A Busy Travel Year In 2025

Lots Of Variety On A Busy Travel Year In 2025

We were surprised we had such a busy travel year in 2025. We started the year with our Toronto condo on sale and the purchase of a new house on the west coast of Canada.  After we sold the condo, we moved west to the Sunshine Coast in British Columbia (BC) and also did a major renovation of our new house.  

Even with our crazy personal life, we enjoyed far more travel in 2025 than we expected. But this meant that this RetiredAndTravelling travel blog suffered. We did not have the same amount of time to devote to the writing and the photo editing needed to get new blogs posted.  It just meant that more and more blog posts piled up in Draft. But they will be coming! 

While we designed and contracted for our early renovations, we cruised for Northern Lights in Norway.  Right in the middle of packing our Toronto condo, we cruised in the Caribbean. A summer trip back to Toronto in the middle of renovations gave us a little break. Then our travel began in earnest again even as we struggled to complete the home renovations.

In the fall we enjoyed two weeks travelling around Sardinia. And then flew to Lisbon and cruised from Lisbon to Barcelona. We squeezed in a week long winter trip to the Yukon in Canada. And then headed off to Paris for New Years Eve before our winter river cruise on the Seine. 

We enjoyed such great variety in our 2025 travels.

Travel in 2025 By The Numbers

We loved looking back on our travel year by the numbers. Even on this busy personal year, we travelled over over 51,026 miles ( 82,005 km) by car, plane, ferries and cruise boats.  

Distance Travelled
Airplane Flight	39,081 mi ( 62,895 km )
Auto Road Trips (Canada, Sardinia)	3,644 mi ( 5,865km )
Ocean Cruising (Norway, Caribbean, Europe)	8,321 mi ( 13,245 km )
TOTAL	51,036 mi ( 82,005 km )

We were away from home for about 163 nights this year. Some was during travel and some was accommodation we needed when renovating our new house. These nights away gave us an interesting variety in our accommodations on this busy travel year in 2025.

During the year, we spent almost half of our nights away in hotels. Most of our hotel stays were with brands we held loyalty status with. We also spent about a third of our travel nights in AirBnb stays on the Sunshine Coast. While our new house was renovated, we needed a place to live that was not a construction zone. The remainder of our nights away from home were spent cruising on ocean or river cruise ships.  

Nights Away
Brand Hotels (Marriott 53 / IHG 6)	59
Non-Loyalty Brand Hotels	11
AirBnb	51
Ocean Cruising (Viking, Oceania, Silversea)	35
River Cruising (Tauck)	7
TOTAL	163

We Added Some New Destinations In 2025

On our Caribbean cruise in the spring, we visited many of the great ports we saw before. But we delighted when we visited Dominica for the first time. We loved all the great outdoor spots we toured.

Sardinia was on our travel wish list for a long time. So we were happy to add 2 weeks travelling around Sardinia before our Fall European cruise. We enjoyed the old medieval towns, the twisty coastal road trips, colourful towns and amazing outdoor sights on this first visit to Sardinia. Sardinia is a spot we know we will return to.

We booked our Fall Mediterranean cruise because there were so many new ports on the itinerary. We had two great stops in Morocco in Tangier and Casablanca. Then we enjoyed our first visit to Gibraltar.  From there we added new cruise ports on the Southern coast of Spain in Cartagena, Ibiza and Valencia. It was great to visit so many new spots around on this trip.

Having visited all 7 continents and over 120 countries, we were always happy to see new destinations. And surprised we added so many on this busy travel year in 2025.

Varied Experiences On New Cruise Ships

After we obtained Platinum status with Oceania Cruises, we looked around at other cruise lines to try. On this busy travel year in 2025, we managed to try three new cruise ships on 3 different cruise lines. This gave us a good look at the changes that the cruise lines were bringing in new ships. And gave us a chance to compare the experience on different cruise lines.  

We started the year cruising in Norway for Northern Lights with Viking Cruises on the Viking Vela. The itinerary and cruise line practices were designed to ensure we got the most of this Northern Lights experience. And we learned a little about ocean cruising with Viking on the Viking Vela. 

In the spring we headed for warm waters and cruised in the Caribbean with Oceania Cruises.  We chose an itinerary with ports we visited before so we enjoyed more time onboard the new Oceania Vista cruise ship. We enjoyed returning to Oceania Cruises with Platinum status for the benefits this gave us. And loved some new offerings on this new cruise ship.

In the Fall, we boarded the Silversea Cruises Silver Ray and enjoyed our the first Silversea classic cruise.  Our trip to Antarctica was on a Silversea expedition ship. So we wanted to see what a more classic Silversea experience was like. We loved the innovative ship design introduced with the Silver Nova and Silver Ray.  And we were very glad we tried the full luxury experience onboard a more traditional itinerary and ship.

It was great to try 3 brand new ships on the different cruise lines this year. It will help us decide if we have a preferred cruise line going forward. 

Great Road Trips On A Busy Travel Year In 2025

While we tried a few cruises this year, we also did our share of road trips in Canada between our bigger adventures. After our Toronto condo sold in Toronto, we packed our things and moved to the west coast in Canada. Our furniture went by train but we drove our car and some of our personal possessions from Toronto to the Sunshine Coast in BC. Due to challenges with the U.S., we chose to travel the route within Canada as we did in previous years.  We had familiar stops in Thunder Bay, Winnipeg and Regina.  Then we chose the Southern route through Alberta and BC. Heading to the Sunshine Coast, we were happy to finally be in our new home.

