Your 2025 year of travel in review

[JessicaTam]

It's time for the annual AFF "year in review" thread. (For reference, this was last year's: 2024 - Year In Review)

So what have you managed this year? More than you were expecting, or not as much. Any firsts, likes or dislikes?

Here are some of mine:

Number of flights: 73 (31 Y, 1 W, 40 J, 1 F)
New countries: Andorra, Estonia, Portugal, South Africa, Poland (now up to 51 in total)
New airports: BCN, MAD, OPO, TLL, CPT, WAW, BER, YYZ
New airline: Iberia
Shortest flight: TLL-HEL 63 miles (one day I will get to PPY)
Longest flight: YYZ-HKG 7810 miles
Dislike: No lounges in the non-Schengen part of BER airport
Like: EU261 made sure I made it to OPO in good time, despite an aircraft going tech

[mod hat]
Permission to brag ... granted
[/mod hat]

 

[AIRwin]

Total flights: 48 so far + another 2 to go before year end (35 in 2024, 38 in 2023, 36 in 2022, 27 in 2021, 22 in 2020 and 62 in 2019)
New countries: Laos, Canada
New airports: VTE, YVR, YUL
New airlines: VN, AC
New aircraft: A220-300 (QF), E190-E2 (Scoot)
New lounges: PNH, DOH (QR), ADL (QF Business)
Milestones and Memorable Moments:
- LTG
- big bruise from a visit to the St Joseph's Oratory of Mount Royal after slipping at the top of a flight of icy stairs and sliding all the way down
- 2 back to back fifth freedom flights VTE-PNH-SIN on VN and EK
- Mangoes in PNH lounge

- Jacuzzi in DOH lounge

Post in thread 'Overview of all the Qatar Airways Lounges in Doha'

May 3, 2025

Jacuzzi in Al Safwa:

• AIRwin

• 

 

[kpc]

Number of flights 53 (25 Y, 37J, 1 F)
Flown: 125139 kms
New countries: 13 (Bulgaria, Serbia, Bosnia, Montenegro, North Macedonia, Albania, Kosovo, Romania, Moldova, Seychelles, Mauritius, Madagascar, Timor Leste). Total now : 88
Nights away from home: 11O
New Airlines. Air Mauritius, Madagascar Air, Tarom, Air China, Shenzen Airlines:
Best F: Ek for shower food and wine
Best J: Qr Q suites (private cabin with +1)
Best Y: ZH (Shenzen Airlines) from Xian to Guangzhou...as a *Gold, given 1st row in Y, PB, slippers, blanket, Chinese newspaper, lounge access and bags first out!

 

[AIRwin]

Best F: Ek for shower food and wine

No massage?

 

[Tiki]

Number of flights: 22, 18-Y, 4-J
New countries: Timor Leste, I can give Kuwait as a long time no see, it had been around 20 years.
New airports: DIL, AMQ (Ambon), NAM (Namlea), SXK (Saumlaki)
New airline: None
Shortest flight: AMQ-NAM 74 miles
Longest flight: BNE-DOH 7660 miles
Dislike: Took forever to clear customs at DIL, you have to wait in line to get a computer to do a declaration and others were slow. Wings Air (tiny airline part of Lion group) cancelled return NAM-AMQ so had to take the ferry, luckily I managed to get a cabin.
Like: QR Suites, lounges in DOH and IST

 

[RooFlyer]

Number of flights: 57 (9Y, 2PE, 44 J); domestic 28, international 29
Distance: 142,192km (88,354 miles); 4,154,467 km total to date (2,581,528 miles)
New countries: Montenegro (108 total to date - its getting more difficult!) plus Greenland if you count it (got a passport stamp)
New airports: BCN, SFL (Kangerlussuaq), LYR (Longyearbyen). 20 in total for year, 203 grand total to date
New airline: EnterAir (charter). 8 airlines in total for the year, 67 grand total to date,
Shortest flight: EDI-LHR 354km (332 miles)
Longest flight: DFW-SYD 13,804km (8,578 miles)
Dislike: Having to renew my USA visa just to transit from South America to Home
Like: Seeing the Arctic (with polar bears) and Greenland

 

[AIRwin]

Dislike: Having to renew my USA visa just to transit from South America to Home

No flights from South America on your map?

 

[RooFlyer]

No flights from South America on your map?

Very end of 2024. Flew DFW-SYD on new years day.

 

[AIRwin]

Flew DFW-SYD on new years day.

At least you didn't have to submit social media history then?

 

[blackcat20]

A very quiet year for us, with only two family trips (and one more over new years). I did do two solo weekend though.

Number of flights: 11(7 Y, 4 J)
New countries: None
New airports: None
New airline: None
Shortest flight: MEL-BNE
Longest flight: MEL-KUL

Notable: flew the new MH A330 Neo. The J seat was fine for a day flight but I'm not sure I'd love it for a night flight as its quite narrow with little seat storage. Always happy when we can get four J seats on points though.

 

[Harrison_133]

• Number of flights: 124 (with 2 more to go)
• New countries: none
• New airports: AKJ, cough, MKY, CTS
• New airlines: Air Do, FlyPelican, Skytrans
• New aircraft types: A319, A321XLR, JS32
• Shortest flight: ROK-MKY
• Longest flight: SYD-HND
• Favourite flights: Air Do 767-300 to Asahikawa & JAL Class J on the domestic A350

 

[MelbFlyer]

My stats for this year:

• Number of flights: 9 (3 Business, 1 Premium Economy, 5 Economy)
• Countries visited: 3, no new ones
• New airports visited: KMQ - Komatsu, Japan
• New airlines flown: EVA (BR)
• New aircraft type flown: None, but flew Starlux (JX) and EVA (BR) for the first time each
• Best flight: MEL to HKG - QF
• Worst flight: TPE to KMQ - BR

 

[Pushka]

One of the best trips ever - Japan during Spring. Stunningly beautiful.
And without doubt, the worst trip ever, Hawaii and a cruise with both of us ill for the duration of the trip. Never spent so many days in a hotel room and then so many days in a cabin.

Domestic? Only if needed to connect to the international flights.

 

[OZDUCK]

Number of flights: 14 - 8 in J 4 in Y+ (ScootPlus) and 2 in SQ Y
New countries: UAE (Abu Dhabi) and Poland. Abu Dhabi only because of a missed connection on Etihad causing us to spend a few hours in a city hotel. (now up to 31 in total)
New airports: BER, AUH (Abu Dhabi)
New airline: Etihad
Shortest flights: Singapore/Perth
Longest flight: SIN - DIA (Doha) 6,200 km
Dislike: Monsoon weather over the Bay of Bengal with lots of bumps on 4 flights - not severe but long lasting
Like: SQ flight to Singapore to introduce our grandkids to Singapore and Malaysia (southern tip around Johore Bahru)

It is now 16 years since we have been on an Australian domestic flight

 

[AIRwin]

Longest flight: SIN - DIA (Doha) 6,200 km

DOH or DIA?

 

[RSD]

Number of flights: 53 with 2 more to go - mostly in Y apart from a couple of cheapie J domestic flights in China where I needed extra baggage allowance
New countries: Czech Republic
New airports: various in China, Bolognia, Prague
New airline: none
Shortest flight: Haven't done the maths but probably LHR-DUB
Longest flight: QF1 (and QF2)
Dislike: No real dislikes, but then I'm someone who is pretty amenable to most things
Like: Prague - could easily spend more time there.