A solo traveller who says he’s been to almost every country in Europe has revealed the ten places he felt the safest, and his top picks may surprise some. Luke Patrick Hoogmoed, a Dutch travel influencer with nearly 500,000 followers on Instagram, shared the list in a recent post. He said the ranking is based on personal experience rather than a single trip.
“This is my top 10 safest countries in Europe based on my experience,” he wrote. “I have travelled to basically every country in Europe multiple times, so my opinion is not based on one good or bad trip I had in a country.” Most of the countries he named are in Eastern Europe, which Luke said often feels safer than the West.
“As you can tell, it’s a lot of Eastern European countries that are on this list. That’s not a coincidence. I’ve found that Eastern Europe is much safer compared to the West,” he said.
“Especially big cities in Western and Northern Europe aren’t as safe as you might expect.
“On the contrary, the big cities in Eastern Europe are incredibly safe, clean, and kind to travelers.”
While his list was mostly made up of Eastern destinations, Luke did include a few from elsewhere.
“Finland, Denmark, and Portugal did make the list though,” he added. “Those are the safest countries in my opinion that aren’t Eastern European. Portugal in general is my favourite country in Western Europe.”
Here is Luke’s personal top 10:
- Poland
- Denmark
- Hungary
- Finland
- Czech Republic
- Bosnia
- Slovenia
- Serbia
- Portugal
- Romania
Many agreed with his views, especially about Poland and Hungary.
One person wrote: “Every tourist say that Poland is the safest place they have ever been to.”
Another said: “I just landed back in the US from 15 days in Poland with my kids. Wow, it was indeed the safest.”
One traveller shared their experience: “I’ve been to Romania, Poland, Hungary, and Czechia as a single female traveler. Walked back from stuff late at night. Felt incredibly safe. Did not feel the same in Barcelona and London.”
Another added: “We felt so comfortable and safe in Poland. Travelled there with our then 7-year-old and loved it. Also felt very safe in Romania and Hungary.”
But not everyone was convinced.
One person asked: “And this is based on what? On you being in those countries for 2-3 days? Seriously.”
Another wrote: “Poland seems so safe and girls are still afraid to go out in the evening.”
Someone else commented: “I am surprised that Austria isn’t on the list. By the way, I had been in Budapest and I found it dangerous to walk alone on the streets at night.”
Official rankings also show a different picture. According to the Global Peace Index via World Population Review, these are the safest countries in Europe right now:
- Iceland
- Austria
- Ireland
- Switzerland
- Portugal
- Denmark
- Slovenia
- Czech Republic
- Finland
- Hungary