Theodora Taylor Franks<\/a>, Co-chair of the AITO Sustainable Tourism Committee and General Manager at Fleewinter, travelled to Svalbard and the Arctic pack ice on a small-ship expedition in June. Her choice captures the behavioural shift behind the numbers.<\/p>\n\u201cI love a beach holiday, and will continue to enjoy them, but this year, I wanted a holiday where I could make the most of every day, being active, exploring somewhere new, and not having to adjust my plans because of high temperatures.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cIt was one of the best holidays I\u2019ve ever had! What surprised me most was how much time we were able to spend exploring on foot, climbing mountains, swimming, and experiencing the landscapes and wildlife at close quarters.\u201d<\/p>\n
She adds: \u201cI also chose to visit Florence in February and March, outside its traditional peak season. I had a completely different experience from my partner, who visited friends there during the previous summer. I definitely enjoyed fewer crowds, cooler temperatures and more space to appreciate the city.\u201d<\/p>\n
That same appetite for a different season is tied to another pressure point: 54% of UK travellers are reported to be concerned about overtourism at peak destinations and peak times.<\/p>\n
Cooler travel can spread demand \u2014 but not erase its impact<\/p>\n
\n Travel Index\n <\/p>\n
\n Europe\u2019s Best
Active Coolcations\n <\/p>\n
\n \u00a0\n <\/p>\n
\n SportsCover Direct analysed 30 of Europe\u2019s most popular adventure destinations, ranking each on summer temperature and humidity, hiking and cycling trail density, and travel time from the UK.\n <\/p>\n
\n 01\n <\/p>\n
\n Rank\n <\/p>\n
\n Top Active Coolcation\n <\/p>\n
\n Mont Blanc Region\n <\/p>\n
\n France \u00b7 Alps\n <\/p>\n
\n 73.7\n <\/p>\n
\n Index Score\n <\/p>\n
\n No. 02 \/ Score 65.1\n <\/p>\n
\n \u00c5re & J\u00e4mtland Mountains\n <\/p>\n
\n Sweden \u00b7 Nordics\n <\/p>\n
\n No. 03 \/ Score 60.9\n <\/p>\n
\n Scottish Highlands\n <\/p>\n
\n Scotland \u00b7 UK & Ireland\n <\/p>\n
\n The Top 10 Destinations\n <\/p>\n
01<\/p>\n
Mont Blanc Region, France
Alps<\/p>\n
73.7<\/p>\n
02<\/p>\n
\u00c5re & J\u00e4mtland Mountains, Sweden
Nordics<\/p>\n
65.1<\/p>\n
03<\/p>\n
Scottish Highlands, Scotland
UK & Ireland<\/p>\n
60.9<\/p>\n
04<\/p>\n
Eryri (Snowdonia) National Park, Wales
UK & Ireland<\/p>\n
58.0<\/p>\n
05<\/p>\n
Austrian Tyrol
Alps<\/p>\n
57.6<\/p>\n
06<\/p>\n
French Pyrenees, France
Pyrenees<\/p>\n
53.9<\/p>\n
07<\/p>\n
Lofoten Islands, Norway
Nordics<\/p>\n
53.1<\/p>\n
08<\/p>\n
Hohe Tauern National Park, Austria
Alps<\/p>\n
51.1<\/p>\n
09<\/p>\n
Valais, Switzerland
Alps<\/p>\n
49.0<\/p>\n
10<\/p>\n
Connemara, Ireland
UK & Ireland<\/p>\n
47.2<\/p>\n
\n Index note: Alpine destinations dominate the top ten, while the Scottish Highlands and Eryri give the UK a strong showing for active coolcation appeal.\n <\/p>\n
\u201cThe coolcation trend is less about abandoning traditional destinations and more about matching the destination and season more carefully to the experience travellers want. <\/p>\n
\u201cTravellers understand that summer heat is unlikely to be an isolated occurrence, so they are thinking more carefully about temperature, seasonality and what they actually want to do while away.<\/p>\n
\u201cAn additional upside of the trend is that encouraging people to travel at different times of year can reduce pressure on destinations that usually experience intense summer peaks, while providing local businesses with a steadier, more reliable income throughout the year.<\/p>\n
\u201cHowever, simply redirecting large numbers of visitors elsewhere is not a complete solution. Cooler and more remote destinations can also be environmentally sensitive. Tourism must be carefully managed, with appropriate visitor numbers, responsible operators and meaningful benefits for local communities.<\/p>\n
\u201cFrom a holidaymaker perspective, If you choose somewhere colder, try not to spend the holiday comparing it with the beach break you might have taken! The point is to enjoy everything about the very different landscape, climate and season that coolcations make possible.\u201d<\/p>\n
It is the useful caveat in an otherwise seductive trend. A destination does not become impact-proof merely because the thermometer is behaving itself.<\/p>\n
Active holidays are showing up in insurance demand<\/p>\n
Chris Trotman, Head of Sales & Underwriting at SportsCover Direct<\/a>, says the ranking reflects a wider change in how active breaks are being planned.<\/p>\n\u201cWhat our research shows is that an active coolcation doesn\u2019t mean compromising. Some of the best hiking and cycling in Europe is found in destinations that are cooler, quieter and, in many cases, easier to reach than the Mediterranean hotspots people more traditionally choose for their holidays.<\/p>\n
\u201cDestinations like the Scottish Highlands and Snowdonia ranked so highly not just because of the weather, but because travellers can be out on the trails within a few hours of leaving home, rather than losing a day of their trip to travel. <\/p>\n
That\u2019s a real shift in how people are planning active holidays, showing that they\u2019re prioritising time spent doing the activity itself, not just reaching a beautiful location. <\/p>\n
Cover for hiking (+44%) and trekking & mountaineering (+69%) has grown steadily over recent years, which also tells us this isn\u2019t a fleeting trend(8).<\/p>\n
\u201cWhether you\u2019re heading to the Highlands, the Alps or venturing further afield, it\u2019s important to make sure your travel insurance actually covers the activities you\u2019re planning. <\/p>\n
Standard travel insurance often doesn\u2019t cover specialist hiking, cycling or mountaineering activities, which is particularly crucial when you\u2019re at a high altitude, off marked trails, or on multi-day routes.\u201d<\/p>\n
The Mediterranean still has sunshine, sea and a powerful grip on the holiday imagination. But for travellers who want to walk, ride and explore without arranging the day around the fiercest heat, Europe\u2019s cooler regions have an increasingly persuasive sales pitch. <\/p>\n
Mont Blanc\u2019s victory is not really about escaping summer. It is about getting more of a summer day back.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"The latest ranking of the best active coolcation destinations in Europe has put Mont Blanc at the summit…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":116833,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":"","_share_on_mastodon":"0"},"categories":[16],"tags":[56834,50,12869,56835,6451,29123,52241,3091],"class_list":["post-116832","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-alps","tag-active-travel","tag-alps","tag-chamonix","tag-coolcations","tag-mont-blanc","tag-scottish-highlands","tag-snowdonia","tag-the-alps"],"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ch\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/116832","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ch\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ch\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ch\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ch\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=116832"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ch\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/116832\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ch\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/116833"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ch\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=116832"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ch\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=116832"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ch\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=116832"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
![\"Kilchurn](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ch\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/Kilchurn-Castle-Scottish-Highlands.jpg\")
<\/p>\n![\"Theodora](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ch\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/Theodora-Taylor-Franks-AITO-Sustainable-Tourism-Committee-and-General-Manager-at-Fleewinter-1224x918.jpeg\")
Theodora Taylor Franks, AITO Sustainable Tourism Committee and General Manager at Fleewinter<\/p>\n