Vacation Mavens

Not sure where to go on vacation next year? We have all kinds of ideas from new theme parks, new attractions, new hotels, cities and destinations celebrating anniversaries, destinations that are easier to access thanks to new direct flights, and more. Plus, stick around to hear where to avoid in 2025 too!

• Universal Orlando is opening Epic Universe in May of 2025 and you currently need to buy a three-day ticket, with one day to be spent in the Epic Universe Park. There are also three new hotels opening in 2025 in conjunction with the new park.
• Walt Disney World is also reopening the Test Track attraction and getting a new parade in Magic Kingdom. Disneyland will also be celebrating its 70th anniversary all year long and adding a new Walt Disney animatronic attraction. Two new attractions will also open in the Avengers land.
• Mattel Adventure Park is opening in Glendale, Arizona with a Barbie Fun House and Hot Wheels roller coaster.
• Oklahoma City is opening an Okana Resort with a hotel and waterpark right next to the new First Americans Museum near the Bricktown entertainment district.
• Santa Rosa, California is celebrating the Peanuts comic strip's 75th anniversary at the Charles M. Schulz Museum and Research Center. (Hear more about Kim and Tamara's trip to Santa Rosa.)
• Germany is celebrating the 50th anniversary of its Fairy Tale Route (read more about Jade from Vagabond 3's tripwith her daughter)
• Southwest is now flying direct flights to Iceland from more cities (such as Nashville). Just know that you won't be able to use your Companion Pass for Iceland flights.
• This winter is also supposed to be another peak solar cycle to see the Northern Lights in Iceland, Alaska, Finland, Norway, and Sweden.
• There are also new direct flights from Atlanta and Philadelphia to Copenhagen via a KLM code-share with Delta.
• Copenhagen is one of the oldest theme parks in the world and the city is quite family friendly.
• If you are traveling to Europe next year, at some point they will introduce the ETIAS visa and the UK is now going to introduce its own visa system in January 2025.
• 2025 is the 250th anniversary of Jane Austen's birth and cities like Bath, England will be doing a lot to celebrate. It is a great time to plan a trip for literary fans!
• Fiji now has direct flights from Dallas. Fiji is an affordable and exotic destination for families, which is easier to get to and much cheaper than places like the Maldives.
• There will also be new direct flights from Newark, NJ to Faro in the Algarve in Portugal (hear about Kim and Tamara's trip to Portugal). United also has flights to Sao Miguel in the Azores.
• Turks and Caicos has opened many new luxury hotel properties and beachfront villas and offers beautiful beaches. They are also opening a second airport.
• Indianapolis will be a great spot for a girls' trip or a mother-daughter sports-themed trip - just get your tickets to the Indiana Fever very far in advance. Seattle is also a great sports city with a women's soccer team and WNBA team.
• Italy is celebrating the Jubilee year from December 2024 through Epiphany January 6, 2026. Rome is going to be extra busy next year, especially at the Vatican (and it could be closed for events.)

In 2025, Tamara will be visiting both Peru and Chile in March and April 2025. Kim is meeting her daughter Mia in Paris in July and doing eight days in Switzerland.