World’s Happiest Vacation Destinations for 2022 Revealed

All-inclusive pioneer Club Med recently set out to discover what are the world's happiest vacation destinations and the results may surprise you. Based on a wide range of factors, the company compiled a list of the world's happiest vacation destinations around the globe, ranking them on a happiness scale of 0-100.

According to its research, the paradisiacal Indonesian island of Bali is the most sought-after destination among travelers who seek a blissful, stress-free getaway. The island's profusion of outdoor activities, along with a wealth of wonderful spa and wellness centers, contributed to its top-place position.

Internationally speaking, Las Vegas took the second spot, followed by New Orleans, Barcelona, Amsterdam, Budapest, Vancouver, San Francisco, Dubai, and Rio de Janeiro. Looking solely at North American destinations, the top ten list reads: Las Vegas, New Orleans, Vancouver, San Francisco, Washington D.C., Los Angeles, Portland, Toronto, Halifax and Nashville.

Despite its "Sin City" epithet, Vegas earned a high safety score, which is considered key to making travelers feel at ease and ensuring that their visits are always happy ones. The popular Nevadan oasis actually also offers over 40 outdoor activities, appealing to adventurous travelers and entertainment seekers alike. Overall, Vegas scored 73.7, out of 100, vastly outpacing the second-highest-ranking North American destination, the Big Easy, whose total score was 26.8.

New Orleans and Barcelona stood out in terms of inclusivity, both having scored the maximum in terms of LGBTQ+ friendliness, and ensuring that visitors from all walks of society feel as welcome and happy as possible. Dubai was a standout in terms of safety, scoring 83 out of 100 in that particular aspect.

A pair of European destinations also made it into the international top five. The Dutch capital of Amsterdam actually earned the highest safety score among the top five global cities, but a measure of happiness was detracted due to its being the most expensive destination in which to buy a beer. "Dutch courage" stands to cost visitors an average of £5.05 ($5.82) per pint.

Looking exclusively at Europe, the top five happiest destinations were revealed to be Barcelona, Amsterdam, Budapest, Porto and Marseille. Beer enthusiasts will find that Budapest offers the cheapest pint in Europe at just £1.49 ($1.72), while those who are concerned about crime levels might opt to visit Amsterdam, which had the lowest crime rating among the top five happiest destinations.

For this study, Club Med's Methodology began with sampling data from the 50 most visited tourist destinations globally. The various metrics used to come up with each destination's overall happiness score included safety, crime and pollution indices; number of available outdoor activities, day trips, and spas and wellness centers; the cost of a domestic beer purchase; LGBTQ+ friendliness and residents' happiness levels. Data was pulled from such sources as Numbeo, TripAdvisor and Nomadlist.

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