A year ago, I had a lot of fun writing about my 2024 travels, and have been looking forward to doing it again. So, here’s another self-indulgent post about where I’ve been last year. Enjoy!

I welcomed 2025 in Nice, France with a friend. On New Year’s Day we went on a walking tour of the city, before flying back to London in the evening. I expected the airport to be horribly busy, but it was strangely quiet which made for a pleasant flight back.

Nice was… nice 😉

Spring

I took a break from travelling and didn’t go anywhere in the first quarter of the year.

But in April, I finally visited a country that I’d had fairly high on my travel bucket list – Morocco! I started in Ouarzazate, then headed to Marrakesh and joined a 3‑day trip to the Sahara Desert. Not only was it the highlight of my time in Morocco, but also one of the most memorable experiences ever!

Across the dunes of the Sahara

In the Atlas Mountains

The last stop was Casablanca, which ended up becoming my favourite Moroccan city. To make the most of my time in the region, I added a few days in Tunisia. I stayed in Tunis but went to Carthage and Sidi Bou Saïd for a day.

Casablanca, Morocco

Carthage, Tunisia

In May, I usually take advantage of two UK Bank Holidays by going on long weekend trips. This year, I went to Oslo which marked my first time in Norway and the final Nordic country left for me to visit. The second trip was to Germany where I split my time between Münster and Düsseldorf.

At the end of the month I squeezed in a weekend trip to Birmingham with my friend Fabian. We’ve been planning to do it for a long time, and I must say that Birmingham was better than I’d expected!

Summer

At the end of June, I went on another UK trip – to Cambridge. This time, it was solo and just for a day, to see an exhibition about Antarctica and the Arctic at the Polar Museum. I think it was my fourth visit to Cambridge, so later I had a relaxed walk and a mini picnic by the River Cam, without the pressure to see anything in particular.

My job is mostly office-based and I rarely work from home more than a day a week. So imagine my surprise when I found out that due to refurbishment, I’ll need to work remotely for the better part of the summer! There was no way I was going to spend it at home, and I set out to do as much travelling as possible. I planned three rounds of country-hopping around Europe, ticking off bucket list spots, catching a couple of concerts and attending family events.

I started in mid-July in Malta. Not a place I ever had any interest in, but logistically and price-wise it was a good option. I knew that in the peak of summer this Mediterranean island is a no-go zone for someone not built for heat, but I did enjoy my two days in Valletta.

From there, I flew to Wrocław, Poland to visit my family, before going to Amsterdam. It was my first time flying with KLM and I was really impressed! In the Dutch capital, I was seeing Alice Cooper at AFAS Live and walked a lot, revisiting my favourite spots in one of my favourite cities.

Coffee time and dog watching at The School of Life 😁

The flight back to London was from Rotterdam and I spent half a day exploring it. There isn’t a great deal to do, but the city has a pleasant character.

After a week or so at home, I headed to Budapest, Hungary in August, followed by Bucharest, Romania, amused at how the similar names sit side-by-side in my itinerary. Both capitals compete for the title of “Paris of the East”… Yes, a bit far-fetched, but they did offer more than I was ready to give them credit for!

From Buda…

… to Buka 😄

I then flew to Pisa, Italy to catch a Patty Pravo concert in the nearby seaside town of Pietrasanta. My friend Krison joined me the following day. After obligatory snaps with the Leaning Tower, we took a 4‑hour bus ride to the other side of the “Italian boot”. We spent a day in Rimini, squeezing in a short beach time, before making it to the mountainous microstate of San Marino. It’s extremely picturesque and by all means worth the hoops to get there!

Being there felt extra special to me as it was the final Western European country I had yet to visit.

I was leaving Italy from Bergamo Airport and had a few hours to spare in Milan before the flight. My relationship with this city has always been bittersweet, but a quick stroll that afternoon helped me let go of negative memories.

The second leg of my summer travels ended in Bosnia & Herzegovina – one of the least-visited countries in Europe, long on my radar. I couldn’t have been more excited to arrive in Sarajevo, but my expectation sadly didn’t match reality.

With the Sarajevo Film Festival in full swing, the city felt overcrowded and tiring. I did go on a walking tour, which helped me understand it a bit better, but failed to raise the general impression. After a day, I was more than ready to move on to Banja Luka. But I’d love to return to the Bosnian capital one day, when the timing is better.

“Sarajevo My Love”? I don’t think so.

Back in the UK I had another quiet week, only going to Darlington to see the 80s Calling! concert.

At the end of August, I went to Chișinău, Moldova – another major bucket list item for me, as far as Europe goes. Luck would have it that my friend Stefan also was in the city, and we had a surprise reunion. I got to see most of Chișinău’s attractions, including its brutalist buildings, and went on a day trip to Tiraspol in the separatist state of Transnistria.

Chișinău

Tiraspol

I then spent some time in Poland, attending family celebrations. On my way back to London, I took a train to Berlin, making my usual stopover. There, I met with my friend Satish. It was his first time in the German capital, and my fifth, and I happily showed him around. We went to see the East Side Gallery, which was also a first for me!

Autumn

I visit Albania every year since 2021, usually in the autumn, often hopping to neighbouring countries. This year, I started the trip in Podgorica, making Montenegro the 39th new country on my list. It’s often described as “the most boring European capital”, but I didn’t care. In recent years, I’m more and more drawn to these less explored, non-touristy places.

In Tirana, I focused on mural hunting with the intention to write a separate post about them. It makes me happy to see that it’s getting a fair amount of organic traction as I’ve put a lot of research (and passion!) into it.

Albania and former Yugoslavia is my favourite region in Europe and I hope to continue my autumn Balkan getaways in the years to come.

In Tirana’s “Tunnel of Hearts”

My last trip of the year was in November, to the Portuguese island of Madeira. I was visiting a friend I haven’t seen in 2,5 years which made this trip so special. Our base was Santa Cruz, on a hillside near the airport, with an amazing view of the runway by the ocean. The town was all ready for Christmas and we spent the first evening soaking up the festive atmosphere.

The rest of the stay was all about driving. We went to Machico (former capital), Santana, Seixal and Porto Moniz – both with stunning viewpoints of the Atlantic, Câmara de Lobos – once rundown, but now a hip village, a quiet town of Caniçal and a few other spots I don’t have at the top of my head now. We also went up Pico do Areeiro (Arieiro) – the third highest peak on the island.

In December, I flew for a day to Berlin, before taking a train over to Poland to spend the rest of the year with my family. We got an unexpected (but most welcome!) snowfall between Christmas and New Year’s Eve! 😍

Saying goodbye to 2025 in snowy Wołczyn, Poland

Stats and plans

In 2025, I visited 15 countries, out of which 10 were new. (Excluding Poland, the UK and my final day in France on New Year’s Day). I visited 22 new cities, and 30 cities in total, taking 25 flights, 10 train journeys and 10 bus rides.

Somehow I managed to outdo the busy 2024!

I have plans for the first half of 2026, but nothing booked yet. It’s looking to be a more purposeful travelling, visiting friends and family and going to events, instead of ticking off random countries. In any case, I’m excited for what the new year has in store for me!