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Grab your suitcase and your passport — TIME has just released its list of the world’s 100 greatest places to visit in 2025.
From El Salvador to Jaipur to Zimbabwe, the team of editors at the New York-based news magazine has selected remarkable destinations and thrilling new experiences travelers need to know about.
Now in its seventh year, the list highlights everything from resorts to cruises to museums, restaurants and national parks.
US destinations that made the cut include the newly refurbished Waldorf Astoria New York, which is set to reopen later this spring. The 94-year-old Manhattan institution will have 357 redesigned guest suites for travelers to enjoy.
In Georgia, Macon’s Ocmulgee Mounds is a prehistoric Native American site and has been a national historical park since 2019. Now it’s gearing up to become the state’s first national park — get there before the crowds do.
In the Caribbean, the luxury brand Sandals opened its first resort in St Vincent and the Grenadines last March in Buccament, with a sea and mountain backdrop and a 300-foot pool as a centerpiece.
In South America, Colombia’s majestic Magdalena River, which runs for nearly 1,000 miles through the rest of the country, can soon be explored by river cruise, thanks to Ama Waterways. TIME highlights its upcoming seven-night itineraries between Cartagena and Barranquilla, now accepting reservations.
“Ghost” whisky distilleries have been resurrected in Scotland, most notably Port Ellen on the isle of Islay, which reopened last year after being closed for more than four decades. Now it offers a high-end visitor experience, where elegant teas are served alongside the expected drams of whisky.
Over in Paris, the newly restored Notre Dame cathedral gets a shout out. Says TIME, “When fire ravaged Notre Dame in 2019, proposals for rebuilding the 12th-century cathedral included a rooftop pool and a glass spire. But when it finally reopened at the twilight of 2024, it stood as a marvel of dutiful, worshipful authenticity.”
Denmark is represented by the newly opened Tiny Seaside resorts of Loddenhøj and Skarrev in South Jutland. “Its modernist houses are 226 square feet a piece but can each accommodate a family of four, and include private terraces and barbecues,” says TIME.
Namibia’s NamibRand Nature Reserve was named last year as Africa’s first Wilderness Quiet Park. The vast 200,000-hectare desert expanse has been an International Dark Sky Reserve since 2012, so it’s an incredible destination for escaping the noise and bustle of modern life.
In Musanze, Rwanda, the Culinary Innovation Village by Meza Malonga offers a tour of the African continent through food. Congolese-born Dieuveil Malonga visited 48 countries to create his particular blend of Afro-fusion cuisine and he told CNN in 2023 that he hopes it can spark a culinary revolution in his home continent.
Nintendo’s first ever museum opened last October in the Japanese company’s former factory complex in Uji, about an hour south of the city of Kyoto. Says TIME, “You don’t need to know a Shino from a Mario from a Zelda to appreciate the Nintendo Museum, but anyone who spent their childhood (…) glued to their Nintendo Switch or vintage Game Boy may find themselves transported.”
Once a popular stop-off on the Hippie Trail of the 1960s and ‘70s, Pakistan is re-emerging as a hiking destination. Nangma Valley has been dubbed the country’s answer to Yosemite, but without the crowds of visitors.
There are several train journeys highlighted on TIME’s list, but one of the most spectacular is the Ghan, a 75-hour luxury train ride through the Australian outback. The air-conditioned carriages are the ideal cheat for seeing this landscape where temperatures are extreme day and night.
See the rest of the 2025 list on the TIME website.
Like what you just read? Here is more of our recent travel news, from Pakistan’s new airport with no planes or passengers, to the triangular aircraft that could transform the way we fly.
Tired of flying in the same old pointy planes?
Hold tight for the innovative “blended wing” airplane from JetZero, a California company that has just announced a partnership with Delta Air Lines to help develop its demonstrator aircraft.
The makers of the quirky nacho-shaped plane say it will be up to 50% more fuel-efficient than today’s commercial aircraft and could carry more than 250 passengers — about the same as a modern widebody plane.
The aircraft is suitable for both domestic and international flight routes and JetZero plans for it to be in commercial operation by 2030.
JetZero’s demonstrator aircraft is slated to take to the air by 2027, but while you’re waiting, you can read more about this unusual style of airframe in our JetZero story from last year.
In other aviation innovation news, Chaise Longue’s controversial double-level airplane seat design has sparked furious debate whenever CNN Travel has covered it, but aerospace giant Airbus thinks there might be something in it. The two companies have partnered to explore “some early-stage concepts.”
And in feats of speed, the demonstrator aircraft for America’s first civil supersonic jet broke the sound barrier for the first time earlier this year.
Now an incredible photo from NASA, using specialized Schlieren imaging to show air flow, has captured the shock waves as Boom’s XB-1 aircraft exceeded Mach 1, the speed of sound. Boom hopes to be flying passengers by 2029.
For an airliner already in operation which is set to change the air map of the world, look no further than the Airbus A321XLR. The single-aisle, long-range plane with improved fuel efficiency could open a flood of new transatlantic flights.
Airport openings and expansions
Pakistan’s shiny new $240 million Balochistan airport has got everything an aviation hub needs — other than passengers or planes. The 400,000 passenger-capacity airport isn’t a big need for Gwadar, a coastal city with a population of 90,000 that lacks clean water and isn’t connected to the national grid. Here’s how this situation came about.
The Gwadar airport is financed by China and that’s not the only big airport in which the Asian superpower is investing. It’s building the world’s largest artificial island airport off the country’s northeastern coast. Here’s what you need to know about Dalian Jinzhou Bay International.
Finally, Europe’s biggest airport is set to get even bigger, as the UK has green-lit the building of a third runway at London Heathrow, a beleaguered project that was first announced more than 20 years ago.
Watch former world’s tallest and fastest roller coaster being imploded
After 19 years of service at Six Flags Adventure Park in New Jersey, Kingda Ka, once the world’s tallest and fastest roller coaster, went on its final kinetic adventure. The attraction was imploded in order to make space for new rides coming in 2026.
What it’s like to travel as a woman in Saudi Arabia.
Obstacles to accessing the conservative country have eased over recent years.
“Australia’s Bigfoot” watched over the small town of Kilcoy for decades.
Then one day, it disappeared.
She traveled to Italy to save her marriage.
Here’s how she ended up falling for her Italian tour guide.
