Copenhagen rolls out green carpet amid ‘overtourism’ pushback elsewhere

Earlier this month, thousands of locals protested in Barcelona, Spain, marching through the roads and blasting tourists with water guns.

Similar protests have been staged in Sicily, Italy, and in Bali, Indonesia.

Last month, Japan sought to address complaints about overcrowding and disruptive tourists by considering higher entry fees for foreigners.

Civic authorities in New York, Paris, Vienna, and Rome have intervened to regulate short-term tourist rentals, with some phasing out or banning licenses for platforms such as Airbnb, vrbo, and Booking.com.

Amid this growing pushback against overtourism at hotspots worldwide,  Denmark’s Copenhagen is focusing on boosting its tourism appeal through eco-friendly initiatives.

The Danish capital has rolled out a reward scheme that incentivizes environmentally responsible behavior, contributing to a more sustainable city.

CopenPay, a new program by Wonderful Copenhagen, the official tourism board of the city, rewards tourists for sustainable actions such as cycling, volunteering at urban farms, or participating in city cleanups with unique cultural experiences.

Tourists can earn rewards such as free museum tours, kayak rentals, and vegetarian meals made from local ingredients.

“It is a core task for us to make traveling sustainable. And we will only succeed if we bridge the large gap between the visitors’ desire to act sustainably and their actual behavior,” said Mikkel Aarø-Hansen, chief executive at Wonderful Copenhagen.

While many tourists express this desire to travel responsibly, translating this sentiment into tangible actions often proves difficult, Aarø-Hansen said.

This is why CopenPay is an important, albeit experimental, step.

“Through CopenPay we therefore aim to incentivize tourists’ sustainable behavior while enriching their cultural experience of our destination,” he said.

The program, part of a commitment to sustainability, also positions Copenhagen as a leader in eco-friendly tourism. It is currently ranked third on the Global Destination Sustainability Movement’s index.

Launched on Monday, 15 July, CopenPay will run till 15 August, with its eventual success determining its potential expansion to other parts of the country.