Tourists visiting the capital of Denmark will be rewarded with food, coffee, and wine, as well as engaging activities if they fulfill certain tasks to protect the environment.
Wonderful Copenhagen, the tourism organization in the region of the Danish capital, has launched a project through which visitors’ environmental actions will provide them with cultural experiences and more, as reported by Euronews.
Copenhagen is a very popular destination, with over 12 million overnight stays booked in 2024. And after the launch of the CopenPay program, it will become an even more sought-after city.
The pilot program will start on July 15, and tourists will be encouraged to participate in activities such as waste collection, using public transport instead of cars or taxis, or biking.
Those who participate will be rewarded with prizes such as free lunches, coffee and wine, free museum entry, or free kayak rental.
Why tourists receive rewards
The program was launched following the publication of data from the 2023 Sustainability Index, which shows that 82% of tourists want to make more environmentally friendly choices, but only 22% have succeeded in doing so.
CopenPay was designed to offset the impact of tourism on the environment, according to the Copenhagen tourism office.
"When you travel abroad - if you fly to other places or travel by car - you pollute. One of the things we can change is to make people act more sustainably at the destination," explained Rikke Holm Petersen, the communication chief of the mentioned office.
Local authorities hope that the incentives offered will prove useful for the future of tourism in the city.
"We need to turn tourism from an environmental burden into a force for positive change, and an important step in this transformation is to change how we travel to the destination, what we consume, and how we interact with locals," said Mikkel Aarø-Hansen, director of Wonderful Copenhagen.
How the program will unfold
The program will run until August 11 on a trust basis, meaning tourists will not be required to prove that they have completed the environmental tasks to receive the rewards. "In some places, you may need to show a photo of yourself on a bike or the public transport ticket," Petersen mentioned.
So far, around 24 units and organizations have enrolled in the pilot program, but the government will not compensate companies providing the rewards.
What tourists need to do
The program will reward a variety of tourist actions, such as recycling, participating in clean-up activities, volunteering at urban farms. Prizes will include free museum tours with a guide, sports activities, or free vegetarian lunches made from locally grown vegetables and fruits.
Some of the experiences will be available only to program participants. For example, visitors to the National Art Gallery who collect plastic waste will be invited to join a workshop to turn it into an artwork.
If a tourist decides to take public transport or a bike to the iconic power plant in Copenhagen, they will be offered the unique opportunity to ski on the slope set up on the building's roof.
Copenhagen authorities hope to expand the pilot project and inspire other cities worldwide to launch similar initiatives.
T.D.