It’s the start of 2026 (happy new year!) and whilst I’m busy making travel plans for 2026 along with some big life updates, I’m taking the time to reflect on an amazing 2025. From cruising to book festivals and historic sites, last year was a busy one, here’s what I got up to and what I’m planning for 2026.
Notes From the Trip – 2025 in Travels
Seeing the Sights of Vienna at Easter
Early in 2025 I finally got to visit Austria and the beautiful city of Vienna and we couldn’t have picked a better time to visit! Everywhere went all-out for Easter in the city with decorations in every café and shop and easter markets galore. We loved exploring the Easter markets and the beautiful Schönbrunn Palace as well as meeting up with a friend during our trip! My highlight though, was seeing the incredible Vienna National Library, it absolutely blew me away!
Travelling to Bratislava, Slovakia by Train
One of my most unexpected gems of the year was visiting the incredible and relaxed city of Bratislava. I’ve never visited Slovakia before, so I had no idea what to expect from the country’s capital, but fell completely in love with its relaxed nature and older-town feel which contrasted brilliantly with some of the newer developments in the city. Travelling to Bratislava by train from Vienna was a breeze and definitely something I’ll be doing more of in the future!
Hay Fest 2025
I love visiting the beautiful book town of Hay on Wye in Wales and made a few visits there in 2025 as well as attending the famous Hay Fest for another incredible book festival. It always seems to be a wet visit when I attend Hay Fest, but that didn’t stop us from having the best time and popping in to some of the brilliant bookshops there during our visit.
Cruising Around Greece, Italy & Malta
2025 was the year of cruises with my first travelling around the Greek Islands, Italy and my first visit to Malta (I’ll definitely be making a return visit!). During the trip we visited Valetta, Taranto Italy, Corfu Greece, Cephalonia Greece and Catania Italy and were treated to toasty temperatures and incredible sights with a wander to some lesser-known spots!
Road Tripping Around Northern Ireland
In July, I surprised my boyfriend with a birthday trip to Northern Ireland, driving around the Causeway Coast, visiting the Giant’s Causeway, Carrick-a-Rede and the local beaches and staying in the most perfect country hotel. I can’t recommend driving around Northern Ireland enough. We had the best time!
Wandering to The Beautiful Rievaulx Abbey
In February, I headed off to the incredible English Heritage property of Rievaulx Abbey in North Yorkshire to meet up with an old friend and wander the path from nearby Helmsley Castle. These ruins are incredibly atmospheric and fantastic to walk around with the walk from Helmsley Castle a medium-difficulty ramble. We also headed off to Goathland train station, where Harry Potter and Heartbeat were filmed during the trip!
Seeing Toto & Billy Ocean in Concert
Earlier this year, we also headed off to Birmingham to see the iconic Toto (of Africa fame) in concert as well as the incredible Billy Ocean, both were incredible and we even made matching ‘When the going gets tough’ T-shirts.
Galeventing in Gothenburg, Sweden
I ticked off my fourth new country in 2025 with a weekend trip to Sweden and couldn’t get enough of the cosy café culture there, with the beautifully historic Haga neighbourhood, a relaxing boat ride and my body weight in meatballs thrown into the mix.
Read more about my trip to Gothenburg in my trip blog here >
Walking in the Steps of Dracula in Whitby
I love a bookish tie-in and I finally ticked a literary sight off my list last year I had been meaning to visit for ages. Whitby Abbey in the rain was incredibly gothic and atmospheric and the town itself a lovely wander, just prepare for the steps back up if you are parked at the abbey!
Discovering the Incredible Sights of Madeira
I knew absolutely nothing about Madeira before visiting but fell in love with the lush landscapes of the island, especially the incredible Monte Palace Gardens during our October trip there. Toboggoning down the hillside and relaxing in the cosy cafés there was the perfect trip.
Find out more about my adventures in Madeira in my recent blog >
Doing a Double-Whammy of West End Shows in London
One of my favourite birthday surprises this year was a trip down to London to see not one but two incredible musicals that had been on muy list for a while. Hamilton was, of course, phenomenal and seeing it live on stage was breathtaking and my second musical of the day, Six was AMAZING. It brought all the energy and fun and I highly recommend you go see it if you haven’t yet!
Visiting a Local Bookish Festival – Love Stories Etc
This year I also managed to attend a bookish festival in Manchester with a friend. The Love Stories Etc festival was so much fun and I loved hearing all the insights from the incredible authors who attended!
Cruising the Canary Islands for Some Winter Sun
If you’re like me, the short dark days in winter hit HARD. Luckily I was able to slip in one last two-week trip to the sunny Canary Islands before the busy festive season and managed to discover so much from islands I thought I already knew. I holidayed in the canaries a lot as a child but there are so many spots away from the resort towns I absolutely loved and travelling through Tenerife, Gran Canaria, Lanzarote, La Palma and Fuerteventura was an absolute sun-filled dream.
The Perfect Christmas in York
Celebrating our mini-Christmas together in York is always the highlight of my year and this one was even more special and the perfect way to close out on another incredible year. I love the cobbled charm of York at Chrismas and it was the perfect way to reflect on all the big moments that have happened in every part of my life this year.
To 2026!
2025 was a year of big changes and I’m so glad to have been able to share it with the people I did, I can’t wait to celebrate more moments in 2026, starting with a trip to Granada Spain in a few days! What were some of your favourite moments of 2025? What are you hoping to do in 2026?
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