New restaurants, cultural sites, chic rooftop bars – and a good night’s sleep. As modern life seems to have us constantly on the go, the last one is often top of the agenda when we jet off somewhere new. After days wandering through Old Towns and tucking into a new cuisine, we’re keen to hit the hay in our billowy hotel beds and catch up on rest.
With sleep deprivation reportedly affecting almost 1 in 3 adults in Europe, luggage store Eminent set out to find the top 10 cities for a restful escape.
To determine which of our favourite city break destinations is best for a great rest, Eminent Luggage assigned each place a ‘sleep score’. The score takes into account noise, light and air pollution and overnight temperatures – with southern European destinations prone to tropical nights that don’t drop below 20°C faring particularly badly.
Iceland’s capital, Reykjavik, ranks highest with a sleep score of 99.2 out of 100. The average summer minimum temperature of 8.9°C is ideal for a deep slumber, while noise and light pollution combined are particularly low. Clean air is a bonus, too, and the city boasts some of the cleanest air in Europe.
With temperature among the key factors, it’s little surprise that another northern European city ranks second. The Swedish city of Stockholm’s sleep score is an impressive 96.11, with zero tropical nights across all 92 days of summer and a low light and sound pollution at 27 out of 100.
Ireland’s second city, Cork, ranks third, while Kaunas in Lithuania is fourth and Gothenburg, another Swedish city, came in fifth.
