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17 March 2025

These are the most LGBTQ+ friendly cities according to a holiday romance study

Research on the best cities to visit for a holiday romance reveals more about nightlife, happiness and acceptance in Europe

By Markus Bidaux

Close of European countries on a globe of the world
Map of Europe (Image: Pexels, Lara Jameson)

Iceland’s capital Reykjavik tops the list of LGBTQ+ friendly cities in Europe with a perfect score of 100 points, according to a new survey.

The research by the airline Icelandair was commissioned to discover the best European cities for a holiday romance.

As part of the study, the researchers surveyed nearly 60,000 LGBTQ+ people across Europe. The score reflects the percentage of respondents who rated their city as a good place for LGBTQ+ individuals.

What are the top five most LGBTQ+ friendly cities in Europe?

Cityscape of Reykjavik with a snow covered mountain behind it.
The most LGBTQ+ friendly city in Europe is Reykjavik (Images: Pixabay, Paul Bates)

The top five LGBTQ+ friendly cities and their respective scores are Reykjavik (100.0), Zurich (97.19), Copenhagen (96.61), Oslo (95.23) and Hamburg (94.83).

The study reinforces Northern Europe’s reputation for openness and equality.

The research also revealed the cities with the most single people per capita, a happiness score, a nightlife score, a romance score and even a sunset score for those who believe it can really set the mood.

What are the top five happiest cities in Europe?

People sat on grass looking at the Helsinki skyline in the distance
Helsinki is rated to have the happiest population of any European city (Pixabay, Angelo Giordano)

Northern European cities also topped the happiness scores, which perhaps shows that equality breeds a better community spirit. These scores were compiled using the World Happiness Report, and national-level 2024 happiness scores were used where necessary.

The top five European cities on the happiness score board are Helsinki (99.97), Zurich (96.31), Copenhagen (96.17), Oslo (95.33) and Stockholm (94.16).

What are the top five cities with the best nightlife in Europe?

Night scene of Prague
Prague has scored a perfect score of 100 for its nightlife offering (Image: Pexels, Julius Silver)

Prague topped the nightlife scores with a perfect 100, nearly 15 points ahead of its competition. The following cities made up the rest of the top five: Lisbon (86.61), Madrid (85.90), Budapest (79.74) and Helsinki (71.33).

What are the top five best cities for a romantic holiday?

Cityscape of Madrid
Madrid tops the list of best European cities for a romantic holiday (Image: Pexels, Alex Azabache)

The overall ranking for best European cities for a holiday romance saw the Spanish capital Madrid top the list of 20 cities, with an overall score of 86.34 and respectable score of 91.69 for LGBTQ+ friendliness.

Rounding out the top five best cities for a romantic getaway are Prague (84.75), Lisbon (84.64), Barcelona (82.95) and Zurich (82.95).

Ranking of the top 20 best European cities for a romantic holiday
Ranking of the top 20 best European cities for a romantic holiday (Image: Icelandair)

The lowest scorers for LGBTQ+ friendliness in the top twenty were Budapest with 52.99, Athens with 67.27, Brussels with 72.75 and Rome with 75.54.

It is also worth noting that no UK cities made the top 20 cities for a holiday romance. So maybe for us Brits, a getaway in the sun may be just the ticket to broaden our romantic horizons.

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