‘Safe and serene’ Iceland is Europe’s top relaxing destination as sunny hotspots judged too crowded

As several of Europe’s once-peaceful destinations, including France, Spain, Italy, and Turkey, struggle with overtourism, visitors are seeking peace and quiet away from the crowds. 

New research released this week reveals the top countries where you can find that tranquillity. 

While Australia took the number one spot, many northern European countries pipped warmer Mediterranean destinations to the post, thanks to their historical wellness culture and safer, quieter spaces.

Over 76 destinations were analysed and then ranked by The Global Relaxation Index based on five key ‘relaxation’ factors: safety, solitude, serenity, nature, and wellness. 

These were judged on the amount of protected area and forest coverage, crowd density, noise pollution, and the availability of wellness experiences. Each destination was then given a score between 1 and 100.

Iceland scored nearly perfect marks for its safety and serenity, coming in third place and as the most highly-rated European country. This should come as no surprise, given that the sparsely populated island nation is brimming with volcanoes, natural springs, and the enchantment of the Northern Lights.

Finland wasn’t far behind either, taking the fourth spot. It shares a crowd density below 20 people per km2 with Iceland. 

This is in drastic contrast to the heavy crowds in Italy, which had 198.3 people per km2, and Mauritius, which was deemed the most crowded destination in the report based on its incredible 626 people per km.

Europe’s other leading relaxing destinations were Austria, ranked at number 6, Sweden at number 7, Estonia at number 8, Norway at number 9, and Portugal at number 10. 

These countries were flagged to be leading the way in relaxation due to not having acres of