FIND your perfect holiday inspiration for 2025 with our month-by-month guide to the best breaks.
From carnivals to special anniversaries, along with new theme parks and hotels, we have collated the best places for you to stay in the New Year.
Here, Lisa Minot selects her favourites . . .
SAIL into the New Year with a fly-cruise to the Canary Islands.
Fly to Tenerife and enjoy time in Santa Cruz with an overnight stay in port before the P&O Azura sets sail for Madeira, Gran Canaria and Lanzarote.
With two days at sea you can enjoy the ship’s many attractions, including four pools and six whirlpool spas.
Seven nights’ full board is from £519pp including flights from London, Birmingham or Bristol on January 24 as well as entertainment, open-air cinema and sport facilities.
See pocruises.com.
EXPERIENCE the magic of New Orleans as the city’s historic neighbourhoods come alive with weeks of stunning decorations and carnival celebrations leading up to Mardi Gras, or Fat Tuesday, on March 4.
Follow the parades through the streets with thousands of astonishing costumes, vast floats and energetic music.
Trailfinders has an eight-night Louisiana self-drive trip taking in New Orleans, Plantation Country and Lafayette from £885pp including seven nights’ 3* or 4* accommodation and five days’ car hire.
Flights are extra.
See trailfinders.com.
TO mark 60 years since The Sound Of Music was released, you can enjoy private, expertled tours of the film’s classic locations around the Austrian city of Salzburg on a four-day luxury trip with Wexas Travel.
It includes a stay at the Hotel Schloss Leopoldskron, where many of the film’s scenes were shot.
Three nights’ B&B is from £1,150pp, including airport lounge access, flights, transfers and private guided tour.
See wexas.com or call 020 7838 5892.
RIVER cruise specialist Riviera Travel has a new series of themed breaks for 2025, plus a new cruise ship, the Riviera Rose, sailing on the Danube from April.
Its eight-day Gardens & Natural Beauty Of The Rhone cruise sails from the vine-clad slopes of Burgundy to the floral displays and lavender fields of Provence and features the Gorges de l’Ardeche and the Eden Gardens in Tournon, as well as historic Arles and its landscaped garden, L’Espace Van Gogh.
Departing Lyon on April 24, from £1,949pp including full board, free drinks package, return flights and transfers and 11 included experiences.
See rivieratravel.co.uk or call 01283 893 780.
NORTH African destinations are proving very popular for 2025 as holidaymakers search out better-value breaks.
TUI now flies to Enfidha Hammamet Airport in Tunisia from Stansted.
May is the perfect time to go, with average highs of 26C.
The 4* Suneo Palm Beach Skanes is family friendly, with a palm-lined pool and eight bars and restaurants.
The private sandy beach is 350 metres away and Sousse’s shops and souks a ten- minute drive.
Seven nights’ all-inclusive is from £675pp, including flights from Stansted on May 2 with TUI Airways, 20kg hold luggage and transfers.
See tui.co.uk.
THE Universal Orlando Resort in Florida opens its Epic Universe theme park on May 22, and by June, visitors will be clamouring to explore its five fabulous new worlds as well as three new hotels.
The park covers 750 acres, with more than 50 attractions, from kids’ rides to rollercoasters.
Worlds include Harry Potter, Super Nintendo World and Dark Universe.
British Airways Holidays has seven nights’ room-only at the 4H Universal Terra Luna Resort from £1,229pp on select June dates, including flights from Gatwick and 23kg luggage.
See britishairways.com/orlando or call 0344 493 0787.
KIDS will go crazy for the Magic Games hotel on Spain’s Costa de Azahar on the Valencian coast.
Just outside Oropesa del Mar and just minutes from the beach, the hotel’s unique theme will be adored by fans of video and board games.
There’s a great pool and at the kids’ club, your tribe can participate in workshops, games and competitions.
There are VR games in reception and a video games museum.
Depending on your board basis, you also get access to the wider Magic World Resort, with its aqua park.
Rooms have gaming decor and the whole family will enjoy the Pixel buffet restaurant.
Seven nights’ all-inclusive is from £1,319pp including flights from Gatwick on July 12.
WITH temperatures at their highest across Europe, finding a destination where the whole family can enjoy sunshine without the fierce heat is becoming ever more important.
For a chance to achieve that goal, try renting a villa in northern Spain’s gorgeous Galicia.
For 2025, villas-with-pools specialist Vintage Travel has added several properties in this beautiful but often overlooked region.
Just a few metres from the water’s edge just outside the pretty coastal village of Oia, the Casa do Seixo sleeps seven across three bedrooms and has a pool and table tennis onsite but is within walking distance of local bars and restaurants.
Seven nights’ self-catering, arriving August 16, is from £429pp or £2,998 in total. Fly to Vigo from Stansted with fares from £204pp.
See vintagetravel.co.uk.
DIVE into India’s rich heritage with a tour of the Golden Triangle cities — Delhi, Agra and Jaipur — with September’s pleasant weather making it an ideal time to explore landmarks such as the Taj Mahal and Amber Fort.
Southall Travel has a five-night tour from £1,099pp, departing throughout September.
Price includes flights, two nights’ B&B in Delhi and Jaipur and one night’s B&B in Agra, plus complimentary dinner at Chokhi Dhani and Jeep ride at the Amber Fort, guide, transport and internal flights.
Priced is based on departures between September 2 and 9.
See southalltravel.co.uk or call 0800 408 8009.
WHEN you think of Halloween, the Maldives may not be the first place that comes to mind.
But every October the 5* all-inclusive Siyam World goes from serene to spooky.
The private island resort’s lush landscapes take on a scary feel as the staff go full-on with fabulous costumes based on Stranger Things, Silent Hill and Insidious.
While there is Halloween fun after dark, by day you can enjoy all the traditional delights of a Maldivian stay, from multiple pools to gorgeous white-sand beaches and plenty of sports and fun for all the family.
Seven nights’ all-inclusive is from £2,069pp, based on two adults and two children under 12 sharing, including Heathrow flights on selected dates in October.
See travelbag.co.uk or call 0203 393 9620.
WITH the colder weather well and truly under way, some winter sun is essential.
November marks the start of the dry season in Gambia, with ideal conditions for spotting wildlife along the River Gambia or simply soaking up the sun on the uncrowded golden beaches.
The 3* Palma Rima Hotel in Kololi, Banjul, has the biggest hotel pool in the country as well as landscaped gardens.
It is a short stroll to the restaurants, craft markets, bars and shops of Kololi Beach.
Expect to pay £30 for a three-course meal for two in town and £3 for a wine or beer.
Seven nights’ B&B is from £997pp including direct flights from Gatwick on November 4, 15kg luggage and transfers.
See olympicholidays.com or call 0208 492 6868.
HOW better to welcome in the festivities than by visiting a Christmas market?
New for 2025 are Jet2 flights from Birmingham and Manchester to Estonian capital Tallinn.
Perfect for a great-value getaway, its medieval city centre is often dusted with snow in December, and a tree has been erected in the Town Hall Square since 1441, making it the first Christmas tree ever to be put on display in Europe.
There are all the usual stores and stalls selling a host of locally made artisan treats, from ornaments and wooden toys to alpaca wool accessories.
Food and drink prices are very reasonable compared to other European cities, with draft beers from £4 and Glogg mulled wine in the Christmas market from £5.
Three nights’ B&B at the 4H Centennial Nexus Hotel, Tallinn is from £589pp including Birmingham flights on December 19 and 22kg luggage.
See jet2holidays.com for more details.
