Peaceful holiday destinations: World’s MOST peaceful countries

Choosing a peaceful holiday destination is important as safety is a priority when travelling and various factors play a role.

Factors such as crime, political instability and natural disasters typically play a big part in deciding which destinations to put on your travel list.

GLOBAL PEACE INDEX

The Institute for Economics and Peace publishes the Global Peace Index (GPI) annually. The study covers 99.7% of the world’s population using 23 qualitative and quantitative factors, including crime rates, levels of violence and demonstrations, relationships with neighbouring countries, access to weapons, and political stability.

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PEACEFUL COUNTRIES DECREASING

According to the Sunday Times, Afghanistan was identified as the least peaceful country in the world – a position it has held for the past six years.

The 2023 GPI revealed that the average level of global peacefulness deteriorated for the ninth year in a row, with 79 countries recording a deterioration.

Conflicts are becoming more internationalised, with 91 countries now involved in some form of external conflict. Deaths from global conflict increased by 96%.

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COUNTRIES IMPROVING PEACEFULNESS

The countries that showed the biggest improvements on the peacefulness front include Libya, Burundi, Oman, and Côte d’Ivoire.

Europe remains the most peaceful region in the world and the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region remains the least peaceful region in the world.

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PEACEFUL HOLIDAY DESTINATIONS: TOP 10

The 2023 GPI revealed the following countries as the world’s most peaceful countries:

1. Iceland
2. Denmark
3. Ireland
4. New Zealand
5. Austria
6. Singapore
7. Portugal
8. Slovenia
9. Japan
10. Switzerland

Out of these 10 countries, seven are in the European region and the other three are in the Asia-Pacific region. Slovenia is the only Central European country on the list.

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