The secrets of the world's happiest countries

Telegraph

20-03-2025

The 2025 World Happiness Report has been revealed, and it's bad news for Britain. The annual ranking is based on individuals' own assessments of their lives, and while Finland has nabbed the top spot for the eighth consecutive year, the UK slipped down the table from 20th to 24th place.
What can we learn from the Finns, and other contented nations? We asked residents of, or regular visitors to, four top-performing countries – Finland, Switzerland, Australia and the Netherlands – to share the secrets of a happy society, and suggest holidays that will cheer up even the dourest Briton.
Finland: 'Our happiness is quiet, understated, and deeply connected to nature'
Sarah Marshall
Exploding into spontaneous song isn't a habit I'd immediately associate with Finns. Stereotypically shy and retiring, these Nordic introverts barely whisper in the company of strangers.
But a couple of years ago, while taking the last boat home from Helsinki's sauna island Lonna, I witnessed an impromptu acapella performance that would put pop's biggest extroverts to shame.
It started with gentle finger-tapping on a wooden table. Clapping hands set a rhythm. The humming began and a young girl took centre stage below deck, backed by a merry beer-swigging chorus.
More than the act itself, the uplifting choice of sea shanty was crucial. 'Happy' by Pharell Williams is an appropriate anthem for a country repeatedly declared the merriest nation in the world.
Admittedly, it's an accolade that's dumbfounded many – plunged into darkness and sub-zero temperatures for almost half the year, Finland is hardly the tropical desert island idyll that sums up paradise.
But study the stats and it all adds up: healthcare is publicly funded (reaching 10.3 per cent of GDP), the air quality meets stringent WHO standards, and scores for the EU Gender Equality Index are higher than the European average.
More powerful than government policy, however, is a shared respect for the environment. In Europe's most forested nation, 74 per cent of the land is covered in trees and 90 per cent of urban residents live within 300 metres of a green space.
'Finnish happiness is quiet, understated, and deeply connected to nature,' says Erkka Hivonen, who organises wellness retreats at her hotel RUNO in Porvoo. 'It's found in the stillness of the forest, the rhythm of the seasons, and the simple rituals of daily life. Silence isn't emptiness – it's presence.'
Over 20-plus years of visiting Finland, I too have learnt that happiness isn't always a trumpet-blowing fanfare of raucous celebrations. Mostly it's about contentment, simple pleasures and accepting the urge to 'clap along if you feel like that's what you wanna do'.
A trip to make you happier
A four-night full board Find A Secret to Finnish Happiness stay at RUNO hotel costs from £1,192pp, including healing sessions, guided nature walks, foraging, sauna and meditation. Flights extra. Available May 1 to September 30.
Switzerland: 'Nowhere is safer, and the night-time silence is blissful'
Amanda Hyde
Don't be fooled by appearances: the Swiss can look like a fairly dour lot but they're content on the inside. Despite the country's image, it's not all down to a diet of fresh dairy products and daily frolicking in the mountains either (though they do tend to buy locally, eat seasonally and enjoy a yomp in the countryside).
There may be a high cost of living, but less than nine per cent of people live in poverty, compared with 14 per cent in the UK. Meanwhile, Swiss state education is excellent. And, though healthcare is paid for, it's worth it.
Having had a traumatic birth experience in a London hospital with my first child, I reasoned that giving birth in the cobbled, cutesy town of Vevey – with a language barrier and alien health system – would be even scarier.
That was until I arrived in the maternity department to be whisked into a huge private room, where a nurse immediately started filling up the birthing pool while asking if I fancied an epidural instead and stroking my back encouragingly. I wanted to hug her. In the three days afterwards, my son and I rested in our lake view suite – with baby massages (him) and three course meals (me) designed to get us ready to face the outside world.
Later, living in Zurich and used to London's soundtrack of blaring sirens and planes overhead, I pondered the blissful night-time silence that gave me the best sleep of my life. It turns out there's a ban on air traffic between 11.30pm and 6am, while the city is among the safest in the world. That's the happy thing about Switzerland: there's not much to worry about.
A trip to make you happier
Discover The World's Classic Highlights of Switzerland itinerary takes in Zurich, Montreux (next to Vevey) and the lakeside city of Lucerne, with time to inhale the mountain air of Zermatt and St Moritz too. A 12-night break costs from £2,995pp B&B, excluding flights but including an Interrail pass.
Australia: 'We don't rage about politics, we head to the beach'
Ronan O'Connell
Having spent my first 30 years in Perth, I understood that Australia's standard of living is excellent. But it took a decade residing overseas, and visiting 60-plus countries, to realise just how superior it is.
You already know how good the weather is. And that Australia has a low crime rate, free public healthcare, an excellent education system, minimal pollution, incredible natural scenery, and very low population density. But here's a few less obvious attributes.
Australia suffers far less political and religious division than most countries. As one of the planet's least religious nations, spiritual matters rarely stoke significant unrest. And Australia's politics is nowhere near as incendiary as that of the US or France, for example, where the Left vs Right chasm is yawning enough to split a family.
Few Aussies rage about politics or religion. Often because they're too busy exercising under the sun on one of Australia's endless manicured parks, or thousands of pristine beaches. Or, like me, playing golf 12 months a year thanks to the amiable climate.
Meanwhile, a lack of culture is the main criticism levelled at Australia. This ignores the country's indigenous peoples, who over 65,000 years have developed intricate mythology, pioneered astronomy, and created extraordinary art. All of which is often documented by many of Australia's underrated array of museums, festivals and art exhibitions.
If you wish to sample what makes Australians so happy, take a trip to my home city of Perth. Absorb its relaxed atmosphere, frolic along its majestic coastline, wander pretty parks in the mood-enhancing sun, and explore cultural facilities that celebrate how Australia was producing wondrous art 40,000 years before Stonehenge rose.
A trip to make you happier
Kuoni recommends a 12-night itinerary taking in Perth and Adelaide, as well as Ningaloo Reef and beautiful Kangaroo Island, before finishing with a relaxing few days tasting wines in the Barossa Valley.
The Netherlands: 'They don't prioritise their careers over personal lives'
Ben Coates
There are many reasons for the Dutch to be happy. Theirs is a beautiful little country where incomes are high and crime is low, and public services are generally excellent.
However, for me the most important reason to be happy here is something less tangible: a lack of ambition. Work with Dutch colleagues and you'll quickly realise that compared with Britons and others, they don't prioritise their careers over personal lives, and view a good work-life balance as sacrosanct.
A remarkable 62 per cent of Dutch people work part-time, compared to 41 per cent in the UK and 26 per cent in the US. For, say, a successful man in his 30s to work only four days a week is not considered unusual, but rather a sensible way to live. As a result, the Dutch on average work far shorter hours than Brits, French or Italians.
This means holidays are long, and there's plenty of time for hobbies. Almost everyone here seems to do a sport. Membership of local clubs and associations is sky high, and people spend a remarkable 73 minutes per day seeing friends.
If I need cheering up, I'll leave work early – no-one will mind – and head for a nice little town like Gouda or Haarlem. I'll find a spot on an outdoor terrace, order a coffee and forget about work. It works for them, and it seems to work for me too.
A trip to make you happier
'Nothing compares to the simple pleasure of riding a bike,' said John F. Kennedy. Put this to the test on a one-week cycling holiday with Exodus, taking in Amsterdam, Zandvoort, The Hague, Rotterdam, Gouda and Utrecht. From £1,329, not including flights.