On a family visit to Ontario, we did a long weekend road trip to Kingston.  It was great to explore an area we visited several times before.  

We enjoyed a 2 week road trip around Sardinia. It was great to have a car. We explored many different areas of this country as day trips and when we moved from hotel to hotel. 

At home on the Sunshine Coast in BC, we often headed out for day trips and visits back to Vancouver. It was great to explore familiar spots and find new places to love in our new backyard.

Road trips gave us great variety in our sights on this busy travel year in 2025.

Amazing New Outdoor Adventures

We always loved to find new outdoor adventures when we travelled. Starting the year with Northern Lights in Norway really set a high bar for the year. We saw the Northern Lights from land and were amazed at how many times we saw the stunning sight from the cruise ship. Sadly our changed itinerary when cruising with Viking Cruises meant we missed so many of the winter activities we planned for this trip.

On our Norway cruise for Northern Lights we enjoyed a great day in Stavanger in the Norway fjords.  We explored the small town and a great fjord cruise along the Lysefjorden. We saw waterfalls, caves and rock viewpoints on our cruise on a perfect day.

We booked a week in the Yukon at the end of the year to add more winter fun to our travel adventures. We were happy we got more great Northern Light views. Snowmobiling took us out for winter fun. And the extreme cold meant we got to freeze hot water in a stunning display.

When we were at home on the Sunshine Coast we always found great outdoor adventures. This year we rented kayaks and explored Porpoise Bay in Sechelt. A fun way to see more of our area.

 We had so many stunning outdoor adventures this year.

Stunning Cave Sights

We saw so many great outdoor sights but we were probably most intrigued by the number of amazing caves we visited this year. On our Caribbean cruise in the spring, we enjoyed exploring Harrison’s Cave Signature Park on our port day in Barbados. We took a small train deep in the cave and saw some amazing sights.

In Sardinia, we did a great boat trip and explored Neptune’s Grotto from Alghero. The boat dropped us at the mouth of Neptune’s Grotto and we wandered deep into the calcareous cliffs in the Regional Natural Park of Porto Conte. The reflections off the water gave us stunning views.

We found many great spots to visit in Gibraltar on our Fall Mediterranean cruise. But our visit to St Michael’s Cave provided an interesting sight.  St Michael’s Cave provided many things to see but “The Awakening” provided a light and sound show that highlighted a section of the cave that looked like an angel.

Visiting caves provided some great treats in this busy travel year in 2025.

Amazing Water Views

We loved to travel for water views. So it was never surprising when we took another Caribbean cruise.  We got amazing water views at the fun Caribbean port stops. And we loved the sea views as we cruised too.

Before we took our 2 week trip to Sardinia, we knew we would be intrigued by the water views on this lovely Italian island. Day trips took us on twisty coastal roads. Viewpoints gave us great vistas out to sea. And the turquoise waters of the Costa Smerelda were as beautiful as imagined.

But this year we moved from Toronto to the Sunshine Coast in BC. Our new house has an amazing sea view.  We watched the cruise ships pass on Alaska cruises all summer. Whales and porpoises were regular visitors to our bay. Eagles soared past the window. And hummingbirds entertained us all day long.

With such great sea views at home, we may find a little less drive to travel for sea views.  But on our busy travel year in 2025 we sure enjoyed some great water escapes.

Relaxing Nordic Spa Experiences

We enjoyed our first Nordic Spa experiences on a visit to the Scandinave Nordic Spa when we stayed in Blue Mountain on a weekend escape from Toronto. And did not miss this treat when we went to Quebec City for a weekend escape and visited the Strom Nordic Spa. A spa vacation in British Columbia at Sparkling Hill Resort and Spa provided yet another Nordic Spa experience. So in this busy travel year in 2025 we made sure to take advantage of Nordic Spa experiences when we could.

We enjoyed the Nordic Spa facilities onboard the Viking Vela. Several times on our cruise for Northern Lights we enjoyed a relaxing break alternating between hot and cold treatments.

When we spent a week in Yukon in Canada, we planned a tour that included a visit to the Eclipse Nordic Hot Springs but the extreme cold temperatures when we visited cancelled this tour. But even with the cold temperatures, we enjoyed a quick dip in the hot tub at the Inn on the Lake at Marsh Lake in the Yukon.

We loved finding ways to relax on our busy travel year in 2025.

Wrapping Up A Busy Travel Year In 2025

We were amazed that we had such a busy travel year in 2025. Our travel took us to new destinations and some great return visits. We travelled by cruise ship to a great variety of destinations. And planned road trips too. Great outdoor adventures enthralled us through the year. 

Our travel slowed down just a little bit in 2025 but we have exciting plans already on the books for next year. We finish the year with a Paris river cruise and then a return to Portugal. In February we head off for a cruise to Galapagos and a land tour of Machu Picchu. In April our travels take us to Egypt.  And we are not sure what we will add to this trip. And in the Fall, we travel to Turkey and a great land adventure to Cappadocia. Even with this travel agenda already planned, we know this will not be all we do on our travels in 2026.

With renovations finally complete on our new house, we hope to have more time when we are home to catch up on the very long backlog of blog posts. And to share our new travels too.  

Did you have a busy travel year in 2025?  What was your highlight of the year?

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