February 15, 2025

Ohio National Guard

Explore the World, Find Yourself

The Best Places to Go in the US in 2025

The Best Places to Go in the US in 2025

It’ll be another 34 years before Alaska as a state turns 100 years old. But some of its best-known events and attractions are hitting that milestone in 2025, like the Serum Run, a sled dog relay that brought lifesaving diphtheria antitoxins from Nenana to Nome in 1925. The event has been celebrated annually with the Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race, which enthralls visitors and locals who gather along its 1,000-mile course to watch top mushers and their dogs compete. To catch the start of the race, post up at the Wildbirch Hotel, Anchorage’s first new major lodging in 20 years. The boutique stay, with 252 design-forward guest rooms and partnerships with local artists, will open in early 2025 and offer unobstructed views of the Iditarod start line. Also turning 100 is the unrelentingly beautiful Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve (which became a national monument in 1925), filled with rugged mountains, wild coastline, and abundant wildlife. It is the ancestral land of the Huna Tlingit people, who in recent years have collaborated with the National Park Service to restore previously suppressed oral histories and cultural traditions. One endeavor was building the Xúnaa Shuká Hít tribal house, the first permanent clan house on these shores since a glacier destroyed villages more than 250 years ago. The Huna people also own nearby Icy Strait Point, one of the most exciting cruise ship destinations in southeast Alaska. Come 2025 it will welcome new sailings including Princess Cruises’ 22-day Ultimate Alaska Solstice voyage, which will depart from San Francisco in June. The itinerary takes advantage of the 19-plus hours of sunlight available during the summer solstice, giving you that much more time to take in views of Glacier Bay National Park, Hubbard Glacier, the College Fjord, and more. For an on-land adventure with a side of guided bear viewing, head to Native-owned Kodiak Brown Bear Center on verdant Kodiak Island, where small groups of visitors share space with the largest subspecies of brown bear in the world. In the summer of 2025, KBBC will open a new wellness center built on a picturesque bluff and offer new, six-day fly-fishing programs on the Karluk River; by evening, guests can retreat to their wood cabins that have views of the lake—after a communal Banya-style steam bath that the Alutiiq people call maqiwik. Notably, Alaska Airlines has ramped up its scheduling in 2024 by adding a daily nonstop to New York alongside its existing service to San Diego, Nashville, and Portland, Oregon, making it easier than ever to get here. —Lisa Maloney

How to plan it: Fly directly to Anchorage from a number of cities around the world (Las Vegas, New York, Atlanta) to catch the first stop of the Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race. From there, take the three hour and 15 minute flight to Gustavus Airport (GST) at the doorstep of Glacier Bay National Park. If you’d rather skip the second flight, the Alaska State Ferry schedules regular trips to Gustavus, or if you’re planning your travels for June, begin your journey in San Francisco with Princess Cruises’ Ultimate Alaska Solstice voyage.

Alexander Valley, California

Go for: a Sonoma County hidden gem that’s flexing its Bordeaux and Merlots

link

Copyright © All rights reserved. | Newsphere by AF themes.