Bermuda with Jenna [Bush Hager], working hard.” Seemingly jealous of the pair’s tropical work assignment, cohost Craig Melvin quipped, “Yeah, or hardly working.”
Kotb revealed via Instagram on Wednesday morning that she was “about to hop on a flight,” adding, “Brought along a great book — perfect for your graduate! Bonnie Hammer is a legend in the TV business … she is one of my trusted mentors who guided my career.”
She continued: “Without Bonnie — I would not be where I am today …. and now all of the lessons she taught me are right on the pages of this book! Xo.” (Kotb and Bush Hager, 42, interviewed Hammer, 74, about her book, 15 Lies Women Are Told at Work, on Today With Hoda & Jenna two days prior.)
Kotb and Bush Hager announced last month that they were celebrating Mother’s Day by taking the fourth hour of Today to Bermuda for some special episodes. “We have been waiting for this trip,” Bush Hager stated on the show’s April 22 episode. “We have been waiting and waiting, and it’s finally here.”
Noting that they were “so excited” to travel for their “Bermuda bash,” Kotb added, “We’re gonna soak in the sun, we’re gonna enjoy the nightlife, we’re gonna go shopping, we’re gonna be eating, all the things.”
The cohosts later surprised a mother-daughter duo by revealing that they would be flown to Bermuda. Sponsored by The Loren Hotels, the Bermuda episodes will air on Thursday, May 9, and Friday, May 10, featuring celebrity guests and highlighting Bermudian artists and community heroes.
Kotb and Bush Hager took their show on the road earlier this year by celebrating their fifth cohosting anniversary in New Orleans. “Every day, it’s something different, something new, something we’re learning,” Kotb gushed to her cohost on the show’s April 8 episode before traveling for their Southern celebrations. “You’ve led me down a path because of people who you know in your life and people who are, kind of, healers who’ve helped heal me. And, I mean, it’s all meant to be. This is all meant to be.”
Kotb’s latest Today absence comes less than one week after she and her fellow broadcasters Al Roker, Craig Melvin and Carson Daly got an early weekend by skipping the NBC morning show’s Friday, May 3, episode. Third hour of Today hosts Sheinelle Jones and Dylan Dreyer stepped up to fill in for the missing stars.
Jones, 46, has continued to fill in for Daly, 50, while Wednesday marked Roker’s return. He was off on Monday, May 6, and spent the Tuesday, May 7’s episode in San Antonio, Texas.
