Boise made it in National Geographic’s list of top 25 places to travel in 2025

National Geographic recently released its list of “The 25 best places in the world to travel to in 2025,″ which features three locations in the U.S., including Boise, Idaho.
“From luxury train journeys through Malaysia to hiking an active volcano in Guatemala, discover this year’s must-see destinations, handpicked by National Geographic’s explorers, photographers, and editors,” per National Geographic.
The destinations on the list are scattered all around the world, from Bangkok, Thailand, to the Cenobitic Monasteries in Italy to Suru Valley, India.
Each place on the list includes a reason why travelers should visit it in 2025. For Senegal, it’s to have a unique culinary experience, and for Barbados, it’s to “encounter a new perspective on slave trade history,” per National Geographic.
Boise is featured on the list because of the Basque culture.
National Geographic also encourages travelers to visit Los Angeles, California for its growing art scene and Florida to see the Ocala National Forest.
Next to exotic destinations all around the world, Boise, the capital of Idaho, feels a bit out of place on this list, but National Geographic encourages travelers to go to the city to “party with the Basques.”
According to National Geographic, the state of Idaho is home to the country’s largest concentration of Basque people, whose ancestors arrived in the late 19th century to herd sheep.
Boise celebrates the Basque heritage with Jaialdi, “one of the world’s largest celebrations of Basque culture, which returns to Boise in July 2025 after a 10-year pandemic-induced hiatus,” according to National Geographic.
During the celebration, the city’s Basque Block downtown is set to host “daily street parties, dancing, and music performances,“ per National Geographic.
There will also be Sports Night which includes wagon lifting and wood chopping competitions.
Ocala National Forest in Florida also made the list because it is one of the last “wild places” in Florida, per National Geographic.
“Ocala is home to manatees, black bears, and rare plants, along with 600 lakes and natural springs spread across 387,000 acres,” according to National Geographic.
Ocala is the continental United States’ southernmost national forest.
“The National Forest Foundation has further expanded recreation opportunities for visitors with new fishing piers and improved trails, while also working to restore the preserve’s longleaf pine ecosystem by removing invasive species and planting seedlings,” according to National Geographic.
The third U.S. location on the list is Los Angeles, California. National Geographic encourages visitors to “get lost in L.A.’s new art offerings”.
According to CNN, Los Angeles is featured on the list because of new and upcoming attractions.
These new art attractions include a 1.3-mile stretch of Crenshaw Boulevard, which will be filled by Destination Crenshaw with over 100 works of art by Black artists.
“Just missing out on a next-year launch, the Lucas Museum of Narrative Art will open in 2026 in Exposition Park and will display works collected by ‘Star Wars’ creator George Lucas,” according to CNN.