New York Times names 52 places to go in 2025 — including a beloved Western North Carolina city
.jpg "RAD Fest 1.0 was an arts festival held in the River Arts District in November for artists impacted by Helene.")
With so many wonderful places to visit in the world, The New York Times has done what feels impossible: narrowed it down to 52 of the best places to visit in 2025.
At No. 16, nestled on the list between the Dolomite Mountains in Italy and the Magdalena River in Colombia, is a Western North Carolina city that is near and dear to all of us in the Carolinas, especially right now: Asheville.
The city has been working on recovering since Hurricane Helene swept through in September, causing devastating flooding to areas including its River Arts District and Biltmore Village.
Businesses, restaurants and shops were destroyed in the hurricane’s wrath. The New York Times noted the community banded together to collect and distribute needed supplies after the storm.
In 2025, visitors are invited to celebrate the Blue Ridge Mountain city’s “new openings and reopenings” wrote the Times’ Shayla Martin, citing popular places like the Omni Grove Park Inn and James Beard semifinalist Ashleigh Shanti’s restaurant, Good Hot Fish, along with murals by the Asheville Black Cultural Heritage Trail.
Asheville’s ranking on the annual list is impressive: The Times only named seven places in the U.S. out of the Top 52:
- New York City Museums at number 3.
- Sun Valley, Idaho, at number 8.
- Asheville at number 16.
- Lexington and Concord, Mass., at number 23.
- New Orleans at number 27.
- Detroit at number 39.
- Washington, D.C. at number 43.
This story was originally published January 10, 2025 at 5:00 AM.
