Last Updated on 01/02/26 by Rose Palmer
Another eventful year of travel is coming to a close. I had a little less travel time than in past years, but then it is all relative. I still managed to explore various parts of the world for 152 days in 2025. Boats, planes, trains, and automobiles were all part of the adventure.
At the end of the year, it’s always fun to tally up the numbers because while I am traveling, it doesn’t feel like it’s that much.
- 31 flights, including jumbo jets, prop airplanes, seaplanes, and a small helicopter (and no misplaced bags).
- 9 different trains, mostly in Spain, but also the Canyon Spirit in the US.
- Over 2500 miles of driving on a three-week road trip in Alaska and the Yukon.
- 5 cruises, including 3 large cruise ships, a clipper sailing ship, and a luxury hotel barge.
- 6 new countries: Malta, Denmark, Sweden, Finland, Portugal (via the island of Madeira), and Estonia. This brings my list to 60 countries that I’ve visited to date.
- I also explored the Yukon, a new Canadian Province for me.
For me, travel is all about new experiences. Besides new countries, I also crossed off a few other bucket list sights and activities: Highclere Castle (aka Downton Abbey), Bath, England, the Chelsea Flower Show in London, the Andalucia region of Spain, a Carnival parade in Stiges, Spain, and Finland’s Lapland region.
I also managed to see and photograph whales’ bubble net feeding in Alaska. After taking many whale tours where all I saw were fins and tails, it was a treat to see and photograph different whale behaviors.
As I have done at the end of each year since I started this website, I am sharing my reflections from this past year, both photographically and editorially. I enjoy doing these end-of-the-year reviews because they act as a brief journal of my travel year.
January
It was a good month to nest at home. My husband had to go on his annual ski trip without me because I spent the whole month of January fighting a respiratory infection. Better living through chemistry finally made me feel better.
February
Trans-Atlantic cruise on the Majestic Princess
By mid-February, my travel feet were getting itchy, and I was ready for some warmer weather. A trans-Atlantic cruise on the Majestic Princess from Fort Lauderdale to Barcelona cured my winter blues. I love sea days, and this 14-day cruise had only 3 port stops, so I had plenty of time to relax and get spoiled on the ship.
On the way to Spain, the ship stopped in Funchal, Madeira, where I caught the beginnings of their Carnival celebrations. Although the island is located off the coast of Morocco, it belongs to Portugal, so I suppose I can add Portugal as a new country to my list.
March
Spain
After my cruise, I met up with my husband in Madrid, and we then spent 2 weeks exploring the Andalucia region of Spain. I wanted to go to sunny Spain in March to get away from the dreary skies at home.
Instead, we had 2 weeks of almost non-stop rain in “sunny” southern Spain as we explored Seville, Cordoba, and Granada. Fortunately, we took our time and had multiple days in each city, which allowed us to enjoy the sights and the culture at a leisurely pace, despite the weather.
April
Chicago
I like to spend April at home. I love spring with all its flowering trees and spring flowering plants. It’s my favorite time of year.
However, I did do a quick weekend hop to Chicago with my daughter, which was very nice.
May
England and a Baltics cruise to Denmark, Sweden, Finland, Estonia, and Norway
May saw me on another Princess ship. This time, it was the Emerald Princess on a 14-day cruise around the Baltic region. The itinerary had stops in Denmark, Sweden, Finland, Estonia, and Norway, all of which were very interesting. I especially loved Tallinn, Estonia, with its Old World, medieval, walled old town – it felt like stepping into a storybook.
Since the cruise started and ended in Southampton, England, I bookended the trip with some sightseeing in the UK. Before the cruise, I visited Highclere Castle, famous as the setting for Downton Abbey. Then I went to Bath for two days, where I discovered Romans, Jane Austen, and quilts.
After the cruise, I stayed an additional two days in London, where I finally had the opportunity to visit the beautiful Chelsea Flower Show. I spent the second day at Hogwarts, aka the Warner Brothers Harry Potter Studios.
June
Alaska cruise
In June, I boarded my third Princess ship for the year. This time it was back on the Ruby Princess for a 21-day Alaskan cruise from San Francisco.
I absolutely loved this itinerary. We stopped at just about every port that is part of the various shorter Alaskan cruises. And while a typical weeklong cruise visits just one of the fjords, we went into all four that are normally toured by large cruise ships: Glacier Bay National Park, Yakutat Bay for Hubbard Glacier, College Fjord, and Endicot Arm for Dawson Glacier.
I especially liked the port stops at the smaller, less touristy, out-of-the-way towns like Valdez, Wrangell, and Haines. I rented a car in Haines and drove along the Haines Highway into Canada, which was one of the most spectacular scenic drives I have ever taken.
July
Alaska and the Yukon road trip
After my cruise, I met up with my husband in Anchorage for a three-week road trip around Alaska and the Yukon in Canada. Even though we drove well over 2500 miles, the trip was slow-paced with multiple nights in off-grid cabins.
We started with some fly fishing at Kulik Lodge in Katmai National Park. From there, we celebrated the long July 4th weekend at a secluded cabin in Wrangell-Saint Elias National Park.
We then crossed into Canada and drove a huge loop through the Yukon and back into Alaska. The highlight was a 4-night stay at Tincup Wilderness Lodge near Kluane National Park. We were the only guests at this private lodge located on a pristine lake surrounded by mountains. I didn’t want to leave!
