I feel like many of you are with me in saying that 2025 was a challenging year, but also one of a lot of growth. I’ll always remember it as the year we finally accomplished our goal of completing our first Camino de Santiago (the Portuguese route). We also rounded out 2025 with a friends trip to Quebec City, Canada to celebrate my milestone 40th birthday! In between, I took a girls trip to Asia, we traveled around the U.S., and we even visited some new spots in our home state of Colorado.
I didn’t write nearly as many blog posts as I’d hoped but hopefully I can share more about all of these adventures in the new year. In the meantime, here’s a look back at our 2025 travel year in review!
Our 2025 Travel Year in Review:
Tempe, AZ – February
Our first trip of 2025 was to Tempe, Arizona for WC’s stem cell donation through the NMDP Be The Match program. We flew in the evening before the donation so we could get a good night’s rest. The day of the donation, we arrived at the Vitalant Blood Donation center bright and early and the process took a few hours. Afterward, we went back to the hotel for him to rest and recover some. In the late afternoon, after a nap, we headed into downtown Tempe for some lunch and a few hours exploring. The next morning we headed back to Denver. It was a quick trip, but definitely a meaningful one. At this point we know very little about the patient, but we hope to someday get an update and that the donation made a life-saving difference.
San Diego, CA – April
This year wasn’t just my milestone 40th, but also my friend Luci’s! In April, we traveled to her home in San Diego for a fun block party to celebrate. As many of you know, I also used to live in San Diego and it’s probably my favorite city in the U.S. Though we spent much of the weekend celebrating Luci, WC and I also got a chance to visit my favorite place ever, Balboa Park, and check out a Padres/Rockies game.
Hong Kong – April
My trip to Hong Kong in April was quite a surprise for 2025! One of my best friends, Kelly, moved to the city early in the year and while I knew I wanted to visit her, I hadn’t planned on making the trip so soon. Turned out the timing just worked well for me and my cousin, Melanie, to make it into a girls trip and off we went!
Hong Kong is very cool. It’s such a great combo of being a massive city but still having beautiful gardens and parks that make you feel like you’re in another world when you step into them. The food and drink options are endless. And the hiking offers another way to escape the hustle and bustle for gorgeous scenery and a nice workout. I already can’t wait to go back to visit Kelly, next time with WC, of course!
Taiwan – April/May
After several days in Hong Kong, the three of us girls took a quick flight over to Taiwan. We started our trip in the southern portion of the country visiting Sun Moon Lake and then Alishan National Park. From there, we took the high speed rail to Taipei to experience the capital city. I loved how easily you can transition from Taiwan’s serene countryside to being in the midst of a vibrant, buzzing city.
I want to add a note here that tensions have risen in Taiwan since we departed in May. With China putting a lot of military pressure there, there are concerns for the country’s independence. This is something to keep an eye on if you’re planning to visit, and I’m hoping for peace and stability. The Taiwanese people are so kind and their country so welcoming, I hope you’ll get a chance to visit.
Camino de Santiago, Portugal to Spain – May/June
The Camino de Santiago was my biggest accomplishment in 2025 and the culmination of several years of planning. We began from Porto, Portugal and ended in Santiago de Compostela, Spain at the cathedral. Our total journey was approximately 177 miles over 12 days of walking. Very soon I promise to share a full day-to-day recap of the route we walked, but I did share some of our backstory for walking here. For now all I can say is this: if you’ve ever dreamed of walking a Camino, just do it. It was truly life changing for me. My perspective shifted, my heart was healed.
Porto, Portugal – June
After the Camino, we took a bus from Santiago de Compostela back to Porto to relax and celebrate. Three days of tasting port, listening to Fado, watching the boats along the Douro River, and sightseeing throughout Gaia and Porto. To top it off, we attended the Primavera Sound Porto music festival to see one of WC’s favorite bands, TV on the Radio.
Maryland – August
I come from a big family and each summer there’s a family reunion. When I was young, we traveled to West Virginia for the annual get-together, but with the majority of the family in Maryland, that’s now where everyone meets. I haven’t been able to attend in awhile but this year I made sure to be there. It was so nice catching up with everyone and seeing how the family has grown just in the past few years!
Vail, CO – August
Since moving to Colorado five years ago, we’ve enjoyed exploring all the Centennial State has to offer. In August, we visited Vail for the first time to attend the Vail Wine Classic. It’s such a scenic setting to sip wine and celebrate with friends. Downtown Vail is also super cute with some really high-end restaurants and bars.
Paso Robles, CA – October
On the topic of wine, in October we flew back to California for a long weekend of wine tasting in Paso Robles. This was our first visit to Paso and it’s definitely underrated! The region has more than 200 wineries so it’s hard to narrow down the choices but Epoch was our favorite tasting experience and Niner offers a delicious lunch menu. In general, the value for wine tastings in Paso is fantastic compared with wine tasting in Napa or Sonoma. Downtown Paso also has a lot of options for things to do: tasting rooms, cocktail bars, restaurants, speak-easys. If you’re able to stay downtown, it will make your evenings much more enjoyable and eliminate the need for driving after a day of drinking.
New York, NY – November
In mid-November, we headed to New York City to see Harry Potter & the Cursed Child on Broadway. This was our second time seeing the show; the first was on our honeymoon in London in 2017. This time, though, Tom Felton was reprising his role of Draco Malfoy so we knew we had to see it again! Not only did we see Tom on stage, but we also got to meet him, get his autograph and a photo! It was such a *magical* experience.
On top of that, this was our first time visiting NYC during the holiday season. We got to experience the fall colors, watch the Rockettes Christmas Spectacular, and see the Christmas decor starting to go up around the city. On my travel bucket list is seeing the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade in person so we’ll definitely have to plan another holiday trip sometime soon to experience that.
Quebec City, Canada – December
To wrap up the year, I celebrated the big 4-0 at the beginning of December! We rented a big Airbnb in Quebec City and 11 of us made the trip to Canada to celebrate. Ya’ll know I love everything Christmas so this was the perfect way to combine holiday festivities with my birthday festivites. We visited the German Christmas Market, had afternoon tea at the Fairmont Le Château Frontenac, rode the Dufferin Terrace Toboggan Slide, and mainly just enjoyed great company. Oh, and we also did everything we could to stay warm; it was probably the coldest I’ve ever been with negative temps for several days. Mulled wine and hot fondue bread helped (yes, the fondue bread is as too-die-for as it sounds). Thanks to my amazing friends for braving the chill with me!
Hello, 2026!
That sums up our 2025 travel year in review. We already have several trips in the works for 2026: Scotland in May and Northern Croatia in August. We can’t wait to share more on those trips as they happen. And we hope to post a lot more in 2026
