A new study of 167 cities in the world ranked Rotterdam (the Netherlands), Amsterdam (the Netherlands) and Graz (Austria) as the most eco-friendly urban destinations. Brussels ranks 16th in the world, with a score of 71 out of 100. Antwerp, in the 36th position, is the only other Belgian city to make the list.
The '2023 City Index for Mindful Travellers' looks at the sustainability of four main aspects of visiting a city: getting there (airport carbon accreditation, options for green travel, more affordable on the off-season), moving around the city (green transit options, wheelchair accessibility, etc.), staying there (availability of sustainable hotels, air quality, recycling points, etc.) and experiences (share of walking tours, local markets, second-hand shops, etc.). The study was carried out by Kayak, an American-based travel management agency.
The most sustainable part is arriving
Receiving a 97/100 score in the rankings, Brussels' main strength is how green it is to travel there due to its carbon-accredited airport, a significant difference between peak and off-season prices (which would discourage over-tourism) and the high number of train connections.
The score of the Belgian capital is however dragged down by the experiences it provides, according to the index. With a score of merely 50/100, the city has a small percentage of walking city tours with 14%, most of which are inaccessible by wheelchair. Trondheim in Norway ranks first with 35%. Brussels also has relatively small numbers of theatres, local markets and second-hand shops, adjusted to its surface.
Credit: Charles Lecompte / Wikimedia Commons
While Antwerp has a lower score than Brussels, the Flemish city does shine thanks to its biker-friendliness, having the highest score in the world for the number of bike routes (tied with other cities, including Amsterdam and Rotterdam).
Other European capitals like Stockholm (6th), Vienna (10th) or Berlin (13th) surpassed Brussels in the Kayak ranking, but many crowd favourites boded far worse: Paris ranks 26th in the overall scores, and London is 28th.
While a destination ranking can be a useful tool, experts note that tourism, especially coming from far away is a polluting endeavour in itself, accounting for 8% of all global emissions.
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One of the main sources of CO2 emissions from tourism is the transport to the destination, and 2021 research shows that such emissions are not counted in the carbon footprint of Brussels, therefore grossly underestimating how sustainable the city is, not only as a tourist attraction but also as a forum of international politics.
In 2017, the Brussels Capital Region claimed emissions of up to 3,7 Mton CO2 per year, but researchers show that the 2,7 Mton CO2 emissions of inbound international travel are left out of this footprint.
