By Shilo Urban
Giving back to Fiji
Would you spend one hour of your vacation giving back to the environment and the local community? Fiji hopes so. The South Pacific island nation has introduced Loloma Hour, a sustainability initiative that offers travelers opportunities to protect wildlife, conserve coral reefs and connect with Fijian culture through cooking classes and traditional dance performances. Get there on Fiji Airways’ new nonstop flights between DFW and Fiji.
Waldorf Astoria New York
Closed since 2017 for a $1 billion+ restoration, the iconic Waldorf Astoria New York will reopen in late spring 2025 with a signature restaurant by chef Michael Anthony, reimagined guest rooms and public spaces restored to their original Art Deco splendor.
Waldorf Astoria will debut much closer to home in 2027 with a new five-star hotel in Fredericksburg.
Planet Earth’s southernmost hotel
Planet Earth’s southernmost hotel will open in winter 2026 in Patagonia, Chile: The Cormorant at 55 South, a 150-room resort for passengers heading to Antarctica on the luxury cruise line Silversea. If you’d rather skip the Drake Passage’s turbulent waters, Silversea’s fly-cruise combo lets you take a private charter flight to King George Island (right off Antarctica’s coast) and begin your cruise there.
Air cruises
Are you dreaming of a multi-week, multi-destination trip without the hassles of cruising — and do you have a six-figure budget? Air cruises are the hottest trend in ultra-luxury travel. High-end companies like Abercrombie & Kent are offering globe-trotting expeditions to hard-to-reach locations (like the North Pole) on customized private jets.
Morocco’s first medi-spa
Spanning an enormous 46,000 square feet, Morocco’s first medi-spa has just opened on the Mediterranean Sea at the new Royal Mansour Tamuda Bay resort.
More than a dozen doctors and specialists oversee personalized treatments including cryotherapy, sound healing, Watsu massage and a traditional hammam.
First-class air cabins are making a comeback
Lufthansa’s new Allegris First Class Suite Plus features two 39-inch-wide seats that can be heated, cooled and laid down into a double bed — plus a large table, 43-inch TV and ceiling-high walls with a lockable door.
America’s 250th birthday
America celebrates its 250th anniversary in July 2026, and the largest flotilla of tall ships and naval vessels ever assembled will sail into New York Harbor. Why not join them? Cunard has announced a special Sail4th 250 cruise on the opulent Queen Mary 2 that will give you a front-row seat to the biggest celebration in the country.