We have previously published an article about the most environmentally-friendly countries in the world. When we combined that list with countries that actually have a wide range of eco-friendly tourist destinations, the following list was made:
Table of Contents
- 1. Norway
- 2. Finland
- 3. England, United Kingdom
- 4. Copenhagen, Denmark
- Do You Have Other Recommendations?
1. Norway
Norwegian cities might not be the most interesting ones. However, if you come to Norway mainly to visit Bergen, Trondheim or even Oslo, you have made a big mistake. Visiting Norway should be done in the exact same way that you visit New Zealand: by getting close to nature!
Sneak peak of what a trip on Flåmsbanen looks like:
Pictures from the beautiful Norwegian nature
And just to give you an impression of how beautiful Norwegian nature can be, these are some photos that can inspire you:
Fun fact about Norway:
Oslo is about to become the first European capital that is completely car-free. Many restrictions have already been made, but there is still a small part of the city center that can be used by cars. This will (hopefully and probably) change in the near future.
2. Finland
The Finnish government is quite proud of being the most eco-friendly country in the world. Heavy investments in renewable energy is one of the main reasons why they come out on top. More than 70 % of the energy consumption in Finland is driven by nuclear power or renewable energy sources.
And what can they offer in terms of holiday destinations?
Two things:
1. A beautiful capital called Helsinki.
2. Aurora Borealis [“The Northern Light”].
Most foreign tourists are probably most interesting in bullet point number 2. In fact, several thousand Chinese tourists are now traveling “half of the world” to see one of the most spectacular nature phenomenon that the world has to offer. And guess what? Finland is one of the countries who receive most of the “Aurora Borealis tourists”.
This is how Aurora Borealis looks like:
I have personally been a trip to Tromsø (Norway) myself and seen such a sky myself…and it really is something that you don’t forget.
Find vacation homes in Finland here.
3. England, United Kingdom
You might not think of ecotourism when you think about a holiday to England. More people do care more about good beer and football. However, England is probably the easiest place to go on an eco-friendly trip to Europe. The reason why I say that is because the extreme number of vegan and vegetarian options almost makes it difficult to find meat (yes, I am exaggerating).Yet, eating meat is one of the worst things you can do to the environment. More than 50 % of all young Brits have tried to go vegan over the last couple of years, which makes the supply of vegan products quite big. When I visited Scotland a couple of years ago, I did not eat meat at all – and I am a flexitarian rather than a vegetarian/vegan.
The fact that UK is quite a small island also makes it easy to access nearly all cities by train.
4. Copenhagen, Denmark
Instead of writing about Denmark as a country, I would actually like to single out Copenhagen. This is the most natural choice for a green traveler.
The most impressive thing with the Danish capital is definitely the transportation system. It might sound unheard of, but Danes actually travel more with their bike than their car. Consequently, the bike lanes in Copenhagen are much more convenient to use than driving around in a car.
Do You Have Other Recommendations?
We would love to hear from you. In fact, Iceland is a country that people very often put on top of their “eco-friendly tourist destination list”. We don’t.
Not only does it require an airplane to get to Iceland, but they do not have a proper train system at all. That means that the CO2 emissions from traveling TO Iceland and AROUND on Iceland are quite significant. Also, there are rumors that the huge tourist boom in Iceland has started to make a negative impact on the nature.
Ecotourism is on its rise. Luckily, more and more people start to become aware of the huge environmental problem connected with mass tourism. If you want to know more about this topic, I would really suggest that you read this article. It summarizes the concern with the tourist industry – and explains what you can do to NOT become a part of the problem.
However, if you do know about any “hidden gems” in Europe: feel free to use the comment section and let us know.
Here’s what particularly Germany does to protect the environment.
