"Coolcation" is booming

More and more holidaymakers want fjords instead of beaches

More and more people are opting for vacations in Central and Northern Europe. Norway, for example, recorded 22 percent more overnight stays by foreign guests last year.(Bild: AFP)

While hundreds of thousands of holidaymakers are making their way to the beaches of southern Europe these weeks, there is also a growing counter-movement: In the face of climate change, more and more people are spending their vacations in northern Europe in search of cooling off. 

Anyone vacationing in Greece these days should not be sensitive. It is currently almost 40 degrees in the shade. The Acropolis in Athens had to be closed to visitors back in June due to the heat. Forest fires are raging in some regions, and other countries around the Mediterranean are also increasingly suffering from extreme heat.

More and more people are therefore opting for vacations in Central and Northern Europe. Norway, for example, recorded 22 percent more overnight stays by foreign guests last year, Sweden eleven percent.

Heat is a problem for many
According to a survey conducted by the tourism association Visit Sweden in Germany, around a third of respondents are planning to change their travel habits due to the increasing heat in southern Europe. Many of them want to switch to cooler seasons, but quite a few are looking at new destinations.

Mountain air instead of fine dust in the big city
"Coolcation is not just about the weather," says Susanne Andersson from Visit Sweden. "It's about traveling to places that are not only cooler, but also less crowded." Instead of frying on crowded Mediterranean beaches or waiting in line at the Acropolis, quite a few vacationers prefer to swim in a fjord or breathe in the fresh mountain air on a hike.

The number of tourists has also risen in the Finnish region of Lapland near the Arctic Circle. Last year, the regional capital of Rovaniemi recorded 29 percent more overnight stays than in the previous year. "The coolcation trend is clearly noticeable here," says tourism officer Sanna Karkkainen. "It started a few years ago, but with the hot summers in southern and central Europe, it has intensified."

Trend also has its downsides
"Our main concern is that too many people are coming at the same time," says Jan Ove Tryggestad from the small village of Hyllesylt, where an impressive cruise ship with 6,000 passengers and 2,000 crew members has just docked. "It's a small village here. In winter there are around 300 inhabitants.

Of course, it's something of a culture shock when the inhabitants of an entire small town suddenly come ashore," Tryggestad explains. "But we are adapting."