Best Countries to Visit in Europe
We ranked 20 European countries on a regional blend led by safety, culture, affordability, and climate comfort, with development and LGBTQ+ friendliness as lighter support signals.
| # | Country | Score | 🛡️ Safety | 💰 Affordability | ☀️ Climate |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 🇪🇸SpainSouthern Europe | 79 | 76 | 53 | 76 |
| 2 | 🇮🇹ItalySouthern Europe | 77 | 77 | 49 | 74 |
| 3 | 🇵🇹PortugalSouthern Europe | 76 | 79 | 57 | 82 |
| 4 | 🇬🇷GreeceSouthern Europe | 75 | 73 | 57 | 80 |
| 5 | 🇩🇪GermanyWestern Europe | 75 | 74 | 38 | 65 |
| 6 | 🇫🇷FranceWestern Europe | 73 | 64 | 40 | 67 |
| 7 | 🇨🇿CzechiaCentral Europe | 71 | 79 | 58 | 65 |
| 8 | 🇬🇧United KingdomNorthern Europe | 70 | 71 | 29 | 65 |
| 9 | 🇭🇷CroatiaSoutheast Europe | 69 | 78 | 64 | 67 |
| 10 | 🇧🇪BelgiumWestern Europe | 69 | 73 | 38 | 65 |
| 11 | 🇵🇱PolandCentral Europe | 69 | 75 | 64 | 62 |
| 12 | 🇷🇴RomaniaSoutheast Europe | 68 | 70 | 72 | 68 |
| 13 | 🇭🇺HungaryCentral Europe | 68 | 77 | 65 | 68 |
| 14 | 🇦🇹AustriaCentral Europe | 68 | 78 | 37 | 67 |
| 15 | 🇲🇹MaltaSouthern Europe | 68 | 78 | 51 | 86 |
| 16 | 🇧🇬BulgariaSoutheast Europe | 68 | 71 | 71 | 69 |
| 17 | 🇳🇱NetherlandsWestern Europe | 68 | 78 | 35 | 64 |
| 18 | 🇸🇮SloveniaCentral Europe | 67 | 81 | 54 | 62 |
| 19 | 🇸🇪SwedenNorthern Europe | 66 | 71 | 34 | 58 |
| 20 | 🇩🇰DenmarkNorthern Europe | 65 | 78 | 26 | 61 |
Methodology
Rankings are computed from real-world open data sources including the Global Peace Index, World Bank (intentional homicides as a civilian-safety signal, WGI political stability, PPP-based price level affordability, protected areas, forest cover, international tourism receipts, and IUCN threatened species counts), US State Department travel advisory levels, UNDP (Human Development Index, Gender Development Index, Gender Inequality Index, and Planetary Pressures-adjusted HDI), ILGA-style legal protections plus TGEU/Transrespect anti-violence reporting for LGBTQ+ traveler scoring, Open-Meteo (climate normals), UNESCO (heritage sites and gastronomy-city recognitions), Wikidata (distinguished restaurant counts and winter-sports results), and OpenStreetMap (restaurant density, cuisine diversity, and luxury hotel counts). Countries with a Level 3+ US State Department travel advisory are excluded. Learn more about our methodology on the About page.
Data current as of May 2026 and may change. Rankings are generated algorithmically from publicly available datasets and are not a substitute for independent research. Do not rely solely on this information when making travel decisions. Always verify conditions with official government sources. Terms of Use · About our data
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