Fed up with overtourism and unruly holiday-makers, some of the world’s most popular destinations have recently begun fining and taxing badly behaved travellers.
Amsterdam has been among the leaders in a global crackdown on so-called “nuisance tourists”, while perennial Australian favourite Bali has also tightened rules on scooter use and tourist attire – among other things.
But others are bucking the trend, following an idea introduced in Copenhagen about a year ago that allowed tourists to “pay” for local experiences with conscious actions and give back to the destination they visit.
The Danish capital’s CopenPay scheme offers visitors perks such as free ice-cream, glasses of wine and discounted museum entry as rewards for green deeds such as collecting litter, volunteering in community gardens or choosing to cycle rather than drive.
The program returned for a second run in this northern hemisphere summer, with the city also rewarding tourists who arrived by train and chose to stay longer.
“Since launching CopenPay last summer, we’ve been met by an enormous interest from cities and tourist boards from Europe, Asia and North America, all wanting to know more about CopenPay and our learnings,” Wonderful Copenhagen chief executive Søren Tegen Petersen said.
“So far, we have shared insights on CopenPay with more than 100 interested parties.”
With overtourism becoming a global issue – and protest marches and even water guns aimed at holiday-makers in European destinations such as Barcelona – the Copenhagen approach is also spreading. Other busy cities are planning to introduce their own local incentive schemes.
Among them is the German capital, Berlin.
”CopenPay stands out as an inspiring example of how creative measures can effectively raise awareness for more sustainable travel,” the city’s tourism chief Sabine Wendt said.
“In Berlin, we share this ambition and are currently considering setting up a similar concept tailored to Berlin, in close collaboration with our partners from the visitor economy.”
Berlin’s scheme is likely to reward travellers who arrive by train, eat plant-based meals and get involved in eco-friendly activities, with similar perks to in Copenhagen.
Local authorities say they hope it will help narrow the gap between tourists wanting to be more responsible, but not knowing how, and their actual behaviour.
Another German city, Bremen, has already launched a CopenPay-inspired campaign with national rail company Deutsche Bahn.
Bremen Marketing and Tourism managing director Oliver Rau said overnight guests arriving in the city by train had been given gift bags of vouchers and samples from local tourism business.
“The campaign was very well received by our visitors and has encouraged us to further expand the concept, strengthening Bremen as a sustainable destination. For 2026, we are planning an even larger initiative,” he said.
In Finland, tourism operators in the capital Helsinki are mulling a similar program.
Rewarding tourists for responsible behaviour is not an entirely new concept, with other cities running similar local schemes.
They included Plastic Free July in London, where visitors and residents are rewarded with free drinks for helping in clean-ups, and Switzerland giving free museum entry to travellers who use public transport.
Rodney Payne, the chief executive of Canadian tourism industry consulting agency Destination Think, said similar schemes could be used worldwide.
“With CopenPay, Copenhagen proves that bold ideas can inspire global change. This innovative model shows other destinations how to engage visitors in ways that are both sustainable and deeply connected to local life where travellers become active participants rather than passive consumers,” Payne said.
“CopenPay holds huge potential for destinations around the world to adopt into their own local version.”
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