“I've never watched reality TV before” — Destination X contestant Kim reflects on her experience during the exit interview.

In the July 1, 2025 episode of RHAP: We Know Reality TV, host Mary Quicowski interviewed Kim Conner following her elimination from NBC’s travel competition show Destination X. During their conversation, Kim revealed her unfamiliarity with reality television before joining the show,

“I’ve never watched reality TV before. I mean, like a Kardashians, uh, Jersey Shore kind of a reality TV. Um, not so much competition,” she shared.

Her lack of exposure to the genre shaped her expectations and approach as a contestant. Throughout the interview, Kim discussed how she navigated the game independently, leaned on personal travel experiences to make educated guesses, and preferred to avoid alliances.

She also spoke about challenges she enjoyed, conflicts on the bus, and how certain clues triggered personal memories that helped her during gameplay. The full conversation offered a look into her mindset, strategy, and reflections on her time with the cast.

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Kim avoided alliances and trusted her instincts in Destination X

Kim explained that she didn’t come into Destination X with a strong strategy, mostly because she wasn’t familiar with reality competition shows. Since she had never watched similar formats, she relied on her own knowledge and instincts to make it through each round. She said she was ready to play solo and would’ve taken a more cutthroat approach if needed to stay in the game longer.

From the beginning, she decided not to work with anyone. She believed trusting herself was the safest choice. Kim said, “Who better than to trust but myself,” adding that she didn’t want to end up blaming anyone else if things went wrong. She felt confident enough in her understanding of geography and clues that she didn’t see a need for alliances.

Even when two new players — Peter and Jana — joined mid-season, Kim chose not to team up. She said Peter was respectful and smart but felt unsure about Jana from the start. According to Kim, Jana came in with a strong attitude that didn’t sit well with her.

Kim also said she didn’t overhear secret conversations like it might have appeared on TV. She credited that to “movie magic.” She noted one time Peter learned they were in Amsterdam because she accidentally talked about wooden shoes near him, but that was unplanned.

“I didn’t want to take the chance of somebody misleading me, misguiding me,” she added.

Kim's approach stayed the same throughout — relying only on herself and playing the game her own way.

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Familiar clues helped Kim figure out locations in Destination X

Kim said that her real-life experiences and family memories helped her guess some of the destinations on Destination X. In one episode, the group received a clue involving a unique vase. Kim immediately recognised it from her childhood and said it reminded her of her grandmother.

She explained that the vase was used to hold tulips and was common in Holland. As soon as she saw it, she was sure they were in the Netherlands.

“My grandmother had those… I knew we were in Holland or the Netherlands,” she said.

She believed the show mostly featured well-known capital or big cities, and she used that knowledge to narrow down her guesses. Kim felt that the game often came down to common sense. For example, in her final challenge, she was certain they were in Munich because of the timing and the theme of Oktoberfest. She said she had wanted to choose her hometown in the map room but was told she couldn’t do that.

Kim also spoke about the red apple moment in the basket challenge in Destination X. She said she wasn’t trying to fool anyone but wanted the apple for herself so she could leave the game. At that point, she was tired and didn’t want to stay on the bus with a fellow contestant after a disagreement. When another contestant took the apple from her, she was disappointed but later managed to get it back.

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Destination X episodes are available to stream on Peacock.