Tourists in Denmark Get Rewards for Going Green
How important is it for you to be eco-friendly when you travel?
Last year, a survey by market research company Kantar found that 82% of tourists want to be more eco-friendly, but only 22% have actually changed how they behave to do it.
That may change for tourists visiting Denmark's capital of Copenhagen, however — because they're being rewarded for doing eco-friendly activities.
Called "CopenPay," the program is designed to counterbalance the "environmental burden" of tourism, according to the Copenhagen tourist board.
Copenhagen is the third most sustainable city in the world, according to the Global Destination Sustainability Index. There are four times as many bicycles used in the city as there are cars, and more than 70% of electricity comes from renewable energy.
But in 2023, Copenhagen — which is home to about 660,000 people — also had over 12 million overnight stays by tourists from other countries.
"When you travel abroad — if you fly to other places or you travel by car — you pollute," Rikke Holm Petersen of the Copenhagen tourist board told BBC News.
"One of the things we can change is getting people to act more sustainably at the destination."
The CopenPay program started on July 15, and rewards tourists who do things like picking up trash, using public transport or biking.
The rewards include free lunches, coffees, glasses of wine or even a free kayak rental from bars, restaurants, museums and other attractions taking part in the program.
Visitors usually won't even need to prove they did something eco-friendly — the program is based on trust, Petersen explained. However, some attractions might ask to see a photo or a public transport ticket.
CopenPay will run until August 11, but if it's successful, it could become a year-around program.
"Imagine if we could have people taking a greener mindset back with them — if that was the souvenir they got — that would be amazing," Petersen said.