Canyon Spirit train from Salt Lake City, Utah, to Denver, Colorado
After the Alaska trip, I had 2 days at home and then flew out west again, this time to Salt Lake City. I was part of a group of journalists who were previewing the new Canyon Spirit 3-day train trip from Salt Lake City to Denver.
The Canyon Spirit is the American version of the famous Canadian Rocky Mountaineer train trip. It was a wonderful 3 days filled with diverse southwestern scenery, attentive service, and great food and drink.
August
It was nice to be home during the month of August and celebrate both my grandsons’ birthdays. I had fun making special minky blankets for each of them as their birthday gifts.
September
England
My husband and I chose to spend our 40th Anniversary back in Europe. We started with another hosted European Waterways barge cruise. This time we were being spoiled on the Magna Carta on the River Thames.
This was my 4th cruise with European Waterways, and I was not disappointed. I love this type of slow travel, which offers a perfect mix of sightseeing and leisurely sailing down the river, combined with welcoming hospitality and outstanding food and wine.
Finland
From the UK, we flew to Rovaniemi, Finland. We rented a gorgeous cabin for a week on a small lake, where we just relaxed and enjoyed the quiet scenery.
I had hoped that by staying put for a while near the Arctic Circle in Lapland, we would see the Northern Lights again. Unfortunately, this time Mother Nature refused to cooperate, and there were no auroras visible. Still, it was a lovely, quiet week in a lovely setting.
October
Star Clipper Mediterranean cruise
I was fortunate to be hosted on the beautiful Star Clipper ship as she cruised from Athens, Greece, to Valetta, Malta. This was an intimate sailing experience that took me to less-visited ports in Greece, Sicily, and Malta.
Malta
My Star Clipper cruise ended in Valetta, Malta. I have long wanted to visit Malta, so I chose to stay another 5 days to explore this fascinating island nation. I discovered 6000 years of history as I explored ancient Neolithic archaeological sites, early Christian catacombs, and medieval fortresses built by the Knights of St. John.
November and December
After so much travel this year, it was nice to be home for an extended spell. Though I did not get as much accomplished at home as I had hoped, I appreciated the downtime, especially since it meant I had the time to enjoy a Longwood Christmas on three different occasions. And of course, spending the holidays with the family is always special.
Professional achievements
Despite all my travels, I did find time to write a few blog posts, especially for those related to press trips.
I also celebrated a year of monthly podcasts with Big Blend Radio at Quiltripping Travel with Rose.
I’ve also continued to do some freelance writing. My stories for SheBuysTravel.com were syndicated to MSN and to the 30 McClatchy news outlets across the US. My content was usually picked up by 27+ of their daily newspapers.
I have recently started writing for FoodDrinkLife.com as well. These stories are syndicated to MSN and to the Associated Press. My content has routinely been picked up by 110+ AP news partners.
I also received one more NATJA award for my content. This time, it was an Honorable Mention for my story about Temari Balls in Japan, a new hobby I picked up while traveling there. This was my 29th NAATJA award. I now have over 40 awards for my travel writing and photography, and have decided that is plenty.
Quilting accomplishments – not many
With all the traveling and writing, I have not had much time for quilting.
I did take my sewing machine with me on the three-week Alaska cruise and worked on a very large Alaska-inspired quilt. I had a lot of Alaskan-themed fabric and kits that I purchased on previous trips, which I wanted to use. I came close to finishing the front and the back of the quilt while on the cruise, but I have not had much time to work on it since.
Although I didn’t complete any large quilts, I did do other textile projects instead. I learned to make quilted Christmas ornament balls and created quite a few throughout the year.
I sewed a lot of sashiko panels this year as well. I picked up this hobby while I was in Japan in 2024. While I normally don’t like hand sewing, I like sashiko because it is easy and very relaxing. The panels are small, so I can take them with me and work on them while I am on the plane or traveling. It’s also a nice way to keep busy while watching TV when I am home. Eventually, I will sew all these small panels into a larger piece.
I also took a class with Nicola Davis of the Twisted Thread to make one of her Temari Ball designs. Even though this was a beginner design, it was a little more complicated than the one I made while in Japan. I really enjoyed the process and hope to make more. It’s far from perfect, but I learned a lot.
My New Year’s resolution is to work on finishing some of my quilt UFOs – un-finished objects. (The other resolution is to spend less time looking at social media.)
So what’s next?
I will be turning 65 in 2026, which feels like a big (old) milestone – Medicare here I come (sigh). I hope to get in as much travel as I can (so maybe not a lot of time for quilting again next year). I know there are many active travelers in their 70’s, but I feel like I need to get as much of my long-distance bucket list done as I can in the next few years. Those halfway-around-the-world flights are getting harder each time I board a plane.
My first quarter of 2026 is already quite busy. I am starting the year with a huge bucket list trip to Patagonia, followed by an Antarctica cruise on the L’ Austral with Ponant, which will also take me to South Georgia Island.
From the cold south, I’ll be switching into warm-weather clothes as I sail on the brand new Star Princess in the Caribbean.
I hope to follow this up with a few other bucket list trips throughout the year. I am also hoping to do another quilting class or retreat sometime during the year. Stay tuned.
I want to give a huge thanks to the brands I worked with: European Waterways, Star Clipper, and Canyon Spirit. I also want to thank everyone who keeps coming back to read my website.
All the best in 2026 and safe travels.
Rose